Dec. 1, 1905: BROOKLYN, NY - The steamship Neuenfals had just berthed at the Bush docks on 47th Street after a voyage from the Far East when a fire was discovered onboard. Workers in a forward hold noticed the fire and transmitted the alarm. The docks' fire brigade responded and called for help from the city fire department. Two fireboats responded as well as Brooklyn engines. More than 60 lines were stretched and operated before the ship settled onto the bottom, still moored to the dock.
Dec. 2, 1905: MOSCOW - Revolutionary fervor mixed with smoke in the air over the Russian city. After a year of turmoil, including strikes and riots, troops loyal to Czar Nicholas II were able to put down what would become known as the First Russian Revolution. Politics aside, the conflict left firefighters with a massive fire that reached conflagration proportions.
Dec 3, 1905: RYE, NY - Firemen responding to a blaze in the historic John A. Dix mansion were forced to draft from a duck pond to battle flames in the huge structure. The blaze, believed to be incendiary in origin, was discovered just after midnight. Despite valiant work, the structure could not be saved.
Dec. 8, 1905: HOBOKEN, NJ - Chief Applegate called for mutual aid from Jersey City as flames from a blazing six-story factory building leaped to the five adjoining four-story tenements. For three hours, firemen battled the raging flames before they were able to contain them.
Dec 9, 1905: LOS ANGELES - Flames swept across Echo Mountain, destroying all the buildings except the Mount Lowe Observatory. The fire began just after daybreak and raced upward, consuming the structures in its path. Firemen struggled to divert the flames, but could not stop the loss of a railway powerhouse and numerous other structures.
Dec. 17, 1905: LORAIN, OH - Four lives were lost in a fire that destroyed the Verbeck Theatre. Those killed were a mother and two children who lived in an apartment on the third floor of the building and the stage manager of the theater, who lived in the basement. Firemen made several spectacular ladder rescues of tenants trapped at upper-story windows.
Dec. 19, 1905: NEW YORK CITY - Responding to a pull box, Engine 58 and Ladder 26 arrived at the elevated portion of the New York Central railroad line at 104th Street in Manhattan to find a major train collision with numerous people trapped. Using the aerial to reach the crash site the firemen began the dangerous task of freeing the trapped passengers. One person died and more than 40 people were freed from the wreckage that was in danger of falling to the street below during the entire rescue operation.
Dec. 25, 1905: LOS ANGELES - The Van Nuys Broadway Hotel, one of the city's finest, was destroyed by an early-morning fire. One hundred ten guests, most of whom were sleeping when the fire broke out, were driven to the street in their nightclothes. Flames raced from the basement up an elevator shaft to the upper floors. Rescues were performed over ladders and through the interior as firemen struggled with the thick smoke. Six firemen were seriously injured when the second floor collapsed. The fire extended to several other structures before it was declared under control.
Dec. 25, 1905: HOUSTON, TX - In a series of Christmas accidents, one child was killed and several people were seriously injured. A man's costume caught fire while he was acting as a neighborhood Santa. He was seriously burned from head to foot and was not expected to live. A second man, attempting to light candles on his Christmas tree, accidentally ignited his fake Santa beard and raced to the streets in flames. A young girl was set on fire and killed as an oil lamp exploded. Two separate people were accidentally shot by toy guns and one boy lost an arm when a toy cannon exploded.
Paul Hashagen, a Firehouse contributing editor, is a retired FDNY firefighter who was assigned to Rescue Company 1 in Manhattan. He is also an ex-chief of the Freeport, NY, Fire Department. Hashagen is the author of FDNY 1865-2000: Millennium Book, a history of the New York City Fire Department, and other fire service history books.
