K of C Hostel Fire The picture shows the Knights of Columbus Hostel fire which occurred on December 12, 1942. Located at the corner of Harvey Road and Parade St, in St John’s, the hostel was a favourite entertainment haunt of servicemen during the period of the Second World War. The fire claimed the lives of 100 servicemen on that fateful night, due to the pandemonium that ensued. I remember as a boy of seven watching the inferno that evening from the bedroom of our home located just up the street on Merry Meeting Road. In the morning my friend and I viewed the site and watched the firemen collecting burned bodies amid the smouldering ruins; an awful sight, which has remained with me to this day. The fire was considered suspicious and thought to be set by saboteurs. It was thought they had soaked toilet paper in kerosene and strung it between the rafters of the wood frame building before igniting it, but this was never substantiated. (Photo source; “St. John’s: The Last 100 Years” by Fred Adams, 1988) John Cornick Halifax, Nova Scotia   Submitted By: John Cornick