Twenty-Five Years Ago
The Fayerweather Fire
TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO, early on the morning of February 26, 1910, there occurred what could have been Dartmouth's greatest all-time tragedy. South Fayerweather, the newest of the dormitories in Fayerweather Row, was so gutted by fire that only the bare walls rose ghostlike from the ruins. By some miracle, or divine act of Providence, not a life was lost, the fifty-five students escaping with not much more clothing than they began their earthly existence with.
One of those cold, clear, snapping nights which all Dartmouth men have experienced, and shivered in, saw this destruction .... a night so typical of Hanover Plain in mid-winter .... 20 Below Zero .... moonlight .... not a breeze astir .... buildings cracking with intense cold .... dormitories darkened, excepting an occasional room, bespeaking forgetfulness, or an old-fashioned card party .... and filled with sleeping students, sleeping in blanket-laden beds the deep youthful sleep that only the quietude of Hanover permits .... heads swaddled in bedding, pillows, sweaters and what not, as protection against the bitter weather.
At the hour when human vitality is lowest, the throaty voice of the heating plant fire whistle forces its way across the deserted campus .... the skies at the southeast section of the College group become filled with dense black smoke .... "South Fayerweather is burning!"
LEBANON TRIP SAVED LIVES
Cliff Rice and Harold Walker had returned about 2:30 a.m. from Lebanon, a "sentimental journey" that, without question, saved considerable loss of life .. . . . Walker went to room No. 4 which he shared with "Shing" Sherwin, and retired Rice who roomed with Carl Groat in No. 3 retired a few minutes later . . . . he was aroused not long thereafter by a roaring sound .... arising he went into the hall and discovered the ground floor hall partially in flames with the rest of the building filling rapidly with smoke .... Sherwin, who had been awakened by the return of his roommate, and unable to return to sleep, heard the same roar .... joining Rice in the hall for investigation, they found Janitor Joe Ellis' closet center of the spreading fire .... Sherwin gave the alarm in the dormitory while Rice dashed outdoors in search of night watchman, Jake Bond, who was located near Wheeler .. . Jake tried to turn in the alarm near the Chapel but could not open the box .... he ran to the Inn and rang in from there .... within a short time twenty-one members of the Hanover fire department had answered the call, but by this time the building, almost within a stone's throw of the fire whistle itself, was a roaring furnace, beyond saving.
The task of awakening and getting out fifty-one men from the dormitory was exceedingly difficult .... the rapidity with which the flames spread; the dense black smoke from the newly oiled floors, so thick that men, though arm in arm, could not see each other; the time of night, and the great cold, all combined to make the task hazardous and tremendous .... a few students ran through the halls, yelling, pounding on doors, pulling fellow students from their beds .... others tried the fire hose, but it soon became a problem of escaping from the raging flames .... the five-story stairway, the weakest spot in withstanding fire, became a fire filled flue . . . . the stairs collapsed and blocked the main avenue of escape .... men, blinded and choked with smoke, were forced to jump from their windows, two, three stories, into snow banks; shin down water spouts and sheet-ropes; jump to the porch roof, then to ground .... the building had no fire escapes, and ladders were not available .... some of the spouts broke with weight of the men .... as the fire started directly under the main entrance, it is probable that not more than a halfdozen men made their exit that way . . the names of only three such men are known.
A large crowd gathered outside . . . helpless, nervous, and finally horrified in the thought that all might not escape . . . . continuous suggestions of "Jump! Jump!" filled the air .... it was not until noon of the next day that a checkup by College authorities broke the tension with the announcement that everyone was safe .... the campus saw odd-looking costumes, few of the escapees having any of their own clothing, friends coming to the rescue with miscellaneous bits of wearing apparel .... most men went to classes .... some went home for money and newoutfits .... but everywhere, everyone marvelled at the miraculous escapes.
