[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 146 (Tuesday, September 4, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1195]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  IN RECOGNITION OF THE PESHTIGO FIRE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. MIKE GALLAGHER

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, September 4, 2018

  Mr. GALLAGHER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 147th 
anniversary of the Great Peshtigo Fire. The Great Peshtigo Fire claimed 
more lives than any other fire in our nation's history, but it is an 
often-overlooked tragedy. Few of us can imagine a blaze large enough to 
consume millions of acres across Northeast Wisconsin and the Upper 
Peninsula. Yet the destructive force of the fire is a powerful 
testament to the resilience of the Wisconsinites who emerged from the 
tragedy and rebuilt from the ashes.
  The year 1871 was a defining moment for the survivors who, with no 
exceptions, lost family members, neighbors, friends, homes, and 
businesses. The village of Peshtigo lost more than half its residents 
to the fire on the night of October 8, 1871. The exact number of deaths 
is uncertain because many loggers traveled in and out of the city each 
day, however, most estimates indicate that more than 700 people died in 
Peshtigo as fire consumed the city. Hundreds more perished in the 
smaller communities spread across the 1.5 million acres destroyed by 
the blaze.
  Although the village of Peshtigo was built on both sides of the 
Peshtigo River, the fire spread too quickly for many to escape. 
Eyewitnesses described the firestorm as a roaring tornado that fell 
from the sky with searing heat. By the following morning, the village 
was reduced to a blackened wasteland in which almost nothing 
recognizable remained. As survivors emerged from the river, they 
discovered that the blaze had melted even metal coins and casks of 
nails.
  The Great Peshtigo Fire occurred during an often-forgotten chapter in 
American history that witnessed three of the worst fires on record 
break out across the Midwest. Although the Great Peshtigo Fire is 
sometimes overshadowed by the Great Chicago fire that occurred at the 
same time, the fire in Wisconsin was far deadlier and remains the worst 
in U.S. history. Indeed, news of the destruction in Peshtigo may have 
been slow to spread because the fire had consumed telegraph wires as it 
burned.
  Despite this unprecedented destruction, the residents of Peshtigo 
gradually rebuilt their city and worked hard to make it a thriving 
community once more. In offering this proclamation today, it is my hope 
that this tragic episode will remain in the public memory. I invite 
this body to recognize the victims of the Great Peshtigo Fire--a blaze 
that stands as our country's worst in both its size and lethality. I 
also want to commemorate the extraordinary resilience of the survivors 
who, though they lost everything, set out to rebuild their lives and 
their town. It is a testimony to their efforts that Peshtigo recovered 
and became a vibrant community again.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all members of this body to join me in 
recognizing the 147th anniversary of the Great Peshtigo Fire of 1871.

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