Troy, New York, USA
1896 - SEWING GIRLS CREMATED. BETWEEN TWENTY AND THIRTY BURNED TO DEATH IN TROY. ONE EXIT FOR 300 PEOPLE.

FIVE GIRLS JUMPED FROM WINDOWS AND THREE MET INSTANT DEATH - LARGE LIST OF INJURED AND MISSING - BOY'S CARLESS MATCH STARTED A BLAZE AND A PANIC FOLLOWED.

Troy, N.Y., Feb. 17. - There is mourning in the homes of Troy collar girls tonight. An untimely and fearful death overcome many of them late this afternoon. Working girls, whose day's labor was almost over, were cut down almost without warning by fire.

Three girls jumped to death from a burning building.

Distracted, agonized mothers waited for the return of their daughters at night and they waited in vain.

Bright, pretty collar girls, who had left their homes in the morning, full of life and health and spirit never lived to tell that tale of agony, torture and death. Their poor, charred bodies are now resting under tons and tons of red-hot embers, stone and brick.

Identity even when found will probably be impossible. The scene was one that Trojans will never forget. It is a black page in the city's history, unparalleled in its century of existence.

The fire started in J. Stettheimer & Co.'s shirt waist factory and Van Zandt & Jacobs' collar factory, situated in the same building, at 3 o'clock this afternoon. There were 300 girls at work in the establishments.

The flames spread so rapidly that the narrow stairway, which was the only exit outside of the fire escapes in the rear, was almost immediately cut off and during the panic that followed five girls jumped from the windows, three of them to their death, and many others were injured.

The Dead:
MRS. HORBART, jumped from window.
MRS. KANE, jumped from window.
MRS. FOLEY, jumped from window.
The Missing:
MISS MAMIE DANKS.
MISS KITTY O'CONNOR.
MISS KANE.
MISS FOLEY.
The Injured:
MISS MAMIE DAY, injured and bruised.
MISS LILLIE KREIGER, badly bruised and burned.
MISS MAMIE ROURKE, driven insane by shock.
MISS MAMIE DOWNS, almost suffocated.
MISS ANNETTE HARRINGTON, face and hands burned.
MISS LILLIE OUTHOUT, West Troy, badly burned.
MISS CLEMENTINE LLOYD, Lansingburgh, badly and perhaps fatally burned.
MISS GERTRUDE LLOYD, Lansingburgh, badly and perhaps fatally burned.
MISS JOHNSON, Lansingburgh, badly bruised and burned.
JAMES ROSS, crushed by falling walls, leg broken and seriously injured.
Officer BURKE, crushed by falling walls, condition serious.
Officer GUY, badly bruised.
Officer WATSON, scalp wound and bruised.
ALFRED CASEY, fireman, Osgood company, spine injured.
JOHN ORMSBY, fireman, Osgood company, knee hurt.
JOHN BOLAND, fireman, Eddy company, scalp wound and leg broken.
JAMES QUINN, a boy.

It is believed by everybody, even the proprietors and employes in the shops that about twenty girls were overcome before they reached the street and were burned up in the building.

People who are familiar with the interior of the building and know how limited were the means of escape, place the total lost at least thirty.

The scene of the catastrophe was at the corner of Broadway and River Street, a portion of the city characterized for its immense business buildings. The structure is known as the Burdette building, is six stories in height and was occupied by J. Stetheimer & Company, manufacturer of ladies shirt waists, whose factory was situated on the fifth floor; Van Zandt & Jacobs, manufacturers of collars and cuffs, who occupied the three floors below, and a restaurant, and saloon on the ground floor. There were also several other minor enterprises carried on in the building.

The fire, which ended so disastrously, started in the fifth story, in the part occupied by Stetheimer & Company.

About 5:25 o'clock this afternoon a little boy attempted to light the gas in what is known as the cutting department. This is where the goods of which the shirt waists are cut are kept. He climbed up on the cutting table and lighted the gas. Then he threw the match, which was still burning, to the floor, and it ignited a pile of scrap fabric. In an instant there was a crackling of fierce and uncontrollable flames and the room was filled with smoke.

MISS LILLIE KREIGER, a girl, realized the imminence of the peril, and at the risk of her own life, rushed through the different departments of the building and warned the employes of the danger. Nothing but the bravery of a volunteer fireman saved her from death.

When the employes in the fifth story realized that the fire was beyond control and was likely to prove disastrous, a scene of great panic immediately ensued. The girls rushed about the room, some of them found their way down the stairway, others succumbed to the dense smoke and sank to the floor and some jumped from the dizzy height of the RIver Street windows to the pavements below. About half of the girls who were employed on the top floor thought of the fire escape and found their way to the ground in safety.

For twenty minutes after the fire started the scene was the most exciting ever witnessed in Troy.

During this time there was a continuous panic and in the rush for a place of safety many were injured. The crush on the stairway was something frightful.

About 200 men and women attempted to make their escape by this exit at the same time. Many were trampled underfoot; the ones who were in front were knocked from their feet and thrown to the landings, and some are said to have been left unconscious on the stairway.

The majority of the employees finally reached the street, but they were so overcome by excitement that it was impossible to learn from them how many had been left in the building. Quite a number found their way out by means of the fire escapes.

The scene was a most exciting one. The girls fairly threw themselves down the ladders to reach the ground quickly, and the firemen had their hands full in carrying the girls down the ladders from the terminus of the escape.

Probably the most heartrending scenes were those witnessed on the streets. The mothers and other relatives of the girls who were at work in the factory soon learned of the disastrous fire and hurried to the scene.

They gathered around the burning building, distracted with grief and fear, making anxious inquiries for the loved ones.

Some of them attempted to rush up into the burning building and the officers and bystanders found it difficult to restrain them. A number of women were soon on their knees on the ice-covered pavements crying piteously to heaven for assistance.

The spread of the flames was remarkable. There was a strong wind blowing at the time and in less than it takes to tell it the building was afire from top to bottom. Twenty streams of water seemed to have no effect and there was every indication early in the evening that the entire block would be consumed.

The fire extended into the big structure north, gutted it; the Western Union building was burned out and it was not until about four hours after the fire started that it was under control. The loss will probably reach $400,000.

The three women who were killed by jumping from the windows were almost unrecognizable when picked up, so fearfully were their heads
crushed.

Many of the injured were those caught under falling walls.
While the fire was raging in the Kenmore Restaurant, Thomas Rozzo, an Italian peanut vender, who kept a stand in front of the place and who was inside, had a narrow escape from death.

One of the huge timbers fell on him and he was imprisoned in the ruins with fire on every side. Officers Burke, Watson, Guy and James Quinn, a boy, went to his aid. More of the wall fell in and the policemen were each badly bruised and cut. Officer Burke was so badly injured that he was taken to his home. The others returned to duty.

Young Quinn was struck on the chest by falling timbers and badly suffocated. He is quite seriously injured. The Italian was rescued later and taken to the hospital.

The firemen who were injured were caught under falling walls.

Superintendent of Police Willard made a careful investigation this evening and reported shortly after midnight that it is almost certain that twelve girls were burned up in the buildings. He believes that there were many more who never escaped alive and the names of many more who perished cannot be learned until tomorrow.

The Morning Times
Washington, D.C.
February 18, 1896

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