1945 — Dec 24, Fire, Niles Street Convalescent Hospital (XMAS tree), Hartford, CT — 21
Latest edit Nov 17, 2023 by Wayne Blanchard for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/
— 21 Blanchard
–17 patients killed in the fire (one jumped from a window and died as a consequence)
— 2 attendants killed in the fire
— 1 Leo Vincent died of burn injuries Jan 29-30; noted as the 29th death by the UP.
— 1 Mrs. Emily Gates Brown, of Simsbury, died from fire injuries Feb 19. (21st victim)
— 21 Channel 14 News, Hartford. “Fires Rage in Hartford…Saga of Bad Landlords.” 2007.
— 21 Grant, E. S. Connecticut Disasters: True Stories of Tragedy and Survival. 2006, p. 149.
— 21 Hartford Fire Department. Major Fires.
— 21 New York Sun. “Christmas Eve Fire Claims 21st Victim.” 2-20-1946, p. 10.
— 19 INS. “19th victim of Hartford Fire.” Lowell Sun, MA. 12-29-1945, p. 1.
(Names same victim as noted as the 18th death by INS in Twin Falls Telegram below.)
— 19 NFPA. “Fires Causing Large Loss of Life.” Handbook of Fire Protection), 1954, p. 35.
— 19 NFPA. “Hartford Christmas Tree Tragedy.” Quarterly, Vol. 39, No. 3, Jan 1946, p. 242.
— 19 Tryon. “Christmas Tree Hazards and Treatments,” NFPA Quarterly, 53/2, Oct 1959, 120.
— 18 INS. “Death Toll Reaches 18 in Hospital Yule Fire.” Twin Falls Telegram, ID, 12-29-1945, 1.
— 17 Lowell Sun (MA), “Hartford Fire Probe Completed,” Dec 27, 1945, p. 48.
— 17 Nebraska State Journal (Lincoln). “Hartford Fire Toll Totals 17,” Dec 26, 1945.
— 13 Nebraska State Journal (Lincoln). “At Least 13 Victims of Hospital Blaze,” Dec 25, 1945.
Narrative Information
Channel 14 News: “Hartford Connecticut has had to respond to too many high-profile fires in its history. Most notable is the 1944 circus fire that killed 168 and chronically disabled 373 more. Most were children. Hartford Connecticut has also had to respond to too many high-profile fires involving the elderly. The first is The Niles Street Convalescent Hospital Fire of December 24, 1945 which left 21 dead….” (Channel 14 News:, Hartford, CT. “Fires Rage in Hartford Connecticut. The Continuing Saga of Bad Landlords.” 2007.)
National Fire Protection Assoc. “Hartford Christmas Tree Tragedy.” Quarterly, Jan 46:
“A short circuit in homemade electrical wiring, resulting in ignition of combustible decorations around a Christmas tree in the Niles Street Convalescent Hospital in Hartford, Conn., on December 24, 1945, was responsible for a fire which caused the death of 17 patients and 2 attendants and injury to nearly 30 others including 10 firemen.
“The building, over 60 years old, was originally a duplex dwelling and had been converted for hospital use. It was three stories high, of ordinary construction, with brick walls and wooden interior. A brick division wall in the center ended at the third floor ceiling, leaving a large open space with no fire stops under the flat, metal-covered roof. There was a passageway on each floor through the division wall. Two wooden stairways at the front of the building led directly outside, and rear exits on each floor led to a large wooden verandah, with wooden stairs to the ground. There were no outside fire escapes.
“Soda-acid and water pump tank extinguishers were located on each floor of the hospital and in the cellar. There was no private fire alarm system in the building, but a municipal fire alarm box was located within 75 feet of the main entrance. No automatic sprinkler protection was provided.
