It seems like everyone knows about the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 (and the famous ditty about old Mrs. O`Leary’s lantern, knocked over by the cow). But, how many know about the larger fire of the same time in Peshtigo, WI? On the evening of October 8, 1871, a fire in Northeastern Wisconsin (including Peshtigo) took between 1200 and 2400 lives. Over 1.2 million acres were burned. In fact, basically the whole town of Peshtigo was destroyed in an hour, many saving themselves in the river. There were reports of associated tornadoes “throwing rail cars and houses into the air”. The fire burned both sides of Green Bay. One of the contributing factors was the dry summer of 1871. Father Pernin reported “The air was no longer fit to breathe, full as it was of sand, dust, ashes, cinders, sparks, smoke and fire. It was almost impossible to keep one’s eyes unclosed, to distinguish the road or to recognize people….”. Come to the NWA and learn more about the Great Peshtigo Fire.
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/grb/peshtigofire.php
http://articles.latimes.com/2011/oct/09/travel/la-tr-peshtigo-20111009
It’s quite interesting that this is posted and quite appropriate. There actually will be a talk during the General Sessions on Monday, October 8th, that analyzes the weather conditions associated with this terrible fire, which the date also happens to fall on the anniversary of the Great Peshtigo Fire!