Enlarge

Men Fighting Forest Fire

Several men fighting a small forest fire. One man has a water pack on his back. View the original source document: WHI 6994

Forest fires scorched Wisconsin's landscape in almost every decade in the 19th and 20th centuries. The most serious disasters occurred between 1847 and 1899, with 1871 as the worst year for forest fires in state history. Rapid settlement outpaced the development of controls and safety measures.

The Peshtigo Fire of 1871 Devastates Northeastern Wisconsin 

The deadliest fire in state history occurred on October 8, 1871 when a massive fire burned portions of eight northeastern counties and obliterated the towns of Peshtigo and Brussels. About 1,500 people were killed in this blaze that is commonly referred to as the "Peshtigo Fire." The Reverend Peter Pernin witnessed the fire firsthand and wrote about his experiences, which you can read in "The Great Peshtigo Fire," a book from the Wisconsin Historical Society Press.

While the Peshtigo fire devastated the region, the rest of the world was focused on another destructive fire: the Great Chicago Fire.

Disaster struck Wisconsin once again in 1894 when forest fires around Phillips in Pierce County burned more than 100,000 acres, destroyed 400 homes, and killed 20 people. In 1898, steamboat captain and lumber foreman John L. Bracklin recalled a close call with a forest fire in a 1917 letter.

New Safety Measures Increase Defense Against Fires

New personnel and patrolling techniques give Wisconsin a new line of defense against forest fires

In 1905, the state appointed 249 town fire wardens with the power to hire firefighters. The state failed to provide these new hires with any equipment. However, fire protection did improve in the following years. In the fall of 1908, fire marshals and the Wisconsin State Forestry Department delivered efficient aid that contained a blaze that had broken out over a wide swath of northern Wisconsin. The state’s first forest rangers were hired in 1911 and a forest protection headquarters was established at Trout Lake.

In 1915, Jack Vilas piloted the first fire patrol above Trout Lake and spotted fires from the air for the first time in state history. Lookout towers and ranger stations sprang up around the state through the end of the 1920s. Fire protection continued to become more organized.

Dry, hot weather conditions contribute to forest fire threat in 20th century Wisconsin

Despite these new protections, fire remained a constant threat. Record-breaking temperatures and periods of drought were set in the 20th century. During the years of the Dust Bowl (1930-1936), severe drought ravaged the state. Roughly 2,950 fires burned annually in this period. Wisconsin also experienced its highest recorded temperature, 114 degrees, on July 13, 1936 at Wisconsin Dells. Drought and fire continued to threaten Wisconsin throughout the remainder of the 20th century. Fires were particularly bad in 1977 when a second year of severe drought led to destructive fires in Wisconsin Rapids, Black River Falls, and in Washburn and Douglas Counties

It is shaping up to be another hot, dry summer in Wisconsin, creating challenges for farmers and threatening many areas with fire. Northern Wisconsin has received less than half its normal rainfall, and rain amounts have been below normal across much of the rest of the state. The risks posed by hot and dry conditions have been a recurring event in Wisconsin history, as drought and fire go hand in hand

Although 1871 was Wisconsin's worst year for forest fires, extensive fires have scorched the state's landscape in almost every decade of the 19th and 20th centuries. The most serious disasters, however, occurred between 1847 and 1899 when rapid settlement far outran the development of controls and safety measures.

One of the first recorded wildfires tore through northern Wisconsin in 1854, running 140 miles from Amery to Iron River. The single deadliest fire in state history happened on October 8, 1871, when a massive fire burned portions of eight northeastern counties, obliterating the towns of Peshtigo and Brussels and killing around 1,500 people. The Reverend Peter Pernin witnessed the fire firsthand and wrote about his experiences, which you can read in The Great Peshtigo Fire, a book from the Wisconsin Historical Society Press.

Although the Peshtigo fire devastated the region, most of the world outside northern Wisconsin was reading about another destructive fire that had stolen the headlines: the Great Chicago Fire. Disaster struck the north again in 1894 when forest fires around Phillips in Pierce County burned more than 100,000 acres, destroyed 400 homes, and killed 20 people. In 1898 steamboat captain and lumber foreman John L. Bracklin survived a close call with a forest fire that he recalled in a letter published in 1917.

Things began to look up in 1905 when the state appointed 249 town fire wardens with the power to hire firefighters. Unfortunately, the state failed to provide any equipment. Fire protection did improve over the following years, however. In the fall of 1908, when forest fires had broken out over a wide swath of northern Wisconsin, fire marshals and the Wisconsin State Forestry Department rendered efficient aid in containing the blaze. The first forest rangers were hired in 1911, and a forest protection headquarters was established at Trout Lake. In 1915 Jack Vilas piloted the first fire patrol above Trout Lake, spotting fires from the air for the first time in state history. Through the end of the 1920s, lookout towers and ranger stations sprang up around the state as fire protection became more organized.

Despite these new protections, fire remained a constant threat, particularly as record high temperatures and periods of drought were set in the 20th century. During the years of the dust bowl, 1930 to 1936, severe drought ravaged the state and roughly 2,950 fires burned annually. Wisconsin also experienced its highest recorded temperature, 114 degrees, set on July 13, 1936, at Wisconsin Dells. Drought and fire continued to threaten Wisconsin at least once a decade throughout the remainder of the 20th century. Fires were particularly bad in 1977 when a second year of severe drought led to destructive fires in Wisconsin Rapids, Black River Falls, and in Washburn and Douglas Counties.

So take care this summer because responsible burning and care are essential to Wisconsin's fire protection — or let Smokey remind you. You can learn more about early firefighting in one Wisconsin city this summer by visiting the Wisconsin Historical Museum's exhibit "We Hurry to the Rescue: The Early Years of Madison Firefighting".