1845: The Great Fire of Pittsburgh

The dawn of April 10, 1845, brought a warm, windy day. During a brief interlude in the winds just before noon, Ann Brooks, who worked on Ferry Street for Colonel William Diehl, left unattended a newly stoked fire lit to heat wash water. A spark from this fire ignited a nearby ice shed or barn.

• The fire companies responded, but got nothing but "a weak, sickly stream of muddy water" from their hoses, and the flames quickly spread to several buildings owned by Colonel Diehl, including his home, and to the Globe Cotton Factory.
• The bells of the Third Presbyterian Church had given the original alarm, but the church itself was only preserved by dropping its burning wooden cornice into the street.
• Once saved, its stone walls served as a barrier to the further spread of the fire toward the north and west.
• Then the wind veered to the southeast and gave the fire added vigor; a witness stated that "the roar of the flames was terrific, and their horrible glare, as they leaped through the dense black clouds of smoke, sweeping earth and sky, was appalling.
• Great Fire of Pittsburgh
• April 10, 1845, Fire destroys a third of Pittsburgh
• The Great Fire of 1845

Detail from View of the Great Fire of Pittsburgh, 1846, a painting by witness William Coventry Wall.

• I'm not sure why it says 1846. May be Mr. Wall painted it in 1846.​
• Source​

There were some speedy investigators back in the say. While one day slower, and not as extensive as the 1889 Seattle article, the below piece is still remarkable. It's kinda funny that they killed Mrs. Brooks, the fire starter. She was the only person to die (in this 4/12/1845 version).

Pittsburgh was named in 1758, by General John Forbes, in honor of British statesman William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham. Pittsburgh was incorporated as a borough on April 22, 1794, with the following Act:

• Be it enacted by the Pennsylvania State Senate and Pennsylvania House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania ... by the authority of the same, that the said town of Pittsburgh shall be ... erected into a borough, which shall be called the borough of Pittsburgh for ever.
• Source

Historical population of Pittsburgh:

• 1800 - 1,565
• 1810 - 4,768
• 1820 - 7,248
• 1830 - 12,568
• 1840 - 21,115
• 1850 - 46,601
• 1860 - 49,221
• 1870 - 86,076

Today's Pittsburg looks something like this when looked from above.

Fort Duquesne (originally called Fort Du Quesne) was a fort established by the French in 1754, at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers. It was later taken over by the English, and later Americans, and developed as Pittsburgh in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Fort Duquesne was destroyed by the French, prior to English conquest during the Seven Years' War, known as the French and Indian War on the North American front.

• Fort Duquesne - Wikipedia
• French Fort Duquesne (1754-1758)
• Frontier forts of Pennsylvania

The latter replaced it, building Fort Pitt between 1759 and 1761. The site of both forts is now occupied by Point State Park, where the outlines of the two forts have been laid in brick.

Fort Pitt was a fort built by British forces between 1759 and 1761 during the French and Indian War at the confluence of the Monongahela and Allegheny rivers, where the Ohio River is formed in modern day Pittsburgh. It was near (but not directly on) the site of Fort Duquesne.

• In 1772, after Pontiac's War, the British commander at Fort Pitt sold the building to two colonists, William Thompson and Alexander Ross.
• At that time, the Pittsburgh area was claimed by the colonies of both Virginia and Pennsylvania, which struggled for power over the region.
• After Virginians took control of Fort Pitt, they called it Fort Dunmore, in honour of Virginia's Governor Lord Dunmore.
  • The fort served as a staging ground in Dunmore's War of 1774.
• Fort Pitt (Pennsylvania)

British colonial protection of this area ultimately led to the development of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, Pennsylvania by British-American colonists and immigrants.

As you can see, there were some mastermind planners at work those days. I have hard time picturing early settlers doing something like this.

• Plan of the lots laid out at Pittsburg and the Coal Hill as surveyed by John Hills, 1787

Looking at the below image, I can hardly imagine a population of over 100 people. Establishing, and then proving the historical narrative had to be a rather difficult process. Its execution ended up producing tons of inconsistencies. By the way, where is the fort?

• "Pittsburg in 1790.” - Pittsburgh Prints from the Collection of Wesley Pickard.

If you remember from above, Pittsburgh was incorporated as a borough on April 22, 1794. Per the narrative, in 1800, the population of Pittsburgh was 1,565 people.

• Fort Pitt and Pittsburgh, 1795.

View of Pittsburgh. Oil on canvas by George Beck, 1804. If you can make out anything on the below painting, good for you. All I can see is that humongous hill in the background. Where did this hill come from?

