1918 — Oct 12, Forest Fires, Cloquet, Moose Lake, many towns, northeast MN –453-559
— <1,000 Askov American. “Pine County Also in Great Forest Fire.” 10-17-1918.[1]
— 1,000 Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters. EM DAT Database.[2]
— 800 Wisc. Historical Society. Dictionary of Wisc. History, “Forest Fires in Wisconsin.”[3]
— 681 La Crosse Tribune, WI. “Multiple Funerals for Scores of Dead…, 10-15-1918, 1.[4]
–453-559 Carroll & Raiter. The Fires of Autumn…Cloquet-Moose Lake…1918. 1990, 97.[5]
–453-559 Blanchard estimate based on sources below (including indirect deaths).*
–453-559 MN Forest Fires Relief Commission. Final Report of… 2-28-1921, p. 6.[6]
— 559 NFPA. “100 Conflagrations Since 1900.” NFPA Quarterly, V29, N1, Jul 1935, 141.
— 559 NFPA. Key Dates in Fire History. 1996; NFPA. The 1984 Fire Almanac. 1983, 139.
— 559 NFPA. U.S. Unintentional Fire Death Rates by State. December 2008, p. 22.
— 559 Smith, Dennis. Dennis Smith’s History of Firefighting in America... 1978, p 129.
— 551 Smalley, James C. (Ed.). Protecting Life and Property from Wildfire, 2005, 23.
— 538 Haines & Sando. Climatic Conditions Preceding Historically Great Fires… 1969, 2.
— 500 NYT. “500 Lives Lost in Forest Fires – Many [WI & MN] Towns…” 10-13-1918.
— ~500 Rhinow. Report of the Adjutant General of the State of Minnesota…, Vol. 1, p. 295.
— ~500 Wisuri. “The Great Fires of 1918.” MN History Center. MN Historical Society.
— 453 Brady, Tim. “Fire and Flu.” Minnesota Medicine, Jan 2005.[7]
— 453 History.com. This Day In History, Disaster, October 12, 1918. “Fire Rages…”
— 453 Johnson, Lois E. “Commemorating the 80th Anniversary of the Fires of 1918.” 1998.
— ~453 Johnson, L. “Fires of 1918, 95 years later.” Moose Lake Star Gazette. 10-10-2013.
— >450 Roberts, Kate. Minnesota. 150…People, Places…Things that Shape…” 2007, p. 27.
— 450 National Interagency Fire Center. Fire Information – Wildland Fire Statistics. 2007.
— >400 Richardson. “The Northeastern Minnesota Forest Fires of Oct. 12, 1918.” 1919, 220.
* Blanchard Note: Even though the report of the MN Adjutant General writes of “nearly 500 lives…snuffed out,” we do not know how much this was of rounding upwards. Thus we take the figure of 453 lives lost from the Minn. Forest Fires Relief Commission. This is in reference to direct fire losses. An epidemic of Spanish Flu broke out in camps established for survivors which took scores of additional deaths – 106 such deaths according to the MN Forest Fires Relief Commission and Brady – thus the figure of 559 for the high end of estimated lives lost is reached. In addition, we do not know the number of deaths due to burns that took place afterwards – the MN Adjutant General’s report notes that “people whose condition necessitated surgical attention or hospital treatment were evacuated to hospitals in Duluth, Minneapolis and St. Paul.” We do not know if any of these people died of their injuries.
Minnesota:
— 42 Aitkin Co., Aitkin vic.. Racine Journal-News, WI. “Forest Fires Now…” 10-14-1918, 1.
–>106 Carlton Co., Cloquet area. Swenson review of Carroll/Raiter. The Fires of Autumn.[8]
— 100 “ “ “ Richardson. “The Northeastern [MN] Forest Fires…” p. 227.[9]
— 5 “ Cloquet. Richardson. “The Northeastern Minnesota Forest Fires…” p. 227.
— 100 “ “ Askov American. “Pine County…Forest Fire.” 10-17-1918.
–>500 Carlton Co., Moose Lake area. Askov American. “Pine County…Forest Fire.” 10-17-18.
–>200 “ Moose Lake. Brady, T. “Fire and Flu.” Minnesota Medicine, Jan 2005.
— 200 “ “ Richardson. “The Northeastern [MN] Forest Fires…” p. 227.
–?100 Fond du Lac Indian Reservation, Carlton and Saint Louis counties.[10]
— 1 Pine Co., Bruno Township, Askov American. “Pine County…Forest Fire.” 10-17-1918.
— 200 St. Louis Co., Duluth. Askov American. “Pine County…Great Forest Fire.” 10-17-1918.
Minnesota
Askov American: “The greatest fire in the history of Minnesota has swept the northeastern part of the state the past few days. The Hinckley fire of 24 years ago – still fresh in the memory of old settlers – was small compared to this, and the terrible tornado at Tyler of only a few weeks ago is entirely out shadowed, both as to the loss of human life and property damage.
