GREAT FIRE AT THE LONDON DOCKS.
A fire broke out shortly before 9 o'clock on Thursday night in one of the huge warehouses of the London Docks. The docks were closed as usual at 4 in the afternoon, and there are then few persons except the night policemen and firemen left on the premises. At about half-past 8, a smell of fire was noticed and shortly afterwards there was an immense burst of flames from the top of one of the vast buildings right in the centre of the docks. The volume of the fire was terrific, but at 9 o'clock the authorities of the fire brigade had heard nothing of the occurrence. Shortly afterwards an alarm was given at the Whitechapel Station, and the officials of the brigade instantly ordered every steamer to proceed to the scene, and the circulation of the news amongst the other stations caused steamers to be sent on from every district in London. On arrival of the engines it was found that a fire of enormous strength was raging in the upper floors of a great building about 150 yards long and half as broad. The flames could not have broken out in a more dangerous part of the docks than the site of this fire - the South Quay Warehouses. They were crammed with colonial produce in the upper floors, and brandy and gin in the lower floors. Through the great iron-barred windows the fire could be seen raging like a furnace, and the enormous tongues of bluish and yellowish flames which constantly burst up with great roars pointed to the fact that spirits were aiding the progress of the flames. Gradually steamer after steamer was got to work, for it was seen that only a great body of water would subdue the fire, and at 10 o'clock the very considerable force of 12 steamers, as well as some hydrants, was fully engaged in playing on the flames. In the breaks in the great building, where the goods are hauled in by means of steam cranes, escapes were pitched, doors broken open, and the fire met face to face. The proceedings of the members of the brigade were particularly exciting when they essayed to burst open huge doors through the cracks of which a fierce fire could be seen raging. The scene at half-past 10 was an imposing one. In the enormous docks, crammed with goods of incalculable value, with vast buildings on every side, and with great vessels in the wet docks, firemen, policemen and dock officers were either watching or aiding in endeavoring to extinguish the fire, while an enormous crowd gathered round the great gates and gazed at the progress of the fire from a distance. In a great shed building close to the fire the steamers had been drawn up in little clusters of twos and threes, and were pumping continuously with a deafening noise, while the horses, which had been unharnessed, stood quietly in couples in every corner. The water poured over the granite stones of the docks in torrents, and the whole scene was brilliantly illuminated by the fire above. The great question was how far the fire would spread; but the opinion of one of the experts that a "hole would be knocked in it directly all the steamers could get to work," was slowly but surely fulfilled as the night advanced. By 11 o'clock the fierceness with which the fire was burning begun to be diminished, and presently the firemen were able to circulate the official "stop" message, stating that the two top floors of the provision warehouse had been nearly burned out and part of the roof destroyed. At midnight, however, the great force of firemen and extinguishing appliances were still at work.
[There were two fires that night in the London docks. The dock fires are mentioned at both the Nichols and Chapman inquests, and provided part of John Pizer's alibi. Here's why the likes of Pizer and Ellen Holland found these fires such a spectacle!]
My Grate Grand Mothers Father worked on the Docks in London at the time this Fire took place. The morning after this fire he picked u these two coins in the rubble of the fire. He kept them and past them down during the years. The story was told to us as children and the coins shown as proof of this event hapening. Holding these coins in your hand fells like you are holding a piece of history and I do believe that any collector csn find themselfs lucky to hold them in there possetion.