Inscribed "After a sketch by Mrs. E.C. Gibson, wife of Jas. Gibson, Esq. of the Philadelphia bar, while on a wedding tour in 1817." This thing was not drawn to scale. I'd love to see the original sketch.


Plan of the town of Pittsburg, from Georges-Henri-Victor Collot’s "A journey in North America",1826. For whatever reason, but I do not see any significant differences between 1795 and 1826. Per their standard of building cities, that's like 30 years of doing nothing. What's up with that?

1828 Map of Pittsburgh showing the Allegheny and Monongahela Bridges. The other bridge shown across the Allegheny River was part of the Pennsylvania Canal.

Relief shown by hachures; Includes informational text and inset of Lawrenceville; Identifies streets, some property owners and placement of some buildings; Engraved by N. B. Molineux.

• Pittsburgh population in 1830 was allegedly 12,568 people. They really needed all that, and most importantly could do "all that".

This view was taken from the hill behind Sligo. In the foreground is seen a glass-house and dwellings of manufacturers. On the right is the Monongahela Bridge, the Steamboat landing, and the Monongahela House, near the end of the bridge. To the left of that is the cupola of the University, and farther to the left, on high ground, the new Court House, and Cathedral, with the spire of the Presbyterian Church between them. On the left is the Allegheny river, with several bridges leading to Allegheny town: the second bridge sustains the aqueduct of the canal. Beyond these bridges are seen Bayard's town and Lawrenceville.
If this is really 1843, the depicted volume of river traffic is incredible. They had between 21k and may be 30k people at the time. Allegedly...


The below map came from a book I have no trust in. I think the contents are made up and this book is nothing but a narrative to indoctrinate whatever they were indoctrinating at the moment.

• A full account of the great fire at Pittsburgh, on the tenth day of April, 1845​
  • ...with the individual losses and contributions for relief.​

Well, here we go. Cities of Pittsburgh and Allegheny, with parts of adjacent boroughs, Pennsylvania by J. H. Colton & Co., 1855.

Most of the above maps and plans came from here. I will stop at 1855, because our Great Fire of Pittsburgh happened in 1845. The reader is strongly encouraged to browse through some of the images presented on the linked website. Most of them are pretty interesting. Here is an example.

• Concept Plan for the Point, October 22, 1913​
• As you can see, year 1913 was still "ancient Roman".​

I am not sure what's going on with photographs of Pittsburgh dated with 1850s, 1860s, 1870,s and 1880s. The earliest one I found was dated with 1893. For those who think that photo equipment was in its infancy and people simply did not have access to cameras, there you go:

• Early Photographic Equipment​
• 1868: Satchel Cameras for Landscape Photography​

Unless we can collectively dig up some older photographs, the below two 1893 photograph of Pittsburgh will remain the oldest ones out there.

• Here Are The Oldest Photos Ever Taken In Pittsburgh And They're Stunning

I'm pretty sure a few of you noticed that one of the photographs (link) are dated with "from around 1892". This "from around" was exactly why I did not pick it as the oldest.

• I spent less than 10 minutes trying to locate older photographs of Pittsburgh. I do not consider it to have been a diligent search, and would really love to see photographs of Pittsburgh pertaining to 1850s, 1860s, 1870,s and 1880s.​

FYI: Oldest known photographs of cities around the world

The Math: 1893 Pittsburgh - 1838 Paris = 55 years of no Pittsburgh photographs.
As I was finishing this article, I gave it another try. I am not sure what I was able to find, therefore would appreciate your opinion on the below images.

• Roebling's Monongahela Bridge in 1881 just prior to the start of the Smithfield Street Bridge construction.​
• What's going on in the background?​
• Source​

• The Smithfield Street Bridge during construction in 1882. ​
• Note the old Roebling Bridge in operation under the new span.​
  • Source​

• View toward downtown, 1858. (Roebling's Monongahela Bridge)
• Source

I guess searching pays off. It also brings up additional questions. What are these three "ornamental" things up on top.

I still would like to see pre-1890s photographs (like 1860s-1870s) of the city of Pittsburgh. The place is supposed to be brand spanking new. So far I have only seen bridges.

• There are plenty of various prints though.

The Great Fire of Pittsburgh occurred on April 10, 1845, destroying a third of the city. While having little effect on the culture of the city except to spur further growth, it would provide a temporal reference point for the remainder of the century and beyond.