DETAILS UNPUBLISHED HITHERTO
Herb Coar was undoubtedly the individual hero of fire .... the first on the top floor to realize what was happening, he aroused his roommates Ken Clark and Dave Swain, then rushed through the upper stories giving the alarm, finally driven by flames to the roof of the porch where he continued his efforts long after the stairways collapsed .... men, directed by his voice, crawled along the hall floor to the window where he pulled them through .... his bare feet froze, he sprained an ankle but his persistence and courage saved more than one life .... the other fifth-floor roomers, Andy Scarlett and Carl Sawyer (Ray Cutler being home with the mumps) groped their way out with coats over their heads .... one of the narrowest escapes was that of "Red" Wilson who roomed alone on first floor, next to doorway and about four feet from ground .... slow to awaken, he escaped with only a sweater over his pajamas, but peculiarly enough he first went to the closet, removed several college laboratory keys from his pants' pockets, hung the pants back on the hook, and climbed out the window in his pajamas .... "Shing" Sherwin, among many others, froze both ears and nose .... Ken Clark, debater, walked and slid out, pajamas, bare feet, lost all clothes, personal effects and debating notes, yet was able to team up with Cliff Lyon and George Morris to win a debate at Williamstown the following Tuesday .... Chas. Bowker threw his shoes out the window, then jumped after them .... Dave Swain and Ben Burpee among few to have insurance .... Ben picked up mem book, opened hall door, lost his eyebrows and part of hair in blast of flame, banged door, and went down four stories on a water spout, leaving a $700.00 stamp collection to burn .... Inmates of Cell No. 8, Chet Butts and "Babe" Post were a coupla "Beauts," a "Natural" . . . . "Babe" thought he orter go to Boston .... he left his roomate to "Keep Their Home Fires Burning" .... Chet smelled smoke, nose-dove outa the ist floor window to the ground, 1 and 1/4 yds. (metrical measure) and skun his olfactory organ .... "Babe" returns, couldn't locate "The Old Homestead," and ends up at the G. A. R. Hall .... "Spunk" Troy heard that the Butts' watch was still under a pillow in the burning building .... aided by the crowd, he made a thrilling rescue .... Chet Gilbert and "FullDress" Sullivan had enough sense to get Better-Knots by wetting the sheets. "Howie" Dunham and "Fat" Thomas, in bare feet, pajamas, went out window .... "Howie" reported for work at Hunt Club next morning, clad in Hen Gooding's corduroy pants and an old Holy Cross baseball sweater, supporting "H C" across the front .... "Doc" Licklider was one of the first faculty members on the spot .... Mike Hough obligingly returned a new blue suit which he had borrowed from Howard Dunham and worn to Boston at time of the fire ... . Dean Munsey yelled to his roommate, Ted Haskell, "Come on! Let's get the hose out in the hallway and have some fun" .... both freshmen changed their minds quickly when they opened hall door .... they ran to the window, cried "Help!," were advised to jump .... the four stories looked too far .... Dean worked his way on window ledge, by "can" window, to water spout and down to ground .... Ted followed but spout pulled apart about two stories up and gave him a nasty spill .... "Eric" Foster gave his history class a call next day for not having done its assignment .... Nat Burleigh opened hall door, in stumbled Rick Castle and Les Gibson, nearly overcome with smoke, having groped their way down one flight to be cut off by flames at the stairway They borrowed Nat's shoes and disappeared out the window .... Nat threw out clothes, mem book, odds and ends from desk, and jumped in his bare feet .... next day he recovered from ice under the window his watch, still running .... the old "11-19" next clay carried many of the refugees to their homes, it being easy to get cuts excused four days before fire Lloyd Ryford bioke a large mirror while visiting his Randolph, Vt., home with his roommate, Theo Jeweet ("T. D.") .... these two freshmen were awakened by barefooted Herb Coar running around third floor hall . . . ."T. D." pulling