Story of the Fire
“The fire originated in an office on the first floor when an attendant attempted to disconnect the lights of a Christmas tree. A spark occurred, presumably due to defective wiring, which immediately ignited flammable cotton at the base of the tree. Another attendant attempted to se a near-by telephone, but the fire had spread so rapidly that the wires had burned out, rendering the telephone useless. In the meantime the first attendant attempted to use an extinguisher, but apparently did not operate it correctly, became panicky and rushed from the room, leaving the door open. This provided a draft to fan the flames. A few minutes later (approximately 9:02 p.m.), simultaneous telephone and box alarms were given by a next door neighbor and a passer-by. Non-fire-stopped walls and ceilings and open stairways contributed to the rapid spread of the fire. Approximately three-quarters of the Hartford Fire Department responded on three alarms and the fire burned until midnight….
“Most of the fatalities were elderly, bed-ridden patients, who were either burned to death or suffocated before firemen could reach them….
(National Fire Protection Association. “Hartford Christmas Tree Tragedy.” Quarterly of the National Fire Protection Association, Vol. 39, No. 3, Jan 1946, pp. 242-243.)
Tryon: Christmas Eve in 1945 was a tragic one at the Niles Street Convalescent Hospital in Hartford, Conn. Seventeen patients and 2 attendants lost their lives when combustible cotton around the base of a Christmas tree ignited and the fire spread rapidly up this open stairway….Substandard electrical wiring and combustible Christmas decorations caused this tragedy.” (Tryon, George H. III. “Christmas Tree Hazards and Treatments,” Quarterly of the National Fire Protection Association, Vol. 53, No. 2, Oct 1959, pp. 119-122.)
Newspaper
Dec 25, Associated Press: “Hartford, Conn. (AP) — A fire that started when a Christmas tree blazed up took 13 lives, according to police estimates, Monday night at the Niles street hospital, a small institution for convalescents and chronically ill persons….With the exception of a kitchen employee, all of the dead were elderly patients. More than 20, including eight foremen, were injured. The fire burned until midnight as 200 firemen, aided by police fought it in bitter, near zero temperatures.
”Crowds that were controlled with difficulty thronged about the three story structure as litter-bearing fireman and police plunged time and again into the choking smoke to emerge with the moaning injured and charred bodies of the dead. Many of the victims were lying helpless in their beds when the fire swept rapidly thru the hospital. The faces of some of the victims were charred, their clothing burned from their bodies. One victim was burned so badly that authorities were unable to determine the sex….
”Every ambulance in the city, reserve policemen and state police went to the scene, where about 70 patients, many of them ill or elderly, were trapped in the burning Victorian brick structure.
Two hours after the first alarm city firemen were pouring water from the roofs of adjoining structures into the still blazing building. Inside Rev. Francis X. O’Neill administered the last rites of the Catholic church to patients still trapped in the structure.
”Surrounding communities ordered their fire departments into standby status as three-fourths of Hartford’s fire apparatus went to the scene. Ambulances and doctors from East Hartford and West Hartford assisted in moving and caring for the sick and injured. The Salvation Army stopped its Christmas service and sent a unit to the scene….A Red Cross mobile disaster unit was on the scene and its members served as litter bearers. About 20 ambulances carrying two on each trip made shuttle runs to St. Francis’ hospital, nearest to the fire scene, and Hartford hospital. Persons escaping from the burning building, even those who were uninjured, required hospitalization because of their convalescent condition.
”Two hours after the fire started the firemen were still reaching the charred bodies of the trapped hospital patients. At that time no one could give an accurate estimate of the death toll because the two upper floors were still inaccessible.
”The fire was Connecticut’s second disastrous one in less than 24 hours. Earlier in the day, four small children were burned to death in nearby Meriden and their parents died Monday night in a blaze which swept their home.” (Associated Press. “At Least 13 Victims of Hospital Blaze,” Nebraska State Journal, Lincoln, 12-25-1945.)
Dec 25, United Press: “Hartford, Conn., Tuesday, Dec 25. (UP) – At least 15 persons were burned to death last night in a tragic Christmas eve holocaust that flamed through the four-story Niles street convalescent home for the aged. The fire broke out shortly after 9 p.m., believedly from a short circuit in an electric Christmas tree decorations. At least 21 other aged patients were injured and most were reported in critical condition at two Hartford hospitals….
