The Fire That History Forgot

Hey All,

An eyewitness account:

By now the air was literally on fire, scattering its agony throughout the town. Men, women, and children, clad in nightgowns and caps, shrieked with horror when they saw their loved ones burned alive. The entire town was a blazing inferno; there was only one escape; the river! Thousands of people… pressed on with terror in their eyes, going further into the river, where they remained the next day and night. Families were separated; little babies tried desperately to secure footing in the mucky river…yet the river wasn’t even safe, for swooping sparks and bits of fire dropped out of the sky burning entire bodies with an instant sweep!

What was described above was a terrifying event that American history has simply forgotten; an event that left 1,200 people dead in less than 10 minutes. The date was October 8, 1871. The place was the tiny logging town of Peshtigo, Wisconsin and it was one of the most severe, under-reported fires not just in American history, but in human history as well. October 8^th was a Sunday, and on that hot, dry (less than two inches of rain that summer) evening, a fire of unknown origins raged though as a giant fireball, engulfing the town, the countryside and everything else in its path.

The population of the town that morning was roughly 2000, and they had been beaten down by relentless drought and heat. In addition to the townsfolk, the population swelled even more, thanks to the abundance of volunteers in town to help fight the small wildfires that were already popping up across the area. There were so many small fires that the smoke hung in the air like a heavy drapery, making it difficult to breathe. At 8:30 pm, there was a dull roar that raised the alarm in the town. Strong winds had whipped the surrounding wildfires into a blazing inferno that was barreling towards Peshtigo. Firefighters quickly threw in the towel, when their buckets of water failed to stop the blaze. The people began to head towards the Peshtigo River.

Suddenly, a surge of flames, roasting at over 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit, blasted into the town. The combination of heat and wind created superheated tornadoes with terrifyingly strong speeds. Sand, debris and burning chards and embers began to rain down on the town, almost as if fire were dropping from Heaven itself. People ran for their lives. Some jumped into wells, only to find the water there boiling; some dropped dead as they breathed, the air being so hot it burned their lungs; the bridge over the river collapsed with hundreds of people on it; some rushed into the river itself, seeking protection, only to be crushed by falling debris or drowned by the multitudes of people crowding in.

DamnInteresting.com notes that the local paper, The Peshtigo Eagle, said of the blaze:

The frenzy of despair seized on all hearts, strong men bowed like reeds before the fiery blast, women and children, like frightened spectres flitting through the awful gloom, were swept like Autumn leaves. Crowds rushed for the bridge, but the bridge, like all else, was receiving its baptism of fire. Hundreds crowded into the river, cattle plunged in with them, and being huddled together in rise general confusion of the moment, many who, had taken to the water to avoid the flames were drowned. A great many were on the blazing bridge when it fell. The debris from the burning town was hurled over and on the heads of those who were in the water, killing many and maiming others so that they gave up in despair and sank to a watery grave.

After 90 minutes, the burning hell’s winds changed direction, the fire blew back on itself and it burned out. The next day, it began to rain.

More than 1,200 people died that day, the entire down (save for one building) was destroyed, and more than 1.25 millions of acres of forest and prairie were charred to nothing.

Despite it all, the town of Peshtigo, Wisconsin still exists.

Thanks for reading.

Next time…