Great New Orleans Fire (1788)
Encyclopedia
The Great New Orleans Fire (1788)
was a fire that destroyed 856 of the 1,100 structures in New Orleans, Louisiana
on March 21, 1788, spanning the south central French Quarter from Burgundy to Chartres Street, almost to the riverfront buildings.
An additional 212 buildings were destroyed in the Great New Orleans Fire (1794)
on December 8, 1794.
fire started about 1:30 p.m. at the home of Army Treasurer Don Vincente Jose Nunez, 619 Chartres Street at Toulouse Street, less than a block from Jackson Square (Plaza de Armas), and within five hours consumed almost the entire city fed by a strong wind from the southeast. The fire destroyed the original Cabildo
and virtually all major buildings in the French Quarter
including the city's main church, the municipal building, the army barracks, armory, and jail. Only two fire engines were operational and they were destroyed by the fire. Louisiana Governor Esteban Rodríguez Miró
set up tents for the homeless.
The fire area stretched between Dauphine Street and the Mississippi River and between Conti Street in the south and St. Philip Street in the north. It spared the Mississippi River front buildings. Among the buildings spared was the Customs House, the tobacco warehouses, the Governor's Building, the Royal Hospital and the Ursulines Convent.
The Spanish were to replace the wooden buildings with structures with courtyards, thick brick
walls, arcades, and wrought iron balconies. Among the new buildings were the signature New Orleans buildings of St. Louis Cathedral
, the Cabildo
and the Presbytere
.
Governor Miro's
report summarized the suffering:
After just 6 years of rebuilding, on December 8, 1794, another 212 buildings were destroyed in the Great New Orleans Fire (1794)
. Still a colony of Spain, rebuilding continued in Spanish style, and most French architecture was eliminated from the French Quarter.
was a fire that destroyed 856 of the 1,100 structures in New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
on March 21, 1788, spanning the south central French Quarter from Burgundy to Chartres Street, almost to the riverfront buildings.
An additional 212 buildings were destroyed in the Great New Orleans Fire (1794)
Great New Orleans Fire (1794)
The Great New Orleans Fire was a fire that destroyed 212 structures in New Orleans, Louisiana on December 8, 1794, in the area now known as the French Quarter from Burgundy to Chartres Street, almost to the riverfront buildings....
on December 8, 1794.
History
The Good FridayGood Friday
Good Friday , is a religious holiday observed primarily by Christians commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death at Calvary. The holiday is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum on the Friday preceding Easter Sunday, and may coincide with the Jewish observance of...
fire started about 1:30 p.m. at the home of Army Treasurer Don Vincente Jose Nunez, 619 Chartres Street at Toulouse Street, less than a block from Jackson Square (Plaza de Armas), and within five hours consumed almost the entire city fed by a strong wind from the southeast. The fire destroyed the original Cabildo
The Cabildo
The Cabildo was the seat of colonial government in New Orleans, Louisiana, and is now a museum. The Cabildo is located along Jackson Square, adjacent to St. Louis Cathedral.- History :The original Cabildo was destroyed in the Great New Orleans Fire...
and virtually all major buildings in the French Quarter
French Quarter
The French Quarter, also known as Vieux Carré, is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. When New Orleans was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city was originally centered on the French Quarter, or the Vieux Carré as it was known then...
including the city's main church, the municipal building, the army barracks, armory, and jail. Only two fire engines were operational and they were destroyed by the fire. Louisiana Governor Esteban Rodríguez Miró
Esteban Rodríguez Miró
Esteban Rodriguez Miró y Sabater , also known as Esteban Miro and Estevan Miro, was a Spanish army officer and governor of the Spanish American provinces of Louisiana and Florida....
set up tents for the homeless.
The fire area stretched between Dauphine Street and the Mississippi River and between Conti Street in the south and St. Philip Street in the north. It spared the Mississippi River front buildings. Among the buildings spared was the Customs House, the tobacco warehouses, the Governor's Building, the Royal Hospital and the Ursulines Convent.
The Spanish were to replace the wooden buildings with structures with courtyards, thick brick
Brick
A brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...
walls, arcades, and wrought iron balconies. Among the new buildings were the signature New Orleans buildings of St. Louis Cathedral
St. Louis Cathedral, New Orleans
Saint Louis Cathedral , also known as the Basilica of St. Louis, King of France, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans; it has the distinction of being the oldest continuously operating cathedral in the United States...
, the Cabildo
The Cabildo
The Cabildo was the seat of colonial government in New Orleans, Louisiana, and is now a museum. The Cabildo is located along Jackson Square, adjacent to St. Louis Cathedral.- History :The original Cabildo was destroyed in the Great New Orleans Fire...
and the Presbytere
The Presbytere
The Presbytère, also known as The Presbytere, is an important historical building in New Orleans, Louisiana and is located in the French Quarter along Jackson Square, adjacent to the St...
.
Governor Miro's
Esteban Rodríguez Miró
Esteban Rodriguez Miró y Sabater , also known as Esteban Miro and Estevan Miro, was a Spanish army officer and governor of the Spanish American provinces of Louisiana and Florida....
report summarized the suffering:
- If the imagination could describe what our senses enable us to feel from sight and touch, reason itself would recoil in horror, and it is no easy matter to say whether the sight of an entire city in flames was more horrible to behold than the suffering and pitiable condition in which everyone was involved. Mothers, in search of a sanctuary or refuge for their little ones, and abandoning - their earthly goods to the greed of the relentless enemy, would retire to out-of-the-way places rather than be witnesses of their utter ruin. Fathers and husbands were busy in saving whatever objects the rapidly spreading flames would permit them to bear off, while the general bewilderment was such as to prevent them from finding even for these a place of security. The obscurity of the night coming on threw its mantle for a while over the saddening spectacle; but more horrible still was the sight, when day began to dawn, of entire families pouring forth into the public highways, yielding to their lamentations and despair, who, but a few hours before, had been basking in the enjoyment of more than the ordinary comforts of life. The tears, the heartbreaking sobs and the pallid faces of the wretched people mirrored the dire fatality that had overcome a city, now in ruins, transformed within the space of five hours into an arid and fearful, desert. Such was the sad ending of a work of death, the result of seventy years of industry.
After just 6 years of rebuilding, on December 8, 1794, another 212 buildings were destroyed in the Great New Orleans Fire (1794)
Great New Orleans Fire (1794)
The Great New Orleans Fire was a fire that destroyed 212 structures in New Orleans, Louisiana on December 8, 1794, in the area now known as the French Quarter from Burgundy to Chartres Street, almost to the riverfront buildings....
. Still a colony of Spain, rebuilding continued in Spanish style, and most French architecture was eliminated from the French Quarter.