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 The Great Bangor Fire Of April 30, 1911 - Bangor, ME Posted by:  T0SHEA
N 44° 48.175 W 068° 45.866
19T E 518629 N 4961084
The history of Congregation Beth Israel dates back to 1888, with the Congregation being formally organized in that year.
Waymark Code: WMT9C1
Location: Maine, United States
Date Posted: 10/18/2016
Views: 0
Though the oldest continuously functioning synagogue in Maine, Beth Israel was not the first Jewish congregation in Maine. The first, Ahavas Achim (Society of Brotherly Love) was formed around 1840, lasting only about 20 years, leaving only a cemetery in its wake.
The cornerstone for the first Congregation Beth Israel synagogue, the first synagogue in Maine, was laid on August 22, 1907 and the building was formally dedicated on December 19, 1907. The Great Bangor Fire Of April 30, 1911 put an end to that building and 266 others, the replacement, the present Congregation Beth Israel synagogue, being built in 1911 and 1912.
The 1911 fire was far and away the worst to plague the city of Bangor, levelling 267 buildings and damaging 100 more. Leaving 75 families and 100 businesses homeless, the total damage in the wake of the fire was $3,188,081.90. With the fire impossible for local fire departments to control, the city called in departments from Waterville, Augusta, Lewiston and Portland. A crew from Boston even jumped on a train headed north, but only made it as far as Portland, where another fire had broken out and they stopped to help.
The only real benefit realized from the fire was the immediate reduction in the use of wood in building construction and the commensurate increase in the use of brick and stone to "fireproof" the city. This was a common reaction in cities which suffered similar disasters at the time.
The Great Fire of 1911
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The Morse-Oliver Building, at the corner of Exchange and State streets, was one of the largest buildings destroyed. |
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Unquestionably the worst disaster to strike the Queen City, the Great Fire of 1911 reshaped the city's landscape, burning 55 acres, destroying 267 buildings, damaging 100 more and causing $3,188,081.90 in losses and damage. The conflagration left 75 families homeless, most of whom had lived from Harlow Street to Center Street to lower French Street. It destroyed more than 100 businesses during a nine-hour span.
Sunday, April 30, 1911, began as any other spring day in the Queen City. Families went to church and a slight wind that is common at this time of year ebbed and flowed throughout the day. But at about 4 p.m. the alarm sounded after a fire was spotted in a hay shed owned by J. Frank Green at 176 Broad St., on the west bank of the Kenduskeag Stream. The fire spread quickly from building to building -- most of which were made of wood, providing more than enough fuel for a conflagration. Embers from the hay shed set ablaze the coal sheds at Bacon & Robinson. As embers multiplied, a strong wind carried them over the Kenduskeag Stream and onto other buildings.
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The remains of what appear to be one of the seven churches and synagogues gutted. |
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The winds were so strong that they carried a burning piece of letterhead from the Morse-Oliver Co. in the heart of the conflagration 2 miles to the front yard of an Essex Street family.
Businesses and homes from the business district to York Street and then to Broadway went up in sparks and smoke. The Bangor Daily News reported that residents calmly evacuated their homes and took as many of their belongings as they could to the Broadway mall.
Flames were visible up to 25 miles away, the paper reported, and residents from neighboring towns flocked to the city to watch it burn. Light from the fire was visible 50 miles away in Bar Harbor, 33 miles away in Belfast and 107 miles away in Brunswick.
Read more at Bangor Info
Type of Structure: Private Building
Construction Date: 01/01/1912
Fire Date: 04/30/1911
Structure status: Still standing building
Cause of Fire:
Unknown, the fire started in a hay shed, possibly spontaneous combustion.
Documentation of the fire: [Web Link]
Other: Not listed
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