BEST Geo-Art: B06/06
Boyertown, Berks County, PA
The Rhoads Opera House Fire occurred on Monday evening, January 13, 1908 in Boyertown, Pennsylvania. The opera house caught fire during a stage play sponsored by nearby St. John's Lutheran Church. The fire started when a kerosene lamp being used for stage lighting was knocked over starting a fire on the stage. In short order the spreading fire ignited a mixture of lighting gas & oxygen from a malfunctioning stereopticon machine being used to present a magic lantern show at intermission. Audience members waited for the fire to be extinguished by theatre personnel, wasting the precious minutes they needed to escape safely.
The stage and auditorium were located on the 2nd floor and the few emergency exits available were either unmarked or blocked. Two fire escapes were available but were only accessible through latched windows whose sills were located 3 & 1/2 feet above the floor. Of the approximately 400 men, women, and children either in attendance or associated with the performance of the play 171 perished in various ways as they tried to escape the conflagration. In a few instances entire families were wiped out. One firefighter was also killed while responding to the incident.
The Rhoads Opera House fire was a national news story and one of several hellish blazes of the early 20th century that helped spotlight the inadequacy of the nation’s fire safety laws. The incident spurred the Pennsylvania legislature into passing new legislative standards for doors, landings, lighting, curtains, fire extinguishers, aisles, marked exits, and doors. All doors were required to open outward and remain unlocked. Pennsylvania governor Edwin Stuart signed Pennsylvania’s first fire law on May 3, 1909.
The name of the firefighter who was killed responding to the fire was…
A. Jacob Penn (N 40° 28.240 W 075° 55.684)
B. William Graver (N 40° 28.246 W 075° 55.676)
C. Colin Gray (N 40° 28.240 W 075° 55.668)
D. Ronald Marks (N 40° 28.252 W 075° 55.684)
Note: The Rhoads Opera House was located at N 40 19.908, W 75 38.118. A historical marker was placed on June 29, 2008 at Fairview Cemetery, north side of W Philadelphia Ave., Boyertown.
Note: This cache has the hunting attribute selected. Hunters wear orange, and when the time is right, and so should you. During hunting season, it is best to do this series on a Sunday. The majority of the cache containers are hidden within 10 - 20 feet from the trail. Since these caches are hidden in the woods, you will encounter things like wildlife, poison ivy, bugs, ticks, etc. That is just part of geocaching in the great outdoors. Good Luck.