VICTIM OF THE 1906 EVANSTON GAS WORKS FIRE - Isaac Tarry

This clipping is from the Freeport (IL) Journal-Standard from December 24, 1906:

The fire took place at the Northwestern Gas-Light and Coke Company located on Maple Avenue extending from Clark Street north to University Place in Evanston.  On December 23, 1906, there was a tremendous explosion and fire that started at 10:00 in the morning and was still burning at the end of the day.  Luckily it was a Sunday so the number of potential victims was greatly reduced but the explosion woke up many Evanston residents who may have been dozing as they were attending church services at 10 AM on a Sunday.  It could have been much worse but unfortunately there was one fatality.  A forty-two year old employee of the utility Isaac Tarry (some sources spell his last name "Terry"),  was killed in the explosion.

Before we recount the particulars of the explosion and fire, let's see what we can "dig up" about Isaac Tarry.  

Isaac Tarry was probably born in May of 1864 in Paris, Henry County, Tennessee, but there is no "official" record of his birth.  Although Henry County, Tennessee has been around since 1821, births were not recorded until 1881 and statewide births records were not required until 1908.  Other sources say he was born in 1866.  His parents were Samuel A. Tarry and Mary Graham.  Samuel Tarry was a Farmer by trade.  

Isaac Tarry does make an appearance in the 1870 US Census.  The Tarry family lived in Dukedom, Weakley County, Tennessee.  The family consisted of:  Samuel A. Tarry (64 years old, Mulatto), Mary A. (57, Mulatto), John F. (23, Mulatto), Rox Ann (20, Mulatto),  Manerva (6, Mulatto), and Isaac (4, Mulatto).  In addition there were two of Samuel's sisters living with them:  Clarisa (44, Black), and Rozita (43, Mulatto).  Samuel Tarry listed his occupation as "Farmer", Mary was "Keeping House", Manerva and Isaac were "At Home" and Clarisa and Rozita were "Domestic Servants."  John F. Tarry did not have an occupation listed but it was reported that he was an "Idiot."  The census form indicated that John did not have the right to vote, but it was because of his mental state, not due to "rebellion or other crime."  Remember, times were different in 1870 and it is never appropriate to judge the events of the past by the standards of today.  Samuel Tarry reported real estate of $360.00 ($8,500.00 in today's funds) and personalty of $1,500.00 ($60,000.00 in today's funds).  

The 1880 US Census finds Isaac Tarry still in Dukedom, Weakley County, Tennessee but he is now living with his Aunt Clarisa and Clarisa's daughter Rachal.  All three are now classified as "Black."  Clarisa is 55 years old, Rachal is 30 and Isaac is 16.  Clarisa is a Widow or Divorced, and none of the three could read or write.  Clarisa reported her occupation as "Keeping House," there is no occupation listed for Rachal or Isaac.

In 1886, Isaac Tarry married Ellen Branch.  She was born in about 1867 in Kentucky.  Her father's name was Robert and her mother's name was Julia.  Robert Branch was a Farm Laborer by trade.

Isaac Tarry and Ellen Branch Tarry had five children:

Annie     born 1887

Jessie/Mrs. James Williams  1890-1916

Catrina   born 1892

Willie     1894-1942

Eunice   1895-1940

All five of them were born in Tennessee. 

By the time of the 1900 US Census, the Isaac Tarry family was living in beautiful Evanston, Illinois at 1500 Dewey Avenue:

1500 Dewey Avenue, Evanston, Illinois

The family consisted of:  Isaac Terry (36 years old), Ellen (37), Jessie (9), Catrina (7), Eunice (4), Willie (2) and Annie (13).  In addition, Ellen's mother Julia Branch (56) was living with them.   Isaac reported that he was a "Cab Driver" and that he could neither read nor write.  His wife Ellen reported that she could both read and write.  She also said she had given birth to five children, and that they were all still alive in 1900.  The three older children were "at School."  The Terry family said they were renting their home which was a house and not a farm.  

The 1900 Evanston Directory reported the same information as the census with the additional information that Isaac Tarry was a driver for noted Evanstonian Theo Butler.

The Evanston Directories for 1901-1905 all reported that Isaac Tarry and family were now living at 1715 Greenwood in Evanston:

1715 Greenwood Street, Evanston, Illinois

The Directories also reported that Isaac was a "Driver for Butler's Livery."

That brings us to the fateful day of Sunday, December 23, 1906.  I have combined accounts from several places to give the most complete story of the disaster.  Here's what happened:

At the time of the accident Isaac Terry was an employee of the Northwestern Gas-Light and Coke Company.  Sometime in the late morning (accounts differ as to the time) he was wheeling a wheelbarrow full of live cinders across the top of the coal tar vat.  The dimensions of the vat differed depending on who was reporting the information.  The Evanston Index newspaper reported that the vat was 45 feet across, 15 feet deep and contained 20,000 gallons of coal tar.  The Chicago Tribune reported that the vat was 24 feet in diameter, 8 feet deep, and containing an estimated 12,000 gallons of coal tar.  The Evanston Fire Department History website reported that the vat was 45 feet across, 15 feet deep, with 80,000 gallons of oil in the well. The vat was sunk level with the ground and the top of the vat was crossed with iron girders and covered with heavy planking to form a walk from the door of the engine room to the dump pile. 