“The fire commenced Saturday, Oct. 12th – a day which will go down in the history of Minnesota. With a gale of 60 miles an hour the fire had a splendid opportunity to spread. It appears that the fire originated at Taft, a small village 20 miles north of Duluth, but there were also local fires thruout the district which soon developed with the strong wind. The greater part of the damage was done Saturday night when about a dozen villages were laid in ruins, chief among which were Cloquet and Moose Lake. Cloquet, a city of 9,000 inhabitants was burned to the ground but only a few lives lost. The inhabitants were moved to Duluth on four special trains, box cars, coal cars, flat cars and anything available being used. But poor Moose Lake – that is where the greatest suffering occurred. The people there did not get away and the result is that about 500 lives were lost in and around that village, as well as the entire vicinity being laid in ruins.
“The total number of dead in the forest fire district will be more than 1,000. Reports from Adjutant General W.F. Rhinow show that 800 bodies have been recovered or located in the woods. Of these 500 are in the Moose Lake district, 200 in the Duluth district and 100 at Cloquet.
“One Fire Victim at Bruno. Mrs. Ray Fairchild living five miles east of Bruno, was burned to death in her home, her body being charred. Mr. Fairchild had been fighting fire near their home when all of a sudden the flames burst forth and everything was on fire. A hay stack near the house was one mass of flames. This was blown onto the house and Mr. Fairchild immediately ran to save his wife and four year old son. They took some water soaked blankets and made for the door. In attempting to open the door Mrs. Fairchild pulled out the knob and the only other place of exit was a window. Mr. Fairchild pulled a bed over to a window and with the child in his arms jumped thru and ran. Upon discovering that his wife did not follow he turned back but could do nothing as the house was then one mass of flames….” (Askov American. “Pine County Also in Great Forest Fire.” 10-17-1918.)
Carroll and Raiter (book review by Swenson): “…two authors who grew up in Cloquet were compelled in 1980 to begin a thorough study of the Cloquet-Moose Lake fire, Minnesota’s most disastrous forest fire. Francis M. Carroll, professor of history at the University of Manitoba, and Franklin R. Raiter, policy analyst for the U.S. Department of Transportation in Washington, D.C., collaborated on this account that traces the fire from its beginning to the final settlement of survivors’ claims against the U.S. Railroad Administration 17 years later. To bring validity and accuracy to the research, the authors relied heavily on hundreds of pages of survivors’ testimonies from the court cases that followed the fire. Here eyewitness accounts were recorded together with interrogations from attorneys.
“Grim statistics tell only part of the story of that afternoon and evening of Saturday, October 12, 1918. Fires struck some five or six major fire zones, completely destroying 1,500 square miles within an area of 8,400 square miles. Up to 38 towns or communities were entirely or partially destroyed. The death list numbered 453, and 106 more died from related causes of influenza and pneumonia. A total of 11,382 families were dislodged, and 52,371 people suffered to some degree. Exact property losses were impossible to determine, but subsequent court cases showed claims between $65 million and $73 million.
“In 1918, as in earlier years, Minnesota woodlands were particularly susceptible to forest fires. Residents of the state’s forestlands accepted them as usual occurrences. Fires often flared as timber companies burned their slash and bared vulnerable cut-over areas; fires escaped as farmers burned stumpage and torched harvested fields; and numerous fires started as sparks and embers spewed from coal-driven railroad engines. All of the components for disaster were there on October 12. The region had suffered from several dry summers with subnormal amounts of rainfall, and on the day of the tragedy there had been a precipitous drop in humidity with high-velocity winds that fanned smoldering embers.
“The undisputed source of the major conflagration that ultimately burned Cloquet started along the Great Northern tracks at Milepost 62 on the south bank of the St. Louis River 15 miles northwest of the town. After threatening outlying farms and small communities, the fire was propelled by strong northwest winds toward Cloquet, the “White Pine Capital of the World.” Seven or eight thousand people jammed into four trains to escape to Duluth and Superior. Only six Cloquet citizens lost their lives, but over 100 perished in surrounding rural areas.
“The fire raced northeast, finally burning through the eastern suburbs of Duluth to the shores of Lake Superior. Another prong of the flames threatened West Duluth, but fortunately the main part of Duluth was saved.
“By far the most disastrous fires burned in the areas around Kettle River, Moose Lake, and Sturgeon Lake [all MN]. Although some people managed to escape on trains or survived in streams, lakes, or fields, many met death on the roads as their automobiles failed. Others suffocated in root cellars and wells. It was estimated that at least half of the 453 fire deaths occurred here.
“Duluth [MN] and Superior [WI] became the major relief centers as the Red Cross, National Guard, and Home Guard were pressed into service. Governor Joseph A. A. Burnquist appointed the Minnesota Forest Fires Relief Commission, which coordinated all relief operations, the distribution of government funds, and voluntary donations that poured in from the entire nation.
