On this date in 1910, the Devils Lake Inter-Ocean reported on the narrow escape of a North Dakota family. The Henry Breah family was traveling to New York City by train. The train had stopped at the Exchange Street Station in Buffalo, New York one night when there was a sudden explosion. Flames shot 40 feet into the air. Windows of the railcars shattered. There were several injuries but no fatalities. It was fortunate that the train was not closer to the explosion.
Mr. Breah explained that he, his wife, and their three-year-old son Irving were at the rear of the coach. They had no idea what had happened, but knew they had to get off the train. They made their way to the door as quickly as possible. Breah helped his wife off the train while she held tightly to little Irving. They were cold and badly shaken, but grateful that none of them were injured.
The incident was caused by an explosion of Pintsch gas, a type made from oil and was highly compressed. It was named for the inventor, Julius Pintsch. After being purified, the gas was compressed into storage tanks. An automatic regulator fed it into burners. The gas was designed to illuminate railroad cars. It was also used in lighthouses and buoys on the Great Lakes and on the ocean.
Pintsch gas offered many advantages. It was very stable and able to withstand the rough movement of railroad cars and ocean buoys. It provided lighting six times greater than the gas commonly used in homes back then. Since it was stored in tanks, there was no need to run pipelines to remote areas.
In spite of its advantages, Pintsch gas could be just as dangerous as any other fuel. Newspapers were full of reports of Pintsch gas explosions. In 1900, an explosion in Hartford, Connecticut injured three people. A 1902 explosion in San Francisco killed two men. Only a few days before the Breah’s narrow escape, an explosion of Pintsch gas in New York City resulted in numerous deaths and many injuries. The property damage of that explosion was estimated to be over one million dollars.
Electricity eventually replaced Pintsch gas and the threat of Pintsch gas explosions came to an end.
Dakota Datebook written by Carole Butcher
Sources:
Devils Lake Inter-Ocean. “Minnewauken People in an Explosion of Pintsch Gas at N.Y.” Devils Lake ND. 30 December 1910. Page 1.
New York Tribune. “Explosion Kills 10; More Than 100 Hurt.” New York, NY. 12/20/1910. Page 1.
Arizona Republican. “Pintsch Gas Explosion.” Phoenix AZ. 9/24/1902. Page 1.
Daily Morning Courier and Journal. “Pintsch Gas Explosion.” Hartford CT. 9/14/1900. Page 3.
Merriam Webster Dictionary. “Pintsch Gas.” https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Pintsch%20gas Accessed 11/26/20
Catskill Archive. “The Manufacture of Pintsch Gas.” http://www.catskillarchive.com/rrextra/sdgas.Html Accessed 11/26/20.
