On This Day

The deadliest fire in United States history began on this day in 1871 in northeast Wisconsin.

 Remembered as The Great Peshtigo Fire it is frequently overshadowed by the Great Chicago Fire which began on the same date. 

The Wisconsin fire was by far the most tragic. 

It destroyed most of the southern half of the Door Peninsula and adjacent portions of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The largest community in the affected area was Peshtigo, Wisconsin. Some incorrectly assume that the fire in Peshtigo jumped across the waters of Green Bay – yet the likely cause was a combination of weather conditions and the contribution of smaller fires from land-clearing activities on both shores of the bay.

The firestorm consisted of super-heated flames of at least 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit, advanced on tornado-like winds of 110 miles per hour or stronger. The diameter of such a fire ranges from one thousand to ten thousand feet. 

You cannot outrun it.

It is estimated that between 1,200 and 2,500 people were killed during the fire and millions of dollars of property and timberland were destroyed. Twelve communities were obliterated. Over 1.5 million acres (2,400 square miles) of forest burned. The true death toll will never be known as all local records were destroyed in the conflagration and bodies were incinerated beyond all recognition.

Remembered locally as ‘The Tornado’- it was the greatest wildfire in recorded history.