Harrisburg, PA Newspaper Plant Explosion, Mar 1846

TERRIBLE EXPLOSION AT HARRISBURG.

The boiler of the steam-engine by which the presses in the "Democratic Union" office at Harrisburg, are worked, burst on Monday last, with an awful explosion. The engine was situated in the basement of a four story building, and so powerful was the explosion as to force the head of the boiler through the first, second and third stories, carrying every thing before it, to the fourth, where it finally stopped. Almost every case, and many of the forms, were knocked into pi.
The foreman of the establishment, who was engaged at the time in reading proof, was thrown violently against the ceiling, but sustained no very serious injury. A young man engaged in the publication office, was considerably injured, as was also one of the young men in the press room. Several others of the workmen, and one or two of the girls in the folding room, were slightly hurt, but on the whole, the damage to life or limb, considering the terrible nature of the explosion, was so slight as to arise almost to a miracle. MR. LESCURE, one of the proprietors, was also slightly injured by the glass from the windows, which was thrown with great force a distance of twenty or thirty feet.
The wall at the end of the building in which the engine was stationed, was considerably injured, and but for the thickness of the chimney, the whole wall must inevitably have been blown out, and in all probability the whole edifice (which is rather slightly built) would have been a heap of ruins.
During the afternoon it was found necessary to extend heavy props against the building on the opposite side of the alley to prevent its falling.

Republican Compiler Gettysburg Pennsylvania 1846-03-16
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Researched and Transcribed by Stu Beitler. Thank you, Stu!