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[Illustration: The Burland Desbarats Lith. Co. Montreal

RUINS OF THE GERMAIN ST. BAPTIST CHURCH BY MOONLIGHT.

From a Sketch by John C. Miles, Artist.]




  THE STORY
  OF THE
  =Great Fire in St. John, N.B.=
  JUNE 20TH, 1877.

  BY
  GEORGE STEWART, JR.,
  _OF ST. JOHN, N.B._

  =Toronto:=
  BELFORD BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS.

  ST. JOHN, N.B.: R. A. H. MORROW; MONTREAL, P. Q.:
  DAWSON BROS.; TORONTO, ONT.: JAS. CLARKE &
  CO.; DETROIT, MICH.: CRAIG & TAYLOR;
  BOSTON: LOCKWOOD, BROOKS & CO.




[Illustration: PAPER MANUFACTURED BY CANADA PAPER COY MONTREAL]

Entered according to the Act of Parliament of Canada, in the year one
thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven, by BELFORD BROTHERS, in the
office of the Minister of Agriculture.

  HUNTER, ROSE, & CO,
  PRINTERS AND BINDERS.
  TORONTO.




  TO
  _GILBERT MURDOCH, C. E._,
  MY FIRST FRIEND,
  I DEDICATE THIS VOLUME.
  =The Author.=




CONTENTS.


CHAPTER I.
                                                                   PAGE
  The Great Fire--Its Extent--Its Terrible Rapidity--A Glance
  Backward--What the People Passed Through--The First Fire--
  Protective Movements--The People who Lent the City Money--
  Minor Fires--Fire of 1823--The Great Fire of 1837--The
  Calamity of 1839--The Trials of 1841--The King Street Fire          9


CHAPTER II.

  The Late Fire--Its Origin--Bravery of the Firemen--The High
  Wind--The Fire's Career--Fighting the Flames--Almost Lost--
  The Escape from the Burning Building--Destruction of Dock
  Street--Smyth Street in Flames--The Wharves--Demolition of
  Market Square--Something about the Business Houses there--
  The Banks--Fire Checked at North Street                            19


CHAPTER III.

  The Fire in King Street--Recollections--The Old Coffee House
  Corner--The Stores in King Street--The Old Masonic Hall--The
  St. John Hotel--Its Early Days--The Bell Tower--King Square--
  A Night of Horror--The Vultures at Work--Plundering the
  Destitute                                                          27


CHAPTER IV.

  The Fire in Germain Street--The First Brick House in St. John
  --Old Trinity--The Loyalists--Curious Ideas about Insurance--
  The Rectors of Trinity--The Clock--The Royal Arms                  36


CHAPTER V.

  The Old Curiosity Shop on Germain Street--A Quaint Old Place
  --"Rubbish Shot Here"--Notman's Studio--The Mother of Methodism
  --Destruction of the Germain Street Methodist Church--Burning
  of the Academy of Music--The Old Grammar School--Presbyterians
  among the Loyalists--The "Auld Kirk"--Saint Andrew's--The Grants
  of Land--Legislation--The Building of the Kirk--Ministers--The
  "Victoria" in Flames--Fascination of the Fire--The "Victoria"
  in Ruins--What might have saved it                                 48


CHAPTER VI.

  The Odd Fellows' Hall--The Fire in Horsfield Street--The sweep
  along Germain Street--The Old Baptist Church--Some Early
  Ministers--Two Fiery Ordeals--The Brick Church--The Ruins--The
  Bay View Hotel--An Old Landmark Gone--The Blazing Barracks--St.
  James's--The Hazon House--St. Malachi's Chapel--The First Roman
  Catholic Church                                                    65


CHAPTER VII.

  A Hard-Working Manager--The Dramatic Lyceum--The Temperance
  Hall--The Water-Works Building--A Hard Fight--Another Rush
  of the Homeless--The Weary March of the Unfortunates--History
  of the Water Supply--Early Struggles--Changes--The Old Way--
  The St. John Water Company--Placed in Commission--The Company
  to-day                                                             76


CHAPTER VIII.

