Johnathan Croyle
syracuse.com
(MCT)
破坏了第一个卫理公会教堂的毁灭性大火是锡拉丘兹历史上最悲惨的大火。
而且，可以说，在如此极端的条件下，从未打过大火。
Jan. 15, 1957 was one of the锡拉丘兹历史上最冷的日子。早晨的低温为-24，比持有历史记录的高度仅2度。
下午5:20在历史悠久的南部街教堂（South State Street Church）首次发现火焰时，它仍然冷冻寒冷。
“这看起来像是一场火星的噩梦，因为冰上涂层的消防员插入了他们的任务中，这是旋转的烟雾云，通常填补了狭窄的小块并降低了零的可见性，”后标记的记者如何描述场景。
***
锡拉丘兹的First Methodist Churchdates back to 1824 and was one of the oldest religious congregations in the city.
Its members first met at a one-story log schoolhouse at North Salina and West Genesee Streets before eventually moving to its beautiful new stone church in 1904.
该教堂是从1925年开始使用广播广播电台的首批广播的教堂之一。
Its beautiful stained-glass window was lit daily from 6 p.m. to midnight and became a Syracuse fixture.
备受瞩目的窗户与1957年星期二晚上的寒冷的木材迅速通过教堂的干木材迅速蔓延的火焰没有匹配。
In minutes every firefighter in the city, whether on-duty or off, was at the scene supported by volunteers from Solvay, Liverpool. East Syracuse, Fayetteville, North Syracuse, Nedrow, and more.
一位记者写道：“第一卫理公会教堂的内部类似于爆炸炉的内部房间，而崇拜者仅在不再存在之前就坐了两天。”
数百名围观者在人行道上扎营，并报告一种奇怪的现象。
They said that it sounded as if someone was playing the church organ until the roof collapsed.
后标准说：“曲调没有识别。”“这种现象可能是由于影响膨胀的火焰的热量而导致的，因此噪音听起来像音乐。”
The crowds were almost in peril when the roof and eastern wall of the church fell.
后标准写道：
“A shudder went through the chilled crowd at having escaped so luckily. But the horror that came over faces lasted only a moment. Then spectators surged forward again ignoring warnings to ‘keep back.’ They almost battled police for a better vantage point.”
Three firefighters were injured.
现年59岁的副校长欧内斯特·戈贝尔（Ernest Goebel）双腿受伤。29岁的弗朗西斯·罗切尔森（Francis Rochellson）被掉落的碎片击中时受伤。现年35岁的弗雷德里克·恩兹中尉（Frederick Unz）被掉下来的石头撞到嘴里时失去了几颗牙齿。
詹姆斯·福加蒂（James Fogarty）像那天晚上一样，像无数的消防员在冰冷的水池中度过了几个小时，他的脚都被冻结了。
卡车4的消防员罗伯特·沃德（Robert Ward）是50名从100英尺梯子上击中大火的人之一。在20分钟的间隔结束时，他沿着一个危险的冰上涂层梯子走了下来。
他记得：“最糟糕的是风和喷雾。”“那里感觉就像是一个40英里的大风。”
第一响应者感谢他们获得的支持。
YWCA分发了咖啡，甜甜圈和热狗。救世军提供了50多加仑的咖啡，夜晚寒冷，而美国红十字会则在Onondaga县法院大厅的大厅开设商店，并分发了咖啡和甜甜圈。
They very much appreciated the support of State Street cigar store owner Matthew Naples.
“He gave out gloves, cigarettes and cigars to the fellows, and let them use his phone to call their homes when they stopped in for a minute to get warm,” Stanton Hudson, president of the Syracuse Firemen’s Association, said.
Although the bell tower remained standing, the church was considered a complete loss.
第二天的照片显示，石墙在冰中夹在冰上，在某些地方三英尺厚。
纵火可能发起的大火的想法很快就变得安静了。
Instead, the cause was thought to have been a spark from a torch used by a plumber who was trying to thaw out some pipes in the basement.
烟雾和火在现场持续了48小时。人行道上的冰和从墙壁上掉下来，必须使城市从街上关闭数天。
损失计算在70万至80万美元之间，使其成为十多年来锡拉丘兹最昂贵的火灾。
情绪损失更大。
“Fire is always tragic,” wrote the Post-Standard’s Emily Estey. “Fire in a church is especially sad because a church means so much to so many people.”
主教W. Earl Ledden称毁灭第一卫理公会教会是“对我和锡拉丘兹地区的严重损失”。
锡拉丘兹（Syracuse）的教堂在1月20日星期日为第一卫理公会的会众开了大门。
Rabbi Benjamin Friedman greeted worshippers and Bishop Ledden to Temple Society of Concord.
他说：“只要您需要，这就是您的会众的位置。”
Members worshipped there for months before opening their new church at the old site on Sept. 24, 1961.Rabbi Friedman was the guest of honor in recognition for the aid and hospitality he had shown.
“教堂不仅仅是一个建筑,”艾伯特博士Baner said at the dedication. “We learned that when it burned. There is a spirit that defies the destruction, and which lives on.”
阅读更多
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此功能是CNY Nostalgia的一部分syracuse.com。Send your ideas and curiosities to Johnathan Croyle atjcroyle@syracuse.comor call 315-427-3958.
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