Mark S. Rink, January 23rd, 1841
At 1:00 a.m. on Saturday January 23, 1841, fire was discovered in the rear of the Wright and Brothers. Umbrella Manufacturing Company. This four-story stone building was located at 125 Market Street. This fast-moving fire extended to the buildings on either side. At 2:30 a.m. while firefighters Douglas and Rink were coupling a length of hose in the rear of the building, the wall came crashing down on them. One report states that they were warned that the wall was about to topple. But the kept working. The fire raged with such fury that their bodies could not be recovered for some hours. The papers initially reported of a third man trapped under the rubble, but those reports turned were unfounded.
On January 25th Mark S. Rink was buried in the German Lutheran Burial Ground at Eighth and Vine Streets. His funeral was attended by his family and friends and accompanied by a procession of between 2000 and 3000 members of the Fire Department. More than 48 Companies were represented. Mark Rink was to be married in just two weeks.
The Philadelphia Association for the Relief of Disabled Fireman appropriated $100 to Rink’s mother “who has been deprived of her dependence upon her son by his untimely death.”
Mark S. Rink, January 23rd, 1841
At 1:00 a.m. on Saturday January 23, 1841, fire was discovered in the rear of the Wright and Brothers. Umbrella Manufacturing Company. This four-story stone building was located at 125 Market Street. This fast-moving fire extended to the buildings on either side. At 2:30 a.m. while firefighters Douglas and Rink were coupling a length of hose in the rear of the building, the wall came crashing down on them. One report states that they were warned that the wall was about to topple. But the kept working. The fire raged with such fury that their bodies could not be recovered for some hours. The papers initially reported of a third man trapped under the rubble, but those reports turned were unfounded.
On January 25th Mark S. Rink was buried in the German Lutheran Burial Ground at Eighth and Vine Streets. His funeral was attended by his family and friends and accompanied by a procession of between 2000 and 3000 members of the Fire Department. More than 48 Companies were represented. Mark Rink was to be married in just two weeks.
The Philadelphia Association for the Relief of Disabled Fireman appropriated $100 to Rink’s mother “who has been deprived of her dependence upon her son by his untimely death.”
Career History
Volunteer with the Diligent Fire Engine Company