• The city of Pittsburgh originated in the mid-18th century.
• It remained relatively small through the end of that century, but the 19th century brought rapid growth of a population made up of natives of English, Scottish, and German descent, as well as large numbers of immigrants.
• By 1845, its population topped 20,000 and was swelled by crews completing the new Pennsylvania Canal.
• Its outstripped infrastructure provided poor water pressure and an insufficient volume to its ten ill-equipped volunteer fire companies, which were more social clubs than effective public service organizations.
• The year before, the city had completed a new reservoir, but had then closed the old one.
• However, the water lines and pumpers were inadequate. There were just two water mains for the entire city, and the fire companies had insufficient hose to reach the center of the city from the rivers, most of the existing hose having been condemned.

Pardon me but I will repeat this part. The dawn of April 10, 1845, brought a warm, windy day. During a brief interlude in the winds just before noon, Ann Brooks, who worked on Ferry Street for Colonel William Diehl, left unattended a newly stoked fire lit to heat wash water. A spark from this fire ignited a nearby ice shed or barn.

• The fire companies responded, but got nothing but "a weak, sickly stream of muddy water" from their hoses, and the flames quickly spread to several buildings owned by Colonel Diehl, including his home, and to the Globe Cotton Factory.
• The bells of the Third Presbyterian Church had given the original alarm, but the church itself was only preserved by dropping its burning wooden cornice into the street.
• Once saved, its stone walls served as a barrier to the further spread of the fire toward the north and west.
• Then the wind veered to the southeast and gave the fire added vigor; a witness stated that "the roar of the flames was terrific, and their horrible glare, as they leaped through the dense black clouds of smoke, sweeping earth and sky, was appalling."

By 2:00 pm, with the fire throwing embers into the air that then started new fires where they landed, many of the citizens who had been fighting the flames instead fled to save their own possessions.

• During its height, between 2:00 and 4:00, the fire marched block by block through the intermixed structures of Pittsburgh's poor and elite, residences and businesses, with "the loftiest buildings melting before the ocean of flame," which consumed wood, melted metal and glass, and collapsed stone and brick.​
• The Bank of Pittsburgh, thought to be fireproof, fell victim when the heat of the fire shattered the windows and melted the zinc roof, the molten metal igniting the wooden interior and burning all except the contents of the vault.​
• A similar fate met the grand Monongahela House, called the "finest Hotel in the west," when its cupola caught fire and collapsed within, resulting in a total loss.​
• The mayor’s offices and churches fell. ​
• As it spread up Second Street to Market Street it destroyed the region where the city’s physicians had been concentrated.​

Although the flames were intense, they moved slowly enough that residents had time to remove themselves and many of their belongings.

• Some fled to the highlands to the east (the modern Hill District), then undeveloped except for the newly built courthouse, an area which remained untouched by the flames.
• Of those who fled south to the Monongahela River, some were able to cross the Monongahela Bridge (located at the site of the present Smithfield Street Bridge), which connected the city to the southern bank of the river and was the first of what would be many bridges spanning Pittsburgh’s rivers.
• However, this soon became congested, and then the wood-covered structure ignited, being fully consumed in about 15 minutes and leaving nothing but its supporting pylons.
• Those counting on riverboats to take their belongings away fared less well because the boats that did not flee burned, leaving the refugees to pile their belongings on the riverbank.
• Most of this material was burned by the advancing flames, stolen or looted, while the escaping population was typically left with nothing more than they could carry.
• The docks and warehouses on the waterfront were likewise consumed, and as with the residences, attempts to save materials from the warehouses by bringing them to the riverbank only delayed their destruction.
• The fire followed the river into Pipetown, an area of workers' housing and factories, again spreading destruction.
• It only halted when the winds died down about 6:00, and by 7:00 it had fully abated within the city, having burned its way to the river and cooler hills.
• The factories of Pipetown burned on until about 9:00.
• Throughout the night, there were occasional flare-ups along with the repeated sounds of buildings collapsing.

By the morning of April 11, a third of the city was burned to the ground, leaving only scattered chimneys and walls amid the ruins, although occasional buildings were inexplicably left untouched amid the destruction.

• It was said that "the best half of the city" had been burned, an area representing 60 acres, and the entire Second Ward of the city had just two or three dwellings untouched.
• Local artist William Coventry Wall captured this landscape in a series of paintings which he quickly had printed as a lithograph.
  • LOL, right.
• This was published in Philadelphia and saw a broad market, as did prints by Nathaniel Currier in Boston and James Baillie in New York (both of whom based their works on newspaper reports), in line with a growing market for "disaster prints."

• The fire destroyed as many as 1200 buildings, while displacing 2000 families, or about 12,000 individuals, from their homes.
• Household belongings were piled on the hills surrounding the city.
• Surprisingly, only two people died.
• One was lawyer Samuel Kingston, who was thought to have returned to his house to rescue a piano but apparently lost his bearings in the heat and smoke, since his body was found in the basement of a neighbor's destroyed house.
• The other body was not found until weeks later, and is thought to be that of a Mrs. Maglone, whose family had advertised not having seen her since the fire.

