1914-02-07

“One of the most disastrous fires to visit this city in some years broke out shortly before eight o’clock this morning in the big department store of R. McKay & Co., occupying the premises at 55 to 63 King street east.”

          Hamilton Times.  February 7, 1914.

          The big fire at the McKay department had barely been brought under control when the afternoon editions of the Hamilton Times and the Hamilton Spectator had to go to press.

          In the rush, each newspaper reporter filed an account of how the blaze was discovered based on what they had learned – understandably the stories conflicted as little time was available to interview multiple witnesses.

          The Times report read as follows :

          “The alarm was turned in at 8:03 by Charles Wilson, of Wilson Shoe store, a short distance east of the McKay establishment on King street. Mr. Wilson was walking across Gore Park, just as the bells were striking eight, when he noticed smoke coming from the edge of the roof.

          “At first sight, he thought it to be steam, but upon getting closer he became convinced that it was smoke and rushed for his store to turn in an alarm. Noticing two firemen on their way to breakfast, he called them and they rushed into the McKay store while he phoned for the fire department.”¹

               ¹ “$300,000 Fire This Morning in R. M’Kay & Co. Block : Probably Caused by a Gas Heater – Threatened Great Destruction in Early Stage – Well Handled and Quickly Subdued Without Reaching the Adjoining Buildings”

          Hamilton Times.   February 7, 1914.

          The man from the Hamilton Spectator interviewed a different person regarding how the fire alarm was put in :

           “Twenty minutes before the blaze was discovered, the watchman, George Elliott, had made his regular round, which included the workroom, and he noticed no sign of fire.

          “In a short period, the blaze spread with such rapidity that the entire was a mass of flames when the alarm was turned in. That was at three minutes to 8.

          “George Wild, an employee of the Wood Vallance company, noticed the flames as he was ascending the stairs to the general office, which is situated at the rear of the McKay building. He shouted to Thomas Alton, another employee, who ran across the road to the King William street station from where a general alarm was sounded.”²

               ² “M;Kay Building Fire – Started Early Today : $200,000 Damage Done by Flames and Flood : Thrilling Escape of Fireman on Icy Roof”

          Hamilton Spectator. February 7, 1914.

          The fire station had direct access to both John street and Hughson streets near King William and so, however and whenever the firemen were informed of the blaze, they were able to be on scene in minutes.

          No time was lost in laying hose, using every hydrant in the vicinity of the McKay building. Several streams of water were soon playing on the fire.

          Flames were shooting in all directions from the roof as the firemen went to work:

          “Several ladders were raised and streams were played in every window on the third floor, which was the most accessible from King street. Two lines were laid through the windows in the rear, and men were set to work on the adjoining buildings in an effort to prevent the sparks from igniting them.

          “At 8:30 the men had the fire completely under control.”¹

               Despite the short time that the fire fighters were attempting to get the blaze under control, there were two incidents that could have caused serious injuries, or worse, to two different men.

          Fireman Alex Henderson was on the sloping roof of the Wood Vallance building, adjacent to the McKay store, helping with a stream. The water, dripping from the hose he was helping to hold, quickly froze on the roof. At the same, time Henderson’s feet had become somewhat numb because of the cold. When he tried to change his position on the roof, he slipped, lost his footing completely and slid downwards.

          A crowd of onlookers, estimated at about 2,000, saw Henderson slip and slide downwards. All were spellbound as it seemed like Henderson was about to fall from the roof, but he held on to the edge of the roof long enough for some of his fellow fire fighters to rescue him.

          Fireman William Stotts worked out of the Bay street station, but was on his day off, walking along King street, when he heard about the fire at the McKay store.

          Stotts ran to the rear of the McKay building and used a fire escape to enter the building.

          Stotts got into difficulty as the flames were spreading rapidly and the smoke had become some dense. His only escape was to get on the roof :

          “The flames made such headway that they began break through the roof in different places and smoke began to belch out. The north wind drove in the direction of Stotts, and he was gradually forced to crawl to the edge of the roof.

          “In his perilous situation, almost overcome by smoke and the flames creeping on him fast, he was facing death by remaining where he was or taking a gambling chance by dropping to the pavement 40 feet below.”²

               The first fire fighters on scene quickly noticed their comrade’s plight, but urged him to hold for just a few more minutes. The call was made for the net to be brought from the nearby station.

          Stotts was on the point of passing out because of the smoke but he held out until the net was manned and in place. Despite his grogginess, Stotts managed to throw himself far enough away from the building so he would hit it on the way down. The men on the net successfully managed to catch Stotts before he hit the pavement.

          As noted in the Spectator, “five minutes after his hair-raising experience, he was busy fighting the fire.”²

          While the fire at the McKay department store was extinguished relatively quickly, most of the losses suffered by the firm were not because of the fire :

          :Although the blaze was confined principally to the third and fourth floors, many thousands of dollars of damage were done to the stock underneath. Tens of thousands of gallons of water were poured into the building at every angle, and this soaked through the first and second storeys, completely destroying some goods. Everything on the top floor was destroyed, as was the stock on the third floor, on which was located the millinery and mantles.

          “Fortunately the new spring stock had not yet arrived. On the ground floor, less damage was done than was expected. The water ran principally down the elevator shaft to the basement, which was stored with stock, and in this way much valuable stock on the ground floor was saved. The furs and mantles, which were stored in closets on the second floor, and will be removed from the building as soon as suitable quarters can be obtained.”¹

               The fire at the McKay department had barely been extinguished when the management began thinking of the next steps to clean up and prepare water-damaged, but still intact, goods for sale.

          (To be continued and completed in the next day or so…)