WER: First Newspaper Story of the Peshtigo Fire [2]

[From the EAGLE Extra of Oct. 11th.]

Yesterday morning in company with several gentlemen from Marinette, Wis. and Menominee, Mich., we visited the site of what was once the beautiful and thriving little village of Peshtigo. It contained about 1500 people, and was one of the busiest, liveliest and one of the most enterprising communities along the Bay shore. Standing amid the charred and blackened embers, with the frightfully mutilated corpses of men, women, children, horses, oxen, cows, dogs, swine and fowls; every house shod, barn, out-house or structure of any kind swept from the earth as with the very besom of destruction, our emotions cannot be described in language. No pen dipped in liquid fire can paint the scene--language "in thoughts that breathe and words that burn," gives but the faintest impression of its horrors.

From the survivors, we glean the following in reference to the scene at the village and in the farming region commonly known as the "Sugar Bush:" Sunday evening after church, for about half an hour a death like stillness hung over the doomed town. The smoke from the fires in the region around, was so thick as to be stifling and hung like a funeral pall over everything and all was enveloped in Egyptian darkness. Soon, light puffs of air were felt; the horizon at the south east, south and south west began to be faintly illuminated, a perceptible trembling of the earth was felt, and a distant roar broke the awful silence. People began to fear that some awful calamity was impending, but as yet, no one even dreamed of the danger.

The illumination soon became intensified into a fierce lurid glare, the roar deepened into a howl, as if all the demons from the infernal pit had been let loose, when the advance gusts of wind from the main body of the tornado struck. Chimneys were blown down, houses were unroofed, the roof of the Wooden Ware Factory was lifted, a large ware house filled with tubs, pails, kanakans, keelers and fish kits were nearly demolished, and amid the confusion, terror and terrible apprehension of the moment, the firey element in tremendous inrolling billows and masses of sheeted flame, enveloped the devoted village. The frenzy of despair seized on all hearts, strong men bowed like reeds before the firey blast, women and children, like frightened spectres flitting through the awful gloom, were swept like Autumn leaves. Crowds rushed for the bridge, but the bridge, like all else, was receiving its baptism of fire. Hundreds crowded into the river, cattle plunged in with them, and being huddled together in the general confusion of the moment, many who, had taken to the water to avoid the flames were drowned. A great many were on the blazing bridge when it fell. The debris from the burning town was hurled over and on the heads of those who were in the water, killing many and maiming others so that they gave up in despair and sank to a watery grave.

In less than an hour from the time the tornado struck the town, the village of Peshtigo was annihilated!

Full one hundred perished either in the flames or in the water, and all the property was wiped out of existence!

In the "Sugar Bush" the loss of life was even greater in proportion to the number of inhabitants than in the village. Whole families are destroyed, and over a thickly settled region in the heavy hard wood timber, consisting of two or three townships, there is scarcely a family but is now left destitute, and mourns for the loss of some of its loved ones.

Hon. L. Stephenson of Marinette went yesterday a short distance on the road leading to the upper bush, and counted thirty-seven dead bodies!

Another party informs us that he found over fifty dead on one road, and over forty on another.

In the lower bush the trunks of the fallen trees, lying in every conceivable direction are strewn so thickly over the ground that it must be many days before the entire region can be thoroughly penetrated so as to bury the dead and succor the living!

THE NUMBER WHO HAVE PERISHED

are not yet definitely ascertained, but enough is known, to place first reports far in the back ground. At Peshtigo village, over one hundred were either burned to death or drowned in the river in their efforts to escape the flames. The "Sugar Bush" is divided into what is known as the Upper, Middle, and Lower Bush. From what we can learn, and by gleaning our information from all possible sources, we are quite certain that over sixty were burned to death in the Upper Bush, about seventy-five in the Middle, and fully one hundred and twenty in the Lower Bush, miserably, terribly perished.

Hundreds are maimed and helpless; many of them rendered cripples for life. Thus in one short hour, whole townships were devastated by the fire fiend, nearly four hundred human beings were hurled into eternity by one of the most awful visitations ever known in the history of the world, and the wretched survivors left with nothing to subsist on but such supplies as are and may be contributed by the charities of the people. To the desparing cries for help, the people having their sympathies fully aroused, have and are responding nobly.

