Woburn, Massachusetts
Loring & Jones Tannery Boiler
Explosion
April 1, 1895
FIVE MEN WERE KILLED
By the Explosion of a Tannery Boiler at
Woburn, Mass,
SIX OTHERS SERIOUSLY INJURED
Of These it is Feared That at Least One
Man Will Die - The Boiler Had Been Examined and
Pronounced Safe on Sunday
WOBURN, Mass. April 2 -- One of
the four eighty horse power steam boilers
connected with the large tannery and currying
shop of Loring & Jones,
on Conn street, exploded yesterday. Four
men were instantly killed and one died on his
way to the hospital, one will die from injuries
and several are painfully hurt. The force
of the explosion wrecked the tannery ....
The dead are Austin
Clements, aged 85 [35?], head curier
[sic] leaves a widow and two children,
Patrick McGonigle,
40, oiler, leaves a widow and three children;
Frank McMahon,
55, currier, leaves a widow and two children,
Patrick Mullaly, 35,
fireman, leaves a widow,
Patrick Riley, 30, currier,
unmarried.
Fatally injured:
Octavius Sanders, aged 35, colored
night fireman, married. The others injured
are: John Kenny,
currier, bad scalp wound,
Patrick Keefe,
currier, scalp wound and several burns,
William Randish,
currier, hip fractured;
James Ryan, currier, burns and
contusions; John
Tracey, currier, burned about the
face.
All the killed and wounded belonged in
Woburn.
Parts of the boilers and engines were lifted
high in the air, and in their descent
practically destroyed all of the plant that had
not been wrecked by the explosion itself.
The loss sustained or the insurance on the whole
has not been stated. The boilers and
engines were insured for $12,000.
Lumps of brick and mortar, which had been
blown 900 feet into the air, fell on a row of
small wooden houses further along on Conn
street, doing considerable damage. Bricks
went through windows and roofs, landing on beds
in which children were sleeping, on tables were
persons were eating, and demolishing substantial
woodwork as if it were made of paper.
About a dozen people in and about these houses
were slightly injured. The terror in the
neighborhood was intense.
The News, Frederick, MD 2 Apr 1895
FATAL BOILER EXPLOSION AT WOBURN, FIVE KILLED
Woburn, April 1. -- The boiler at F. A.
Loring's tannery exploded, this morning killing five persons, and
several others were injured. The explosion occurred a few minutes before 7
o'clock. The building was completely wrecked, an a large chimney, over 80
feet high, fell with a crash, burying 10 or 12 men in the ruins.
The dead are Austin Clements, Patrick
[illegible], Patrick McGonigle, Frank McMahon
and a Mr. Patterson. The force of the
explosion was terrific. The head of the boiler was dropped to the ground
300 yards from the building. Fortunately, the ruins did not take fire.
The Fitchburg Sentinel, Fitchburg, MA 1 Apr 1895
SIX WERE KILLED.
Fatal Boiler Explosion at Woburn, Mass.
A STEAM TANNERY WRECKED.
Terrible disaster from an obscure cause -
Boilers had just been inspected.
WOBURN, MASS. April 1 -- Just before 7
o'clock this morning one of the boilers in the
old Conn tannery in this place exploded with
terrific force killing five men and injuring
five others.
The dead are Austin
Clements foreman,
Patrick Lally
foreman, Thomas Patterson, night foreman,
Patrick McGonagle
oiler and Sam Tracy.
The injured are
Michael McGuire, internal injuries,
Patrick Riley, both legs broken,
Patrick Keefe,
bad scalp would,
John Tracy,
scalp torn oft [sic] and
Herbert Sanders
colored badly burned about the head and several
ribs broken.
There had been trouble with the boiler for
some time and early this morning John Parker
foreman of the plant, was called to the boiler
room to see if it could not be fixed. It
was found that the water supply could not be
satisfactorily adjusted but this was remedied by
the time the tannery opened for the day it was
thought that the boiler was all right.
Five minutes before 7 o'clock Mr. Parker
entered the boiler room and ordered that the
whistle be blown to start the works. The
top attached to the whistle was pulled an
instantly there was a fearful explosion.
The big iron smokestack on the boilerhouse was
blown high in the air, and fell across the roof
of the slop and the tall brick chimney fell in a
thousand pieces crushing the engine room beneath
it. When the smoke and dust cleared away a scene
of wreck and ruin was revealed. Men hurried from
all parts of the town and the works of removing
those buried under the ruins was commenced
immediately.
The piteous cries of the injured pinned under
the debris urged the rescuers on [illegible]
short time the [illegible] had been removed, and
five of the injured had been taken out.
It was then found that one of the two boilers
had been blown to pieces completely wrecking the
boiler house and demolishing several sheds
nearby. The head of the boiler fell 00
[sic] yards from the tannery and the boiler
tubes were scattered in every direction.
The falling chimney and smokestack
practically wrecked the tannery building itself
and the structure will have to be rebuilt.
It is not known who many men were in the tannery
when the explosion occurred but the roll of
employees was called shortly before 11 o'clock
seven men were missing. It is not known
whether or not they had begun work when the
accident happened.
The fire department was called out promptly
and the work of removing the wreckage and taking
out the dead and injured was carried on under
the direction of the fire chief. The
tannery is a three story brick building, and is
fully insured. The boilers which are of
[illegible - 150?] horse power were inspected
only yesterday and declared to be all right.
It is believed that the explosion was caused by
the exhaustion of the water in the boiler.
Patrick Riley
died at the hospital at 12:40 o'clock
making the sixth fatality resulting from the
explosion.
The Herald And Torch Light, Hagerstown, MD 4 Apr 1895
Judge Littlefield, who presided at the investigation into the Woburn
tannery explosion, reports that it was caused by the neglect to connect No 4
boiler on its steam supply with the general system, and that the safety valve
stuck.
The Fitchburg Sentinel, Fitchburg, MA 18 Apr 1895
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