“Flames still were roaring through the building at midnight, three hours after the fire broke out, and police believed that other patients were trapped in the wood and brick structure. Bodies of eight patients – six women and two men – were taken to the police morgue. Three other bodies were held at St. Francis hospital. Police said the bodies were so badly burned that identification was not immediately possible….
“It was believed that there were more than 40 patients in the hospital when the fire broke out. Mayor Cornelius J. Moylan of Hartford, who directed rescue work at the hospital, placed the number of dead after making a check shortly before midnight. Among the dead was one woman who leaped from a third floor window and was killed instantly. Near-zero temperatures delayed the efforts of rescue workers. Water froze almost as soon as it left the firemen’s hoses and coated rescue ladders with a sheath of ice, making slippery footing. Many of the victims were in their night clothes as they were brought out of the burning building….” (UP. “Fire Ravages Hospital for Aged; 15 Die in Christmas Eve Tragedy,” Nevada State Journal, Reno. 12-25-1945, 1.)
Dec 26, Associated Press: “Hartford, Conn. (AP) — Seventeen persons are dead following a tragic Christmas eve fire at the Niles street hospital which also sent 26 others, including 10 firemen to other hospitals where, spokesmen said, at least five remained in “critical condition.” State Police Commissioner Edward J. Hickey, heading an official investigation in his role as state fire marshal, said the blaze resulted from a short circuit that ignited cotton decorations on a Christmas tree in the hospital’s first floor office. As one of his first acts, Commissioner Hickey joined Dr. Stanley H. Osborn, state health commissioner, in issuing instructions to all state police to advise supervisors of all convalescent homes in Connecticut to take extra precautions against Christmas tree fire hazards.
“The supervisors were asked to remove at once from the vicinity of trees all cotton or other inflammable material and to make certain that fire extinguishers were quickly available and in working order. After a night of inquiry, Hickey said at noon Tuesday that the investigation had been postponed until Wednesday. At the same time a spokesman at police headquarters said complete lists of dead and injured would not be available until late in the day, ‘after the officers who worked on them all night have had some rest.’
“Hickey said the dead included 14 aged and chronically ill patients and two night attendants. Seventeen other patients, he said, were gotten from the blazing three-story structure which was a converted brick duplex dwelling. Dr. Walter Weissenborn, medical examiner, said that two of the 17 rescued patients were in grave condition at St. Francis hospital late Tuesday.
“The blaze spread quickly he said, when a front door was opened, presumably to guide first floor patients to the street. Some patients were more than 90 years of age, police said. Of the dead, they added, 13 were women.
“Firemen working in near zero temperatures were unable to check the rapid spread of the blaze, and Hickey said Tuesday the structure was ‘almost completely gutted’.” (Associated Press. “Hartford Fire Toll Totals 17,” Nebraska State Journal, Lincoln, 12-26-1945.)
Dec 27, United Press: “Hartford, Conn., Dec. 27 (UP) — Investigation of the tragic Niles Street hospital fire which snuffed out 17 lives Christmas eve, was virtually completed today and the origin definitely was traced to faulty wiring on a Christmas tree in the main office of the convalescent home. State Police Commissioner Edward J. Hickey, who also is state fire marshal, said that the wiring had been arranged by an 83-year-old male patient, that there were too many lights on the tree, and that the fire started when a plug was pulled from a socket located at the base of the tree.
“Meanwhile, Governor Baldwin was arranging for a conference to try and get municipalities together to adopt uniform safety regulations which would minimize the chances of a repetition of the Niles Street hospital fire. No date for the conference has been set so far….” (UP. “Hartford Fire Probe Completed,” Lowell Sun, MA, 12-27-1945, p. 48.)
Dec 29, INS: “Hartford, Conn. (INS) – The death toll in the Christmas eve fire at Niles street convalescent hospital rose to 18 Friday night. Emor A Smith, retired district manager of the Southern New England Telephone company and former secretary of the Hartford club, was the latest victim.” (INS. “Death Toll Reaches 18 in Hospital Yule Fire.” Twin Falls Telegram, ID, 12-29-1945, p.1.
