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Fire

The Great Fire of 1861

December 1861

Fire broke out on the evening of 11 December 1861 and burned a swathe across the peninsula from the Cooper to the Ashley, gutting Institute Hall, the Circular Church and the Cathedral of St. John and St. Finbar. The burnt district it left was still unrepaired when the Federal photographers arrived in 1865.

Photographs

All That Was Left of Secession Hall — All That Was Left of Secession Hall1861–1865 · Institute Hall

Cathedral of St. John and St. Finbar — Cathedral of St. John and St. Finbar1861–1865 · Cathedral of St. John the Baptist and St. Finbar

Looking East Along Broad Street — Looking East Along Broad Street1861–1865 · Broad Street

Ruined Buildings from Circular Church — Ruined Buildings from Circular Church1861–1865 · Circular Congregational Church

Ruins of the Cathedral (second view) — Ruins of the Cathedral (second view)1861–1865 · Cathedral of St. John the Baptist and St. Finbar

Ruins of the Cathedral — Ruins of the Cathedral1861–1865 · Cathedral of St. John the Baptist and St. Finbar

Secession Hall Before the Fire — Secession Hall Before the Fire1861–1865 · Institute Hall

The Fire-scarred Mills House — The Fire-scarred Mills House1861–1865 · Mills House

The Fire that Leaped across the Street — The Fire that Leaped across the Street1861–1865

The Mills House Looking North — The Mills House Looking North1861–1865 · Mills House

The Mills House with Adjacent Ruins — The Mills House with Adjacent Ruins1861–1865 · Mills House

The Mills House — The Mills HouseMarch 1865 · Mills House