Peshtigo Fire
The Midwest's Deadliest Wildfire
The Peshtigo Fire took place on October 8, 1871. I had two main questions about the Peshtigo Fire. One of them was, How did the Peshtigo Fire start? I found the answer to this on a website called www.peshtigofire.info. The city of Peshtigo had a drought all summer and the beginning of fall. Wildfires were threatening the forests around Peshtigo, but hadn't hit the city yet. On October 8, nobody was expecting their city to be burned to nothing, but that night a wildfire came rolling in from the west. In just two hours Peshtigo was burned to nothing. The second question I had was how many people were killed by the fire.
The Pestigo Fire Burning Map
This map shows where the fire was, how many estimated deaths in an area, the wind, and where the firestorms were.
In the Fire
People and animals were jumping into the Peshtigo river in hope of surviving, but most drowned or suffocated.
The Swallowed Forest.
The fire burned to the tops of the tallest trees.
Peshtigo