The whole country is a scene of devastation and ruin that no language can paint or tongue describe.

There is only one family of any note in the entire Bush that has escaped. This is the fine farm of Mr. Abram Place in the upper bush. He having an immense clearing and protected also by the roads was enabled to save his house, barn and nearly all of his stock and supplies. His house has been an asylum for the suffering ones of that region, and he has rendered them all the assistance in his power.

Yesterday, Mulligan, having in his charge a gang of railroad employees, was engaged in gathering together the remains at Peshtigo and in the immediate vicinity, and identified all that it was possible to identify, and arranging the charred and blackened corpses for burial. He was assisted by his wife and several men, and his efforts have been noble and heroic. He deserves much credit for the good and efficient service he has rendered.

We are saved here at Marinette, as if by a miracle, and we say on our own responsibility, while not wishing nor desiring to draw any invidious distinctions that but for the heroic, self-sacrificing and discreet management of Mr. A. C. BROWN, Marinette and very likely Menominee would now both be in ashes. Hon. L. STEPHENSON, Fred. Carney, A. C. Merryman, R. E. Stephenson, Chas. Shields, Messrs. Gould, McGillie, the Wrights, Prescott, Holgate Bros., McLennan, Cook, in short everybody exerted themselves to the utmost to stay the fire, and by God's help succeeded in saving the greater portion of Marinette.

Nearly all the buildings of any value in Menekaune were consumed in spite of the most despairing efforts, and we are safe in saying that had we been visited by such a tornado of wind and flame as our neighbors at Peshtigo, nothing could have been left of our town.

At Peshtigo and in the Sugar Bush all the cattle, sheep, swine and poultry are destroyed. Miles of country, where but a few days ago existed pleasant farms and an abundance of the necessaries of life, now lie devastated with not a living thing left.

Crowds of people, with teams and supplies, have gone today to gather together such of the remains of the dead as can be found; to pay the last sad tribute to their memory, and perchance succor the few who may yet be living, but to whom no aid has yet arrived.

IN MICHIGAN

Large quanties of property have been destroyed along the bay shore. Twenty-five persons perished at Birch Creek, T. Cole & Co.'s mill at Little River is destroyed, a large number of camps have been burned up river, and several of the men in charge are known to have perished.

LITTLE STURGEON,

In Door Co., Wis., was destroyed on Monday night and 55 persons perished.

Thus has death and destruction reigned all around us and we, by the mercy of God, are yet spared.

Chicago is in ruins, our supply of paper is cut off and we shall be obliged to issue a small sheet this week without our advertisements. Our readers will pardon us, and our patrons generally will favor us under the circumstances.

To-day men and teams, loaded with supplies from various sources, have been pouring into town. The Dunlap House is turned into a hospital; some 30 or 40 are there under medical treatment.

The Saginaw to-day brought from Fond du Lac Drs. Dodge, Deveraux, Mayham, May, Gray, Phillips and other citizens, with medical supplies and delicacies for the sick and badly hurt, also Mrs. Carey, Mrs. Sexsmith, Mrs. Viele and Mrs. Hurd to act as nurses.

Drs. Graham and Stansbury, Prof. Foy and others came from Appleton with supplies. Drs. Gordon, Blodgett, Goe and Russell are here from Oshkosh.

LATER

Mr. Amos Holgate has just returned from the Lower Bush and reports having counted in a shore distance eighty-two dead bodies. Full seven-eights of the inhabitants of this fated settlement have perished. Where was a dense forest, not a tree or shrub is left standing. Frederick Westfall, one of the victims from the Peshtigo disaster, died at the Dunlap House to-day.

An infant child of Mrs.A.Krœsle died at the Dunlap yesterday. It was only 4 or 5 days old; its face was burned badly.

From accounts now in our possession the dead will number nearly 500.

The Davis family of 6 persons were found dead in a well at Peshtigo this evening

Corrected List of Names of the Lost.