The exact cause of the explosion was unknown but is was suggested that perhaps some of the live ashes from the wheelbarrow somehow fell into the coal tar vat, causing a tremendous explosion. 

The shock of the explosion hurled Isaac Tarry thirty feet against the side of the main building.  He died en route to the hospital.  The main building and the retort house suffered heavy damage.  The windows were all broken, doors were blown from their hinges, and part of the roof of the main building was blown off and sent flying a hundred feet.  The force of the explosion was felt throughout Evanston.  On Maple Avenue opposite the plant, David Hendricks was hurled against a fence and stunned.  Richard Hargraves was passing at the time and was thrown against a building, and Edward Smith was injured by flying glass.  Pansy Smith, working in the south end of the yard was struck by a flying timber but escaped without serious injury.

When the three Evanston fire companies arrived, Fire Marshall Carl Harrison saw that nothing could be done to check the blazing tar and the efforts of the pipemen were confined to throwing streams of water on the surrounding structures.  No effort was made to pour water into the tar vat.  It was recognized that it must burn out and that to pour water into it could only result in making the fiery flood overflow upon the ground.

The Evanston Fire Department History website says "Initial firefighting efforts were hampered when the horses pulling Engine 1’s hose-wagon became frightened and ran away immediately upon arriving at the scene after one of the many explosions thundered from the pit, with the horses and the hose cart eventually ending up at Greenwood Boulevard and the lakefront where the fully loaded hose wagon overturned."   

The explosion caused a crowd of bystanders to form.  Churches had just let out and a vast throng of spectators crowded about and watched the firemen work.  It was necessary for the authorities to stretch rope to keep the throng back, since it was feared that there could be other explosions from escaping gas as the fire spread throughout the complex.  The following map shows where the gas works was situated:   

Here is the Sanborn Map from 1899 for the area that encompassed the gas works.  It will give a better idea of the placement of the buildings and other structures on the lot:

For those unfamiliar with the term, a gasometer is a large storage tank for natural gas.

The volume of smoke from the fire was said to be tremendous.  It poured out until the sky was darkened with its blackness.  Here is a photo taken at the time:

There was not much wind blowing and the smoke was carried south at first.  People in Chicago saw the darkened heavens, heard that Evanston was burning up and came out in crowds all afternoon.  The wind veered later in the afternoon and took the smoke right over downtown Evanston and its trail of soot could be seen everywhere.  The fire burned well into the night before it was finally struck out.

The Evanston Fire Department History website says "The entire Evanston Fire Department, most of the Wilmette Fire Department — who responded to the blaze aboard their brand new Seagrave combination truck — and two engine companies from the Chicago Fire Department battled the conflagration until 8 PM, with firefighters pouring nearly a million gallons of water onto the inferno. Chicago F. D. Truck Co. 25 changed quarters to Evanston Fire Station # 1 at the height of the blaze."

The inquest concerning the death of Isaac Tarry determined that the death of Tarry and the explosion were probably due in great part to his own carelessness.  A plank walk was laid over the top of the vat which was level with the ground, and across this the dead ashes from the boilers were wheeled.  A hose was provided and strict orders were in force to have all the ashes thoroughly cooled before they were taken away.  It was surmised that Tarry had taken a load of ashes on his wheelbarrow that were still hot and that a coal from them dropped into the tank as he was crossing it, causing the explosion and fire.

Of course Isaac Tarry was not present at the inquest to give his side of the story.

Isaac Tarry was buried in Chicago's Rosehill Cemetery on Wednesday December 26, 1906.  He was buried in Section 6, Row 62, Grave 18.  Unfortunately his grave is not marked.    

 

It is not surprising that blame for the explosion and fire was laid at the feet of Isaac Tarry.  The Northwestern Gas Works was owned by rich and powerful men who wanted to minimize or eliminate any potential liability they may have had as a result of the accident.

May Isaac Tarry rest in peace.

Amazingly, I believe some of the buildings from the Northwestern Gas Works that were there at the time of the fire in 1906 are still standing today, 118 years later.  Here is an enlargement of one part of the photo of the 1906 fire:

Here is a current photo of the building on the northeast corner of Maple Avenue and University Place:

Here it is from another angle:

and another:

The round windows and arched windows line up perfectly.  The building is currently being used as the Carpenter and Paint Shop for Northwestern University.  

Amazing that the building is still standing and still being used after all these years.

The Evanston Fire Department History website referenced above is part of the chicagoareafire.com website and can be found starting here:

http://chicagoareafire.com/blog/2021/01/evanston-fire-department-history-part-1/

When I was doing the research for this article I found that the 1906 fire was not the first fire to occur at the Northwestern Gas Works in Evanston.  There had been a similar explosion and fire at the site on January 21, 1893.  There were no fatalities in this incident.  One man, Thomas Kern was seriously injured but recovered.  A good portion of Evanston was left in the dark for four days after the fire until gas service could be restored.  The story of that calamity may be covered in a future article for this blog.