  Burning of the Leinster Street Baptist Church--The Varley
  School--Centenary Chapel--The Gas Works--$17,000 worth of Coal
  burned in Ten Days--The Tall Sentinel--St. David's Kirk--The
  Reformed Presbyterian Church--The Victoria School--Gigantic
  Ruins--An Accident--Sketch of the School-house                     90


CHAPTER IX.

  Queen Square--Incidents in the Burning--The Old Pitcher--"God
  is burning up the World, and He won't make another"--Saved
  from the Flames--Overtaken by Fire Three Times--The Night of
  Terror on Queen Square--Alone amidst Perils--The Lone House
  on the Square--Three People under a Table--The Sailor--"If I
  die to-night, sir, hunt them up"--The Escape--The Deserted
  Streets--An Anomaly--The Marine Hospital--What a few Buckets
  of Water did--The Wiggins Orphan Asylum--The Block in
  Canterbury Street--The _News_ Office--Savings Bank                101


CHAPTER X.

  Incidents--An Old Corner Burned Down--The Lenders and Borrowers
  --"Twenty per Cent."--The Shylocks of the Curbstone--The Human
  Barometers--The Vultures of Commerce--Chubbe's Corner--The
  Old Commercial Bank--The _Telegraph_ Office--The Bank of
  New Brunswick--A Hard Worked Cashier--The Post Office--Not
  a Mail Lost--Quick Dispatch--The Nethery House and Orangemen
  --The Royal Hotel--The Custom House--The Dead of the
  Conflagration                                                     114


CHAPTER XI.

  The Old House on the Hill--A Wily Commissary--The Bags of
  Gold--What was Done at Midnight--The Dead of Night Deposit--
  The Old Vault--A Timid Money Lender--Mr. Peter Johnson--The
  Board of Commissioners--The Old Gentleman's Little Joke--The
  Inspection--How it was Discovered--The Fight with the Flames
  --"How much will I Get"--What he Got--The Oil Barrels--Dashing
  the Water on the Kerosene--A Lively Time on Reed's Point
  Wharf--The Bridge of Fire--On the Ferry-Boat--The Western
  Union Telegraph Office--The First Despatch                        129


CHAPTER XII.

  A Thrilling Incident--The Burning House--The Tall Figure on
  the Hall--Escape Cut Off--The Only Way Out--The Street of
  Fire--Walking on Coals--The Open Boat--The Way to the Wharf
  --Terrible Suffering--The Awful Death on the Street--Worn
  Out--The Escape--Saved--The Firemen--How they Fought the Flames   144


CHAPTER XIII.

  A Chapter of Incidents--Agony on Board--Coming Up the Harbour
  --The Story of the Moths--The Newly Married Lady's Story--No
  Flour--Moving Out--Saving the Drugs--The Man with the Corn
  Plasters--Incendiarism--Scenes--Thievery--The Newspapers--
  Enterprise--Blowing Down the Walls--An Act of Bravery--The Fatal
  Blast--Danger and Death in the Walls--Accidents--The Fire and
  the Church--The Ministers                                         155


CHAPTER XIV.

  "I went againe to the ruines, for it was no longer a Citty"--
  The Drive by Moonlight--Through the Ruins--After the Fire--A
  City of Ashes--The Buried Silver--The Sentinel Chimneys--The
  Home of Luxuriance--A Recollection--The Moon and the Church--
  Back again                                                        167


CHAPTER XV.

  Aid for St. John--The First Days--How the Poor were Fed--
  Organization of the St. John Relief and Aid Society--Its
  System--How it operates--The Rink--The Car Shed--List of
  Moneys and Supplies received--The Noble Contributions             175


CHAPTER XVI.

  The Odd Fellows and the Fire--Relief Committee at Work--
  Searching out the Destitute Brethren--Helping the Sufferers
  --The Secret Distribution of Aid--List of Donations               203


CHAPTER XVII.

  The Losses of the Masonic Fraternity--Great Destruction of
  Masonic