• Estimates of the cost range from $5 to $25 million, with one recent author placing it at $12,000,000, which he equated to $267 million in 2006 dollars.
• Almost none of this was recoverable, as all but one of Pittsburgh's insurers were bankrupted by the disaster.

The first response of the city was one of despair, as can be seen in reports to newspapers in other cities and in initial descriptions:

• It is impossible for any one, although a spectator of the dreaded scene of destruction which presented to the eyes of our citizens on the memorable tenth of April, to give more than a faint idea of the terrible overwhelming calamity which then befell our city, destroying in a few hours the labor of many years, and blasting suddenly the cherished hopes of hundreds - we may say thousands - of our citizens, who, but that morning were contented in the possession of comfortable homes and busy workshops.
• The blow was so sudden and unexpected as to unnerve the most self possessed.

The Monongahela Bridge after the Great Fire. Nothing remained of the structure but the stone piers.

However, this mood did not last long and the city was shortly rebuilding. The sudden dearth of structures resulted in skyrocketing property values and a coordinate construction boom that quickly replaced many of the destroyed structures, and after two months, even though "passways [were] scarcely opened through the heaps of stone, brick and iron," 400–500 new buildings had been erected in the burned area.

• Although the new homes, warehouses and shops were built of better materials and improved architecture compared to those destroyed, the problems remained, with industrialist Andrew Carnegie commenting in 1848 on the fire-prone wooden buildings, and later on the smoke and soot-filled air.
• The market for replacement homes and household articles further invigorated the industries, and the fire was held to have "spurred the city to greater growth," an attitude encouraged by Pittsburgh's industrialists.
• This role of the fire was commemorated a century later with a celebration of the anniversary.

I am not positive on the date of the below image. This source says that we have 1847, while the image itself has 1840 written in pencil in the right top corner.

Read: Pittsburgh rose from its ashes almost immediately. Property values skyrocketed, and a construction boom started on April 14, only 4 days after the fire. By June 12, while many streets were still blocked with fire debris, 500 new buildings were either completed or in progress. Fine buildings of brick or stone replaced the destroyed wooden tenements.

• Pittsburgh came back from the great fire bigger and better.
• Source

KD: I'd blame Ann Brooks too. If we were to believe the article from 4/12/1845, she conveniently died in this fire. I'm glad she lived long enough to let someone know that she was the one who started this major Pittsburgh conflagration. On a serious note:

• This is, obviously, another one of them urban fires.
• The fire destroyed as many as 1200 buildings, while displacing 2000 families, or about 12,000 individuals, from their homes.
• Surprisingly, only two (2) people died. (check this stuff out)
  • One was lawyer Samuel Kingston, who was thought to have returned to his house to rescue a piano but apparently lost his bearings in the heat and smoke, since his body was found in the basement of a neighbor's destroyed house.
    • Say what?
  • The other body was not found until weeks later, and is thought to be that of a Mrs. Maglone, whose family had advertised not having seen her since the fire.
  • Figured Ann Brooks had to survive to take the blame.
• Where are 1860s and 1870s photographs of the city of Pittsburgh (like downtown may be)?
  • I'm pretty sure the photographs are out there (could be 1853 one here), but why are they so hard to find?

Look at this courthouse (allegedly) destroyed by fire in 1882.


They say it was built in 1841, and at some point looked like this. I want to see more photographs similar to the one below. There are structures behind, yet we are being fed some sketches.

• In 1830 they had ~13k, and in 1840 ~21k people. What did they need this for in 1843?
  • How many ships do you see on the above-linked image?

Pittsburgh was a thriving and important city during the American Civil War, and provided a significant source of personnel, war materiel, armament, ammunition, and supplies to the Union Army. Situated at the confluence of the Monongahela, Allegheny and Ohio rivers, Pittsburgh was an important transportation hub for both riverine and rail transport, as well as overland via its system of roads.

• We have a gazillion of Civil War photographs they want us to consider authentic.​
  • What do photographs of Pittsburgh during the Civil War look like?​

I just think the amount of any inspectable materials pertaining to the Pittsburgh Fire of 1845 is next to none. We have this 1845 book, some questionable articles and a bunch of sketches. The story line could be rated B, or even C.

• If we do not have a reasonable (comparable to other cities) volume of 1850s-1870s photographs, what could that mean?
  • What could it mean for the chronology of events?

As you can see, I found this fire somewhat interesting. If you have an opinion to share, please use the comments section below.