Dunedin was last night afflicted with the most terrible fire that has yet occurred within its bounds.
For the first time, both sides of a street were simultaneously blazing fiercely. A whole block of buildings, on one side of Princes street - including the Criterion and the Octagon Hotels, and the Theatre Royal - has been wiped out of existence by flame; on the other side, all that was accessible has disappeared, except the South Australian Hotel: and it was rather by a merciful good fortune than by anything it was possible to do, that the fire did not extend across Moray Place to the Glasgow Arms Hotel, on one side, and to the shop of Messrs Parke and Curle, ironmongers, on the other, and so, in double column, march through the Cutting to the very heart of the city.
Whether or not the actual money loss by last night's destruction of property will prove to exceed that caused by the Stafford street fire, in January 1864, we cannot now pretend to suggest; but we are sure that a greater extend of ground has now been covered with ruins.
We subjoin a list of the premises destroyed.
We begin with the westerly side of Princes Street, and go southward, from Mr Willson's, into the Octagon:- J. Harding's Octagon Hotel. Jago and Co., Octagon timber yard. Law, Somner and Co., nurserymen and seedsmen. J. M. N. Simpson, butcher. A. and T. Burt, plumbers. Garrett and Co., Octagon coach factory.
On the southerly side of Mr Wilson's, the premises were - Herbert, Haynes and Co, drapers and clothiers. Paterson and M'Leod, grocers, and wine and spirit merchants. James de Maus, photographer. G. R. West, pianoforte and music seller. Sontgen and Carr, tailors. James Reid, chemist and druggist. J. Zierck, fancy warehouse. Theatre Royal. Criterion Hotel, P. Barker. A small Boarding House. S. H. Johnson, plumber and gasfitter. A Cottage.
On the easterly side of Princes Street, there were burned down the premises of - C. Begg, pianoforte and music dealer. Hamilton and Watson, furniture dealers. Scanlan Bros. and Co., oil and colour merchants. W. Gregg and Co., coffee and spice merchants. Schnack and Co., hairdressers and bath-keepers. W. Sinclair, tailor. J. R. Crawford, surgeon. Frederick Tofield, watchmaker and Jeweller.
- April 20
