Essay On The Peshtigo Fire

On the evening of October 8, 1871 the worst recorded forest fire in North American

History raged through Northeastern Wisconsin and Upper Michigan, destroying millions of

Dollars’ worth of property and timberland, and taking between 1,200 and 2,400 lives (Hipke).

The Great Peshtigo Fire of 1871 is the worst recorded forest fire in North American History. The historic fire blazed out of control and burned approximately 1.5 million acres. On the same day, the Great Chicago Fire burned more than 2000 acres, paling in comparison.

The death toll of the Peshtigo fire was also historic, with an estimated death toll of around 2,500 people. It is impossible to determine an entirely accurate death toll due to the fact that the local records were destroyed in the blaze (Wikipedia). Also, so many had died that day that there was no one left to identify the dead (Wikipedia). Comparatively the Great Chicago fire killed around 300 people. The main reason for the high death toll in the Peshtigo fire was the speed and intensity of the blaze, as well as the total lack of emergency signals and warning systems in place at the time.

The large area of land that burned was so vast and encompassing that anyone who may have tried to flee to safety most likely would have ran into another front of the blaze, only to be consumed by it. Survivors said that the fire was so intense that it created a fire tornado that that threw rail cars and houses into the air (Wikipedia). Interestingly, the Great Chicago Fire lives in infamy, and receives more attention in the history books despite it being a much smaller, much less destructive fire. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the Peshtigo fire is that there is no consensus as to what started the fir...

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...to let them know of the impending doom heading their way. Had there been some kind of mounted messenger on horseback, there may have been fewer deaths, but it is unlikely that anyone would have escaped regardless due to the speed of the blaze being so great.

Because of the year, and fact that technologies did not exist yet to provide early warning, there was little that could be done. In the end, The Great Peshtigo Fire is a prime example of the power of uncontrolled fire, and the expansive damage that it can cause when prime conditions exist, and where civilization meets wilderness. Looking at the map of green bay, it is almost incomprehensible to imagine flames so high, and fire tornadoes so intense, that the fire could literally jump over the bay and burn through the peninsula towards Lake Michigan. This fire truly is the greatest fire in American history.