Dead from the Upper Sugar Bush, as reported by P. M. BROWN:

L H Hill and wife, Augusta Brackett, John Jackson, James Law, L H McPherson, Miss E Newton (aged 9 yrs), R Newton (5 yrs). Geo Peniree, Alfred Peniree, Joseph Peniree, Chas Peniree and wife, Terence Kelley and daughter, Fred Seymour, Mrs Charlote Seymour, Chas Bush, wife and 6 child, John Taylor and two children, Patrick Doyle, wife and seven children, Harry Jackson (2 yrs) --- Bohrmaster, wife and child, Wm Pape, Mrs Olive Bosworth, A Jackson, Sallie McPherson, P Weinhardt, wife and five children, Wm Duquette, Benj Duquette and wife, Mrs John Utner and two children, Miss Augusta Bartels, L E Spear, wife and two children, Jas Hayes, John Loyal Fred Carrough, wife and one child, also the father-in-law and mother of the party last named, Nelly Oleson, Miss Kasta Oleson and Mrs Anna Oleson.

DEAD IN THE MIDDLE BUSH.

Lindsay Loucks and wife, Mrs M Fagan and 2 children, Mrs Wm Bell, Halsey Fletcher, Mary Fletcher, Mrs Wm Aymar, Joseph Lefevre wife and 4 children, Mattie Curtiss, Wm Curtiss, Mrs Joseph Leasure and 5 children, Mr A A Pratt wife and 2 children, Mrs Henry Hayes Jr and one child, Mr Henry Hayes Sr wife and boy, Miss Belle Glass, Mrs Jane Peniree and 1 child, Wm Elliot, Martin Race wife and 2 children, Chas Chapman wife and child, Norman Davis wife and 3 children, --- Smith wife and 2 children.

DEAD IN THE LOWER BUSH.

C R Towsley, wife and three children, John Hoyt, mother and infant brother, Darius Hoyt, Charles Hoyt, wife and 3 children, Lyman Segear, wife and three children, --- Hoyt Sr., wife and daughter, Robert King, wife and four children, John Church, wife and two children, Walter Newbury, wife and three children, Stoughton Newbury and wife, --- Newbury Sr and one son, Lot Leach and wife, Mrs Peter Leach, N May, wife and three children, --- Ouse, wife and lady visitor, Joseph Cramer, wife and four children, George Meyers, wife and four children, Mrs Hiram Moore and five children, Mrs --- Cook and child, Joseph Deidrich, wife and three children, Mrs Fanny Moore and six children, Charles Strtinz, Wm English, John McGregor and wife, Peter Cheauponteau, Mrs Wm England, James Haves, Chas Helms (died at Dunlap House), wife and child, Mrs Bruce, a daughter and two sons, Mrs Prestine, Chas Lamp and five children, Peter Kiever, wife and child, Mrs Chris Capoose and three children, John Wanikee, Mrs. Perlault and eight children, Wm Aldous, wife and two children, Mrs Wm Jhillips, Mrs --- Sturgeon, Wm Soper, Peter Hanson, wife and two children, son of John Alschwager (died at Dunlap House yesterday).

NAMES OF DEAD AT PESHTIGO AS FAR AS YET ASCERTAINED.

J E Beebee wife and two children, Mrs J J Tanner and 2 chIldren, James Keenan, Mrs Chas Bruette and child, Wm T Thompson and wife, Chas Plush, Mrs Antonie Bruette, Geo Clement, Mrs England and 3 children, Mrs Salomon, James Kerr, Mrs Lottie Seymour and sister's child, Patrick Monaghan, child of J T Potter, son of Frank Jacobs, son and daughter of James Mellen, Dan M'Gregor wife and sister, Mrs Donald LeRoy McDonald and 5 children, James McGregor wife and child, wife and child of Robert Slaughter, Chas Westfall wife and sister, daughter of P J Marshall, Davis family of 7 persons, two sons and a daughter of John Timmer and Mrs. Silas McMinn; Roger Burton (died at Harbor yesterday.)

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