On this date 122 years ago: The Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901
The Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901 Smoke could be seen as far south as Savannah, Georgia. (City of Jacksonvile)
By ActionNewsJax.com News Staff
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — It was 122 years ago that the Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901 ravaged a large section of the city. It was considered the largest metropolitan fire in the American South.
According to most historical sources, the fire started with a spark from a kitchen fire that ignited piles of drying Spanish moss at a nearby mattress factory at Davis and Beaver Streets.
As a result, the fire destroyed 2,300 buildings, 146 blocks of the city and left 10,000-plus residents homeless.
The Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901 The Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901 was the largest metropolitan fire in the American South. (City of Jacksonville)
The Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901 Smoke could be seen as far south as Savannah, Georgia. (City of Jacksonville)
The Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901 Smoke could be seen as far south as Savannah, Georgia. (City of Jacksonvile)
The Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901 The fire destroyed 2,300 buildings, 146 blocks and left 10,000+ residents homeless. (City of Jacksonville)
The Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901 Over 10,000 residents were left homeless due to the fire in 1901. (City of Jacksonville)
The Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901 Piles of drying moss from a mattress factory at Davis and Beaver Streets ignited the fire. (City of Jacksonville)
The Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901 According to Florida Memory website, the city of Jacksonville spent the next decade rebuilding its downtown. (City of Jacksonville)
The Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901 The fire started at a mattress factory at Davis and Beaver streets. (City of Jacksonville)
The Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901 A map of the burned out city blocks as a result of the fire. (City of Jacksonville)
The Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901 A scaled model of the city blocks effected by the Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901. (City of Jacksonville)
The City of Jacksonville has said the main branch of the Jacksonville Public Library is “a tremendous resource if you want to learn more about how the Great Jacksonville Fire of 1901 shaped our City.”
The public library is a great source to discover maps, written accounts, and a detailed scale model showing how large the fire was.