Show FIFTEEN HON SUFFER residents of chelsa massachusetts made homeless by flames and two lives are lost A square mile of territory burned over the manufacturing tenement and retail D strict being scene of worst conflagration in his tory tor of city boston an apparently insignificant fire which started among rags on a dump in the city of chelsea on sun day was fanned by a northwest gale into a conflagration which obliterated nearly one third of the city five hundred dwelling houses and public buildings were destroyed fifteen hun dred families were driven from their homes and ten thousand people are homeless two lives are known to have been lost and from fifty to one hundred persons were injured accurate estimates of the los loss are impossible the city solicitor esti mates it at nearly the fire raged before a 45 mile gale for more than twelve hours defying the utmost efforts of the comb ned fire de apartments part ments of chelsea and several nearby cities and a large detachment of boston firemen and apparatus the fire area which was in the form of an clipse a mile and a half halt long and halt half a mile wide at its broadest part extended diagonally across the city all the banks more than three of the churches half of the busl bust ness blocks and nearly all the school houses were wiped aped out one hospital and a day nursery were destroyed the fire started almost from the ex southwest section of the city and cut a path to the end of maver ick street at the extreme southeast ern end of the city which borders chelsea creek this is about one and a half miles from where the fire be gan the flames spread through the heart of the retail business section which was about midway between the two extreme limits reached by the fire |