Great Boston Fire of 1872
E290359
The Great Boston Fire of 1872 was a devastating urban conflagration that destroyed a large portion of Boston’s downtown business district and prompted major changes in the city’s building codes and fire safety practices.
All labels observed (1)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Great Boston Fire of 1872 canonical | 1 |
Statements (49)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
conflagration
ⓘ
disaster ⓘ urban fire ⓘ |
| affectedArea |
Downtown Boston
ⓘ
surface form:
Boston commercial district
Downtown Boston ⓘ
surface form:
Boston financial district
|
| aftermath |
debates over fireproof construction
ⓘ
large-scale rebuilding of downtown Boston ⓘ modernization of Boston’s street layout in affected area ⓘ |
| areaDestroyed | approximately 65 acres ⓘ |
| buildingsDestroyed | approximately 770 ⓘ |
| casualties | about 30 people killed ⓘ |
| cause | likely accidental ⓘ |
| comparedWith | Great Chicago Fire of 1871 ⓘ |
| contributingFactor |
high winds
ⓘ
inadequate water pressure ⓘ insufficient fire-fighting infrastructure ⓘ narrow streets ⓘ overcrowded wooden buildings ⓘ |
| country |
United States of America
ⓘ
surface form:
United States
|
| deathToll | approximately 30 ⓘ |
| documentedIn |
Boston city records
ⓘ
contemporary newspapers ⓘ historical studies of Boston ⓘ |
| economicLoss |
approximately 73 million US dollars (1872) in property damage
ⓘ
one of the costliest urban fires in 19th-century United States ⓘ |
| endDate | 1872-11-10 ⓘ |
| firefightingResponse |
involved mutual aid from surrounding communities
ⓘ
involved use of steam fire engines ⓘ |
| hasLanguageOfPrimarySources | English ⓘ |
| historicalPeriod | 19th century ⓘ |
| involvedOrganization | Boston Fire Department ⓘ |
| ledTo |
changes in insurance practices
ⓘ
improvements in water supply and hydrant systems in Boston ⓘ reform of Boston building codes ⓘ reorganization of Boston Fire Department ⓘ stricter fire safety regulations in Boston ⓘ wider use of fire-resistant building materials in Boston ⓘ |
| locatedIn |
Boston, Massachusetts
ⓘ
surface form:
Boston
Boston downtown business district ⓘ Massachusetts ⓘ |
| notableFor |
destruction of a major American commercial center
ⓘ
influence on urban planning and fire codes ⓘ |
| partOf |
history of Boston
ⓘ
history of urban fires in the United States ⓘ |
| pointOfOrigin |
Summer Street
ⓘ
basement of a commercial warehouse ⓘ |
| precededBy | Great Chicago Fire of 1871 ⓘ |
| startDate | 1872-11-09 ⓘ |
| timePeriod |
Reconstruction era
ⓘ
surface form:
Reconstruction era United States
|
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.