cams_hparker_2311_f003_017_1

San Francisco July 12th 1854

Dear Mother,

A destructive fire broke out
at six O'clock this morning, which came very near
burning us out of "house and home". Fortunately
however we only lost all together, goods &c [etc] to the
amount of about $25. The room which we occupied
for a sleeping room was burned in one hour after
the fire first broke out. Our only loss there which
I cared any thing about was the knife, fork and spoon
which you gave me before I left home. Our clothes
trunks &c [etc.] we were fortunate to save as well as our
beds and bedding. Our stock of goods, which were
only one block from the place where the fire
first broke out we saved in good order. We used
the precaution however to move them although they
would not have been injured if we had let
them remain, still we are not sorry that we
moved them, and taking all things into consid-
eration we consider ourselves very fortunate
indeed. Only night before last, (which was Sunday
night) another fire broke out only a few rods distant
from where the fire first originated this morning
but it was soon subdued with the loss of only
two buildings with their contents, but this morning
forty or fifty buildings have been consumed and