New York Herald
21 March 1892
(Viewed online at GenealogyBank.)
BURNED TO DEATH IN A BOARDING HOUSE
Servant Mary Quinn Unable to Free Herself from the Flames in Her Room.
The occupants of Mrs. Lizzie Blum's boarding house, at No. 130 East Fifty-ninth street, were aroused about five o'clock yesterday morning by cries of "Fire!" and the shrieks of a woman, loud at first, then becoming fainter.
The cries came from a room on the top floor, occupied by Mary Quinn, maid of all work, in the five story brown stone boarding house. The girl had worked late the night before, not retiring till nearly midnight. That was the last heard of her until her cries aroused the inmates of the house.
The first person to reach the room was Mr. Dimond, one of the boarders. The girl's room had no gas burner and was without a lamp, the only night light coming from a gas burner in the hall. Dimond says this gas jet was burning when he reached the girl's door. Her room was full of smoke and flame.
Mr. Dimond says he shouted "Fire!" and then called to the girl to come out.
"I can't come out," was the faint reply.
"Can you see me?" asked Mr. Dimond, who stood in the light outside the door.
"Yes," gasped the girl.
"That was the last word she spoke," said Mr. Dimond. "When I saw she couldn't get out and that the smoke was too thick for me to go in I went away."
Some one had sent in an alarm, and when the firemen had put out the flames they found Mary Quinn lying near the bed dead and frightfully burned.
As to the cause of the fire, it is that the girl lighted a match to see what time it was, dropped the match on the floor and fell asleep, to be awakened by [t]he smoke and flames.
Mrs. Blum only knew of the girl that she had said she had relatives at Coney Island. She was Irish, twenty-five years old and reticent. She never went out and said she did not care for "days off." A letter was found among her effects which led Mrs. Blum to believe the girl's real name was Mary McCabe.
Dr. Conway gave a permit for the removal of the body, which was taken to the Morgue. If it is not identified by Wednesday it will be buried in Potter's Field. There will be an inquest.
