"What is Peshtigo?" you might ask. It is a reasonable question to ask, and one I asked my Uncle Rob when he stopped us all during dinner one night for a moment of silence. Of course he was shocked that I did not know - naturally as Peshtigo was not in my 4th grade curriculum as it was for him...
In 1871 the "worst recorded forest fire" swept through parts of Wisconsin and Michigan. In that fire the town of Peshtigo was surrounded by flames; the only refuge for the towns people and their animals was their nearby lake. There they gathered thinking logically that the fire could not hurt them, and there they all boiled to death.
The Great Chicago Fire, which just so happened to occur on the same day, is largely remembered as the worst fire in America's history. That fire claimed several hundred lives, while the Peshtigo Fire, now mostly forgotten claimed several thousand.
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In 1871 the "worst recorded forest fire" swept through parts of Wisconsin and Michigan. In that fire the town of Peshtigo was surrounded by flames; the only refuge for the towns people and their animals was their nearby lake. There they gathered thinking logically that the fire could not hurt them, and there they all boiled to death.
The Great Chicago Fire, which just so happened to occur on the same day, is largely remembered as the worst fire in America's history. That fire claimed several hundred lives, while the Peshtigo Fire, now mostly forgotten claimed several thousand.