The Great Charlottetown Fire of 1866
Imagine you live in downtown Charlottetown and wake up in the middle of the night. All you can see out your window is smoke and fire. Outside, you can hear people yelling orders, you can hear equipment banging together. You may even hear someone banging on your door to evacuate you. For many Charlottetown residents in the early morning hours of July 15, 1866, this was the reality. That night, four blocks were destroyed in what has become known as Charlottetown's "Great Fire".
How did the Fire Start?
It is unclear what started the fire. What is known is that in the early morning hours, around 2 a.m., a fire began on the southeast corner of the Bagnall Building, which was located at the corner of King Street and Pownal Street. This building was uninsured and unoccupied.
The fire spread quickly. By the time it was out, it had damaged/destroyed about 200 buildings. The fire went along Pownal between Pownal and Dorchester Street; the north side of Water Street, both sides of King Street, and the south side of Dorchester Street were destroyed. The west side of Water Street was scorched but standing. I couldn't find a map that showed how large the damaged area was so I have made one below. That being said, all I had to make this map with was a description of the area.
The Fire
When firefighters arrived at the scene, the Bagnall Building and its outbuildings were on fire. From there, it quickly spread!
As you can image, a fire this large is very dangerous and must have been terrifying for Charlottetown citizens. According to the Charlottetown Herald, on 18 July 1866,
Difficulties in Extinguishing the Fire!
Many factors come into play when firefighters are trying to put a fire out - weather, dryness, and equipment, just to name a few.
Extinguishing this fire took the fire department, citizens, and troops. Even the Lieutenant-Governor joined the bucket brigades and helped to remove property from burning buildings. Women also helped the bucket brigades and the Charlottetown Herald commended their actions.
The city did get lucky that the Catholic Cathedral did not catch on fire. The Cathedral was in danger of catching on fire, but, thankfully did not because the Cathedral was such a tall building that the ashes and other bits of burning wood would go further and could have easily spread the fire much further. As it was, burning shingles were being carried up the Hillsborough River - now image the burning shingles of a much taller building being carried on the wind. Thankfully, the wind was not very high, but it did help spread the fire.
Aftermath
After the fire, the fire department was accused of being inefficient. But, this inefficiency was not the fault of the fire department. They were dependant on hand-pump machines and the water pumps ran dry rather early on in the fight against the fire!
With a fire so large, there were people left destitute. A public meeting was held that afternoon where a committee was appointed to collect subscriptions to help these people and to provide them with food and shelter. Temporary accommodations were made at three locations: Temperance House, Drill Room, and Market House. it was estimated that between 150-200 families were in need of shelter, food, and aid.
It is estimated that property damages reached between £50,000 to £60,000. Unfortunately, insurance would only cover £15,000.
After the fire, the Charlottetown Herald published an article claiming that while the fire was horrible, it did teach an important lesson - that unless the city obtained better firefighting equipment, had a more adequate supply of water, and building codes on wooden buildings in the downtown area were changed, the city would be at a great risk for a similar, and maybe worse, fire in the future. This article continued to say that these issues would not be resolved with the current City Council - as they were responsible for the building of the large, and wooden, Market House. Or as the article called it, the "enormous Lucifer match." The article encouraged people to vote for council members who would focus on fixing these issues and who would act to ensure a similar fire would not happen again.
Steps were also taken to improve the fire department's inadequate equipment. On August 1, 1866, it was announced that the provincial government, banking and insurance institutions, and others would be providing a new steam fire engine and were aiming to provide two hand fire engines, new hose, and efforts were going to be made to build more water tanks and enlarge certain wells around Charlottetown.
This fire did lead to a debate in Charlottetown, should wooden buildings be permitted to be built on this site and elsewhere in Charlottetown? That question will be answered in a future post!
I want to thank the Public Archives and Records Office of PEI for the photos, they were extremely helpful!
On a side note, sometimes newspapers are weird...
On July 18, 1866, the Charlottetown Herald announced the fire, saying
Charlottetown Herald, August 1, 1866.
Charlottetown Herald, July 18, 1866.
Rogers, Irene L. "The Great Fire of 1866." In Charlottetown: The Life in its Buildings, 13-16. Charlottetown: Prince Edward Island Museum and Heritage Foundation, 1983.
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| A view of the aftermath from Pownal Street. (Image Credit: PARO PEI, 3466/HF.74.27.3.105 Charlottetown "Great Fire" Damage, 1866) |
How did the Fire Start?
It is unclear what started the fire. What is known is that in the early morning hours, around 2 a.m., a fire began on the southeast corner of the Bagnall Building, which was located at the corner of King Street and Pownal Street. This building was uninsured and unoccupied.
