Famous Historic Fires
Famous Historic Fires is a structured history dataset with 15 entries. Its fields include Fire, Year, City. The source values are preserved as a structured reference table.
Every row is shown below and is also available as CSV, JSON, or Excel.
Dataset details
- Table scope
- All 15 rows
- Fields
- 6 columns
- Source
- Community curated
- Data updated
- Apr 9, 2026
Included fields: Fire, Year, City, Country, Deaths, and 1 more.
The table contains every record in this dataset; the same records are available in each download format.
Preview observations
- Year span
- 1657 to 2019
- Across 14 preview rows
- Country groups
- 8 distinct values
- Across 15 preview rows
Useful for
- Comparing Fire, Year, and City across history entries
- Building reference tables, charts, or analyses from 15 downloadable records
Fire↕ | Year↕ | City↕ | Country↕ | Deaths↕ | Known For↕ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Great Fire of London | 1666 | London | England | 6 recorded (likely more) | Destroyed 13,200 houses and St. Paul's, started at Pudding Lane bakery, led to rebuilding by Wren |
| Great Chicago Fire | 1871 | Chicago | United States | 300 | Mrs. O'Leary's cow myth, destroyed 17,500 buildings, rebuilt as skyscraper city |
| Great Kanto Earthquake Fires | 1923 | Tokyo/Yokohama | Japan | 105,000+ | Earthquake ignited firestorms, most victims killed by fire not quake |
| Great Fire of Rome | 64 | Rome | Roman Empire | Hundreds | Nero accused of fiddling while Rome burned, blamed Christians, 10 of 14 districts damaged |
| San Francisco Earthquake Fires | 1906 | San Francisco | United States | 3,000+ | Fires caused most destruction after quake, 80% of city destroyed, Market Street firestorms |
| Peshtigo Fire | 1871 | Peshtigo, Wisconsin | United States | 1,200-2,500 | Deadliest wildfire in US history, overshadowed by simultaneous Chicago fire |
| Notre-Dame Fire | 2019 | Paris | France | 0 | Spire and roof destroyed, $1B+ restoration, live global broadcast of cathedral burning |
| Iroquois Theatre Fire | 1903 | Chicago | United States | 602 | Deadliest single-building fire in US history, led to modern fire codes |
| Triangle Shirtwaist Fire | 1911 | New York | United States | 146 | Locked doors killed garment workers, spurred US labor laws and unions |
| Great Fire of Hamburg | 1842 | Hamburg | German Confederation | 51 | Destroyed a third of medieval city, rebuilt with modern infrastructure and canals |
| Great Fire of New York | 1835 | New York | United States | 2 | Destroyed 693 buildings in Lower Manhattan, frozen hydrants in winter, bankrupted insurers |
| Great Boston Fire | 1872 | Boston | United States | 20-30 | Destroyed 776 buildings and $75M in property, led to modern fire hydrants |
| Great Fire of Meireki | 1657 | Edo (Tokyo) | Japan | 100,000+ | Destroyed 70% of Edo including castle keep, Furisode fire of the long-sleeved kimono legend |
| Great Fire of Moscow | 1812 | Moscow | Russia | Thousands | Set by Russians during Napoleon's occupation, destroyed 75% of city, doomed invasion |
| Windsor Castle Fire | 1992 | Windsor | United Kingdom | 0 | Queen's annus horribilis, damaged 100 rooms, five-year restoration funded partly by Buckingham tours |
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