Narrow Escape from St. Mary’s Inferno
A Kennewick woman survives a harrowing hospital fire in Walla Walla that leveled the historic building.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Mrs. J. G. Philson of this city was one of the inmates of St. Mary's hospital, Walla Walla, which was totally destroyed by fire yesterday forenoon. When the news reached this city by telephone, anxiety was felt by Dr. L. G. Spaulding until he ascertained that his patient, along with the other inmates, had been rescued from the burning building. The hospital, dedicated 35 years ago, was completely destroyed by fire which started in the roof. All of the 45 patients were removed to nearby houses and St. Vincent's academy. Father R. Baldricen, the house chaplain, was seriously injured when he attempted to return to the chapel to save furnishings, caught by falling timbers and only saved by the prompt action of firemen.
“As soon as it was seen that the building, which was entirely of wood, could not be saved, the firemen let the flames have their way unhindered.”
While historic St. Mary’s hospital is long gone, the story captures the precarious nature of early 20th-century institutional safety and the tight-knit connection between Kennewick residents and Walla Walla’s healthcare facilities of that era.
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