Great Fire of 1777

The Great Fire of 1777, often referred to simply as The Great Fire, was a major conflagration of the early city of Colchester which, over the course of 2 nights and a day, destroyed nearly 70% of the settlement, though miraculously resulted in no deaths. While the exact cause of the fire is unknown, it is largely believed to have taken place after a farm worker knocked a lantern from its perch in a barn. The resulting fire spread quickly due to the dry, hot weather which the area was experiencing at the time.

Colchester Landing during the 1770s

Colchester’s Landing had grown quickly in the fourteen years following its foundation by the eponymous Henry Colchester on the 2nd of December, 1763. This sudden increase in population was driven largely by the Praetonian government’s efforts to populate their colonies. This was accomplished largely through promises of land, of lower taxes, and to some extent the appeal of adventure. Regardless of individual reasons for settling, the city’s population grew from a tiny 15 in 1763, to 280 in 1777. While this was still a rather small number, the fact that so many had arrived in so short a period, and that most chose to congregate around the city’s docks, meant that the city quickly became a crowded, not entirely hygienic, maze of winding streets and leaning wooden buildings. Surrounding this early centre were several farms, which supplied the settlement with most of its food and resources.

Due to the town’s small population, it possessed no official fire brigade. Instead, a sort of neighborhood watch was established, whereby four to seven men would walk the streets at night and at day in case of fire, ready to sound the alarm (by way of special “fire-bells” which could be found on nearly every street corner). Once a “bellman” had seen a fire, and wrung the bell, it would alert nearby bellmen as well as citizens, who would then aid in fighting the fire.

Firefighting, as was common during this time, was mainly by way of demolition and through the use of buckets. Buildings were pulled down downwind of the fire in order to create breaks, whereby the fire could be doused with buckets of water. While rudimentary fire engines did exist at this time, Colchester did not have access to such items due to its relative isolation.

This system had worked well for the fourteen years of Colchester’s existence, but it would prove mostly ineffective against the peculiar circumstances of this particular fire.

Circumstances and Reasons for the Fire and its Spread

The reasons for which this fire in particular proved to unruly and quick to spread came about as the result of a series of unlucky coincidences. For one, the area had been experiencing a period of abnormally warm, dry weather for the better part of a year by the time of the fire. This meant that the predominantly wooden city became what essentially amounted to a giant match-box. Adding to this were the dry, but strong, winds which, while common during the month of February, only served to exacerbate the issue by fanning the fire once it had begun. The dry weather, strong and dry winds, as well as the limited effectiveness of the fire-brigade all served to create the circumstances under which a city-consuming fire could spread and grow.

And grow it did. From its origins somewhere along the western side of the city, in the barn of one Harald Curthington, fanned by the dry winds, the fire soon sprang to nearby trees, and fields, and then moved swiftly to the city itself, which caught flame before the bellmen could mount a proper defense. Indeed, the inability of the fire-fighters to move quick enough to outmaneuver the fire was one of their main problems. Regardless, they were able to create a fire-break after pulling down several buildings along the western edge of the town. This however, proved ineffective, as the strong winds caused the flames to jump the break. By the time the sun came up on Saturday the 13th of February, 1777, nearly half the city had already been lost, and this would only continue until late that night, when finally the winds died down, and the fire was able to be contained.

Destruction, Impact and Rebuilding

The fire destroyed nearly the entirety of the city, sparing only those areas to the far east and north. With the docks, also went the city’s beloved church, as well as the mansion of the local governor. None were killed, though many were severely burned, or sustained injuries from falling debris.

Almost as soon as the fire had been brought to an end, and the sheer scale of the destruction became apparent, the governor at the time, Leander Hamilton, set about with plans for reconstruction. Sir Hamilton, while saddened by the tragedy, also saw in it an opportunity to bring a sense of decorum and taste to the city. Until this point, it had been seen as little more than a rough frontier town, fit for sailors passing by and merchant trade, but not to be taken seriously as a place of culture or learning. Hamilton sought to change this, and in 1778, once he had supplied temporary housing to the town’s destitute inhabitants, that he began extensive reconstruction efforts. These efforts, which began in 1778, were in part funded by the governor himself, in part taken from the city’s coffers (one of the few buildings to have survived the fire was, by sheer serendipity, the bank) and in part through the funding of the Praetonian government, which was in no way willing to see one of its more lucrative trade ports descend into obscurity.

It was during this period of construction, which lasted from 1778 until 1783, that two of the city’s more well-known attractions came to be, that is the area which now comprises the “historic” district, and the Church of Our Lord’s Wisdom. The Historic District was initially the area reserved for those made destitute by the fire, and comprises a series of old homes, today refurbished into numerous inns, bed-and-breakfasts, and coffee shops, as well as museums.

Impact on Pop Culture

The Fire has repeatedly come up in the popular imagination of the city, from the hit 2000s song “Heat,” which is based upon the events of the Fire, to the 1940s movie “The Phoenix City” it has proven a point of pride that, while nearly the entirety of the city had been demolished, the people of Colchester stayed strong and came back even stronger. So great is this pride in the city’s ability to rebound after hardship, that the eastern district’s motto reflects it: “Ex Ignibus Orimur” (We Are Born of the Flames).