The fire started in the cellar underneath Stewart and Hemmant's drapery on the corner of
Queen Street and
Albert Street at around 7:40pm. News was conveyed to the police station, where the fire bell rang in alarm, and soon the entire available force was assembled and quickly despatched to the fires location. The doors of the building were broken in, but by this time the interior was 'one vast sheet of flame', with none of its contents salvageable. A crowd of hundreds gathered at the fiery scene, amongst whom was the Governor
George Bowen, accompanied by Captain Carnegie. The Stewart and Hemmant's store could not be saved, so the volunteers-among whom the members of the Fire Brigade No. 1, and their Superintendent, Mr. Edmund Macdonnell, directed their attention to salvaging property in the nearest buildings, which included Gaujard's tobacco divan, and the businesses further up along Queen street. Amongst the volunteers were the Police Magistrate, and nearly the whole of the unpaid Justices, and the Bishops
Tufnell and
Quinn, who were also assisted by a large number of clergymen. A great deal of valuable stock of tobacco and cigars was saved, with soldiers guarding the property. Further up, a number of men headed by Mr. Cutbush got onto the roofs of two small shops, and attempted to pull the structures down. However, due to the heavy use of wood in the town's architecture, the fire progressed rapidly. Two of the men had been caught by the fire on the roof of Williams' Oyster Salon, and stayed on the burning building until it collapsed and they fell into the flames beneath, where they were quickly rescued although Mr. Cutbush was severely injured in the fall. At 8:30pm the fire slowed to a temporary lull due to some of the brick and stone buildings in the fires path, and another attempt was made to save the more valuable properties further up the street. Volunteers began demolishing the Café De Paris, however the extreme heat forced them to retreat. By 9:00pm, the north-westerly wind began spreading the fire down Albert Street and onto Elizabeth Street, however the damage along there was less severe as the buildings were spaced further apart, but in the laneway connected to Albert street running parallel to Queen Street was home to a large number of poor people with small wooden houses, all of which were destroyed. The volunteers emptied the Union Bank's vault of books, securities, and bullion before it too burnt down, while the valuables in Palmer's drapery, Lade's saddlery, and Messrs were saved. Meanwhile, on the opposite side of Queen Street, storekeepers used wet blankets to effectively halt the spread of fire coming over in that direction. By 11:30pm, the last building along Queen street was destroyed, the
Bank of New South Wales, and the flames were halted in George street where the house of Mr. Pillow was demolished, thereby saving the stone building, the Registrar-Generals Office. The new building under construction on the corner of George and Queen streets was also saved, as the contractor had removed all wood from the site. Altogether 50 houses, and many businesses were destroyed, alongside a large number of 'small houses' in the laneways off Albert street. Within just a few hours the main centre of the town had been turned to ruin, with the total cost of the fire valued at £60,000. ==Aftermath==