The Night Fourth Street Lit Up: Ellis's Furniture Warehouse Burns

Fire destroyed the furniture warehouse of Arthur Ellis last night, on Fourth street, near Boundary. The total loss on stock and building is estimated at $5,500, with insurance at $3,800.

The fire broke out shortly after 10 o'clock in the south end of the second floor, as nearly as can be ascertained. Mr. Ellis and daughter were attending the theater and Mrs. Ellis had retired, when she was aroused by a gentleman who first saw the flames issuing from the window of the warehouse, which was about 100 feet from Mr. Ellis' house. He immediately sounded the alarm, to which engine companies No. 2 and Columbia No. 1 responded and were soon playing a heavy stream on the burning building. Mr. Ellis was called from the theater and was driven to the scene, but the building was a mass of flames.

A short distance from the warehouse stood the stables, and the animals there were got out in safety. The glare of the flames lighted the entire east side of the city, which, together with the alarm, took immense crowds of people to the scene. The zealous firemen, with the assistance of some of the spectators, worked heroically to save the stock. They carried out piece after piece until nearly the entire lower floor was cleared. On the two upper floors were stored the more valuable material. Hundreds of chairs of all designs and stacks of mattresses were stored there and all were totally destroyed. Dense volumes of smoke rolled from the eaves, but the lower floor was pretty well cleared before the firemen were forced to retreat, which they did only when the heat was so intense that further work was impossible.

The building was a three story frame, and was located close to Mr. Ellis' home. The origin of the fire is unknown, and Mr. Ellis can advance no theories for the cause.

The loss on the building is estimated at $1,500, with insurance of $500 in the American Central, of which Archibald Adams is the agent, and $300 in the Lancashire with A. W. Wisner as agent. Policies of $1,500 each were held in the Palatine Insurance Co. by Mr. Adams, and in the Imperial of London by Mr. Wisner.

The furniture saved by the firemen will greatly reduce the losses. T. C. Van Epps kindly extended to Mr. Ellis the use of space in the Union block for temporary storage purposes, to which the saved furniture was conveyed.