on pants but forgetting watch .... Ryford put his hand on stairway railing and it collapsed .... they took the increasingly popular window . . . . "T. D." borrowed Jake Love joy's No. 11 shoes while Jacob remained complacently at his card game .... Math Prof. Haskins presented all So. Fayerweather weather freshmen with new advanced algebras, compasses, pencils and notebooks .... Reuben Copp said to his roomingclassmate, "Well, Mr. Rollins, the buildingis on fire, are you going to get out . . . . or stay there in bed and roast?" .... out the most available third story window they went, Reuben wearing derby, unbuttoned vest, shirt with tails flying, while from each pocket dangled a collection of ties and collars, which he had selected during his house-cleaning of the evening before to throw away .... Art Rollins grieved over loss of suitcase full of fruit cake and other delicacies which he had brought from his West Alton home on preceding day .... several students were still out of town, or had just returned from Washington's Birthday celebration .... "Chuck" Emerson and Max Eaton jumped, without ceremony, in bare feet and pajamas, three stories on back side .... "Chuck" saved his favorite outfielding glove but left se mester's tuition hidden in a book in his closet .... Ray, 4th floor inmate, rushed through wash room, leaped through an open window, and landed, flat, in every known sense of the word .... it was probably the record jump of the night .... but his roommate, Harry Wanner, after recovering from semi-sufEocation took the more leisurely course of departure, tying sheets into a rope .... lost his B. & M. mileage book but the R. R. manage- ment sent him a new one .... Stan Weld and Sid Clark escaped from No. 17, ... . the prize costume was undoubtedly worn by Freshman Sullivan, who wet-sheeted down three stories, dressed immaculately above waist, but below that having nothing but a pair of those ancient-Hanoverlong-heavyweight-drawers.
The roster was .... Room 1, Vail and Goldsborough 'l3: 2, Harris and Hatch '11; 3, Rice and Groat '10; 4, Sherwin '10 and Walker '11; 5, Brewster '12 and Perkins '13; 6, "Red" Wilson '10; 7, Dunham and Thomas '11; 8, Post and Butts '11; 9, Briggs and Dykeman 'u; 10, Emerson and Max Eaton '11; 11, Eeruson '12 and Lawrence '13; 12, Bowker and Perry '11; 13, Elill 'n and More '13; 14, Fulner and Badenhauser '13; 15, Copp and Rollins '10; 16, Jewett and Riford '13; 17, Sid Clark and Weld '12; 18, Bill Gordon and Grant u; 19, Burleigh and Carmichael '11; 20, vacant; 21, Nutt and Smith '11; 22, Ben Burpee 09 and "Stew" Gibson 'n; 23, Haskell and Munsey '13; 24, Gilbert '12 and Sullivan '13; 25, Castle and Les Gibson 11; 26, Taylor '11 and Wanner '12; 27-28, Coar '10, Ken Clark and Swain '11; 29"30> Scarlett and Cutler '10, Sawyer '11 .... of this group Walker, Wilson, Thomas, More, Fulner, Grant and Sullivan are deceased .... Goldsborough is listed as "Lost" .... Vail and Badenhauser as "Disinterested" .... and Carmichael is in an institution for insane .... and peculiarly enough, that roster of fifty-five men has three, Scarlett, Burleigh and Dunham on the faculty at Hanover, Coar also being there until recently .... the rest are scattered from Vail in Portland, Maine, to Rice and Taylor in California .... a few smoke-stained bricks (the walls were found to be usable for the South Fayerweather of today) on the upper left corner of the south side are a grim reminder of what could have been a terrible holocaust.
Dean Emerson wrote Dean Munsey's dad, in part .... "I note what you say about fire escapes and I am happy to say that ropes for every room above the second floor will be put in all rooms where they are not now; these to be placed during the present week. Ladders were ordered for South Fayerweather, and I supposed until after the fire that they had been placed in position. We all have to learn lessons, and we feel thankful now that there was noloss of life nor any serious injury."
Chet Butts 'II standing in window directly below his own roomin South Fayerweather.
Ghostlike, Walls Rose from, the Ruins Not a life lost, not a single injury, in the great fire on the eve of Dartmouth's first Winter Carnival, 25 years ago