The fire spread quickly. By the time it was out, it had damaged/destroyed about 200 buildings. The fire went along Pownal between Pownal and Dorchester Street; the north side of Water Street, both sides of King Street, and the south side of Dorchester Street were destroyed. The west side of Water Street was scorched but standing. I couldn't find a map that showed how large the damaged area was so I have made one below. That being said, all I had to make this map with was a description of the area.
 |
| Basically, everything inside red square was destroyed. Keep in mind that buildings in the immediate areas near the red lines would also be damaged and covered in ashes. |
The Fire
When firefighters arrived at the scene, the Bagnall Building and its outbuildings were on fire. From there, it quickly spread!
As you can image, a fire this large is very dangerous and must have been terrifying for Charlottetown citizens. According to the Charlottetown Herald, on 18 July 1866,
"Large flakes of burning shingles were carried for miles up the Hillsborough River and the roar and rush of the flames as they leaped from house to house, might be heard for miles around; whilst the heat was so intense that no person could stand within one hundred yard range of the fire, even on the windward side of it without being almost scorched or suffocated."Cows, pigs, horses, and poultry were also running around adding to the confusion.
Difficulties in Extinguishing the Fire!
Many factors come into play when firefighters are trying to put a fire out - weather, dryness, and equipment, just to name a few.
Extinguishing this fire took the fire department, citizens, and troops. Even the Lieutenant-Governor joined the bucket brigades and helped to remove property from burning buildings. Women also helped the bucket brigades and the Charlottetown Herald commended their actions.
 |
| Queen Street after the fire. As you can see, the buildings are destroyed and you can only see the foundations of some of the buildings. (Image Credit: PARO PEI, 3466/HF.74.27.3.151 Charlottetown "Great Fire" Damage) |
The city did get lucky that the Catholic Cathedral did not catch on fire. The Cathedral was in danger of catching on fire, but, thankfully did not because the Cathedral was such a tall building that the ashes and other bits of burning wood would go further and could have easily spread the fire much further. As it was, burning shingles were being carried up the Hillsborough River - now image the burning shingles of a much taller building being carried on the wind. Thankfully, the wind was not very high, but it did help spread the fire.
Aftermath
After the fire, the fire department was accused of being inefficient. But, this inefficiency was not the fault of the fire department. They were dependant on hand-pump machines and the water pumps ran dry rather early on in the fight against the fire!
With a fire so large, there were people left destitute. A public meeting was held that afternoon where a committee was appointed to collect subscriptions to help these people and to provide them with food and shelter. Temporary accommodations were made at three locations: Temperance House, Drill Room, and Market House. it was estimated that between 150-200 families were in need of shelter, food, and aid.
It is estimated that property damages reached between £50,000 to £60,000. Unfortunately, insurance would only cover £15,000.
After the fire, the Charlottetown Herald published an article claiming that while the fire was horrible, it did teach an important lesson - that unless the city obtained better firefighting equipment, had a more adequate supply of water, and building codes on wooden buildings in the downtown area were changed, the city would be at a great risk for a similar, and maybe worse, fire in the future. This article continued to say that these issues would not be resolved with the current City Council - as they were responsible for the building of the large, and wooden, Market House. Or as the article called it, the "enormous Lucifer match." The article encouraged people to vote for council members who would focus on fixing these issues and who would act to ensure a similar fire would not happen again.
 |
| The last image of the fire I could find! Well, the Public Archives and Records Office of PEI could find, cause that's where all these old photos are from. There are not many because cameras were not exactly popular. (Image Credit: PARO PEI, 3466/HF.74.27.3.100, Charlottetown "Great Fire" Damage, 1866). |
Steps were also taken to improve the fire department's inadequate equipment. On August 1, 1866, it was announced that the provincial government, banking and insurance institutions, and others would be providing a new steam fire engine and were aiming to provide two hand fire engines, new hose, and efforts were going to be made to build more water tanks and enlarge certain wells around Charlottetown.
This fire did lead to a debate in Charlottetown, should wooden buildings be permitted to be built on this site and elsewhere in Charlottetown? That question will be answered in a future post!
I want to thank the Public Archives and Records Office of PEI for the photos, they were extremely helpful!
On a side note, sometimes newspapers are weird...
On July 18, 1866, the Charlottetown Herald announced the fire, saying
"It is our painful duty this week to record one of the most disastrous and destructive fires that has ever visited Charlottetown."This story was located at the bottom of page 2! You would think such a major event would be front page news...
Charlottetown Herald, August 1, 1866.
Charlottetown Herald, July 18, 1866.
Rogers, Irene L. "The Great Fire of 1866." In Charlottetown: The Life in its Buildings, 13-16. Charlottetown: Prince Edward Island Museum and Heritage Foundation, 1983.
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