Jan 30, UP: “Hartford, Jan. 30 – UP) – The death toll in the Christmas Eve fire at Niles Street Convalescent hospital has risen to 20. Leo Vincent, a patient at the hospital at the time of the fire, has died from burs suffered during the tragic blaze.” (United Press. “Burns Prove Fatal.” Naugatuck Daily News, CT. 1-30-1946, p. 3.)
Feb 21, Associated Press: “Hartford, Conn., Feb 20 (AP) – The death of Mrs. Emily Gates Brown of Simsbury, who was badly burned in the Christmas Eve fire at the Niles Street Convalescent Hospital, brought to total number of deaths resulting from that tragedy to twenty-one. Mrs. Brown, who observed her eighty-seventh birthday after she was injured, died yesterday.” (New York Sun. “Christmas Eve Fire Claims 21st Victim.” 2-20-1946, p. 10.)
Sources
Associated Press. “At Least 13 Victims of Hospital Blaze,” Nebraska State Journal, Lincoln, 12-25-1945. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=23965128
Associated Press. “Hartford Fire Toll Totals 17,” Nebraska State Journal, Lincoln, 12-26-1945. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=23965298
Channel 14 News, Hartford, CT. “Fires Rage in Hartford Connecticut. The Continuing Saga of Bad Landlords.” 2007. Accessed 5-3-2013 at: http://thirddegreefelonypjky.wordpress.com/
Grant, Ellsworth S. Connecticut Disasters: True Stories of Tragedy and Survival. Guilford, CT: Insiders’ Guide, an imprint of Globe Pequot Press, 2006.
Hartford Fire Department. Major Fires. Hartford, CT. Accessed 5-5-2005 at: http://www.hartford.gov/fire/MajorFires/major_fires.htm
INS. “Death Toll Reaches 18 in Hospital Yule Fire.” Twin Falls Telegram, ID, 12-29-1945, p.1. Accessed 11-17-2023 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/twin-falls-telegram-dec-29-1945-p-1/
National Fire Protection Association. “Fires Causing Large Loss of Life.” Handbook of Fire Protection (11th Ed.). Boston, MA: NFPA, 1954, pp. 33-36.
National Fire Protection Association. “Hartford Christmas Tree Tragedy.” Quarterly of the National Fire Protection Association, Vol. 39, No. 3, Jan 1946, pp. 242-243.
National Fire Protection Association. “Multiple-Death Fires in Nursing Homes & Homes for the Aged, 1921-1978 (list).” In: United States United States Congress, House of Representatives. Boarding Home Fires: The Tip of the Iceberg (Hearing before the Subcommittee on Health and Long Term Care, Select Committee on Aging, 96th Congress, First Session, April 25, 1979). Washington, DC, U.S. Government Printing Office, 1979, pp. 312-314.
New York Sun. “Christmas Eve Fire Claims 21st Victim.” 2-20-1946, p. 10. Accessed 5-3-2013: http://fultonhistory.com/Newspaper%2018/New%20York%20NY%20Sun/New%20York%20NY%20Sun%201946/New%20York%20NY%20Sun%201946%20-%200213.pdf
Tryon, George H. III. “Christmas Tree Hazards and Treatments,” Quarterly of the National Fire Protection Association, Vol. 53, No. 2, Oct 1959, pp. 119-122.
United Press. “Burns Prove Fatal.” Naugatuck Daily News, CT. 1-30-1946, p. 3. Accessed 11-17-2023 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/naugatuck-daily-news-jan-30-1946-p-3/
United Press. “Fire Ravages Hospital for Aged; 15 Die in Christmas Eve Tragedy,” Nevada State Journal, Reno. 12-25-1945, 1. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=5500229
United Press. “Hartford Fire Probe Completed,” Lowell Sun, MA, 12-27-1945, p. 48. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=15263361