“Hardly had the ground cooled before the public accused the railroads of starting the fire. Investigations, hearings, and lawsuits began against the U.S. Railroad Administration, which controlled the nation’s railroads during wartime. After years of delays and disappointments, the fire sufferers’ claims finally reached the halls of Congress. It was said that the people of Cloquet danced in the streets when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the final fire sufferers’ bill on August 27, 1935.
“Exhibiting meticulous and detailed research. The Fires of Autumn is a skillful account of this Minnesota tragedy….Maps clearly identify key locations, and numerous old photographs add a graphic dimension. Extensive footnotes, a bibliography, and an index complete this valuable addition to Minnesota history. Historians, residents of the burned areas, and the general public will find this account compelling and dramatic reading.” (Carroll, Francis M. and Franklin R. Raiter. The Fires of Autumn: The Cloquet-Moose Lake Disaster of 1918. Minnesota Historical Society Press, October 1990, 246 pages. Book review by Grace Stageberg Swenson.)
Rhinow: “Forest fires in St. Louis, Carlton and Aitkin counties snuffed out nearly 500 lives and injured three times that many people on October 12, 1918. A property loss exceeding $100,000,000 was also suffered. Homes were destroyed, homes which had been slowly building in frontier fashion for years.
“State military forces, acting under the direction of the Adjutant General, were rushed to the scene by special train and motor transportation. Survivors and civilian workers have since declared that ‘had it not been for these troops the casualty list would have been tripled.’ Sufficient credit can never be given the efficient work done by the State Military in combating the flames, rescuing and caring for the injured, disposing of the dead, and in other ways coping with a situation which was of a magnitude never before reached in the history of Minnesota….
“Fanned by wind which at times reached a velocity of more than 70 miles an hour, forest fires which had been smoldering for days, and in some cases weeks, swept over and completely incinerated everything in its path in an area approximately 85 miles long and ranging in width from one to 20 miles. These fires were as freakish as tornadoes and cyclones are reputed to be. Farms and farm buildings directly in the path of the fire were in some cases absolutely unscathed. Piles of lumber, acres of shocked corn, school houses and churches which were untouched loomed up like islands in the midst of an ocean of grayish-black ashes.
“In some places the fire was of such intensity that it consumed the earth to a depth of one or two feet. A soldier returned from the western front, incapacitated for further military service because of wounds, said: ‘I had thought that the devastation wrought by the retreating Germans was of such caliber that I would never see anything to exceed it. This burnt-over area is so completely extinguished of all semblance of human occupation that the deliberately destroyed territory deserted by the Germans was almost a Paradise in comparison with this.’
“On the evening of October 12, 1918, a frenzied call for help was sent out from Duluth, Moose Lake and Lawler. Meager press dispatches containing the ominous news that communication had been interrupted with various towns and villages in the threatened section were given the Adjutant General, and sensing a disaster which might require hundreds of men to cope with, he determined to view the situation himself.
“Accompanied by his driver and two members of his staff, the Adjutant General proceeded by motor from St. Paul to the burning district. Aitkin was the first town bordering on the fire zone at which a stop was made. Although surrounded by fire, Aitkin was not then in real danger. Arrangements were made here for additional help in case the situation became critical.
“Proceeding from Aitkin by way of McGregor, the Adjutant General reached Lawler. With the exception of a hotel, store, schoolhouse and three residences, Lawler was a blackened ruin. Men, women and children, scantily clad, hungry and homeless, sat dazed along what once had been the main business street of the village. A hurried survey of the immediate needs of the people left in Lawler was made, and the Adjutant General proceeded direct to Moose Lake, which he had been informed was the scene of the greatest suffering in the district.
“Distorted, fire-charred bodies lying in cramped positions along the road, fire-stripped automobiles cuddling close to the fences which had wrecked them, scorched and singed domestic animals numbed with pain, and party after party of injured and homeless refugees were passed between Lawler and Moose Lake.
“Temporary headquarters for the Adjutant General were established at Moose Lake, from which point he issued orders calling out Minneapolis and St. Paul battalions of the Motor Corps and Home Guard and National Guard for duty in this district…. [Notes that an emergency hospital was established at the Moose Lake high school].
“Location and transportation of the dead and injured was left to the Motor Corps and members of the Home Guard. Cellars and root-cellars, wells and ditches as well as streams were searched, and all brought forth their quota of the dead. Tiny infants as well as the aged were tenderly carried to luxurious touring cars for transportation to the nearest military headquarters, where identification, if possible, and burial was made.
“The entire burned district was placed under martial law and armed sentries were located at strategical points with instructions to refuse passage to sightseers and those with no legitimate business in that territory….
“Searching parties ordered to recover the dead brought motor after motor loaded with the gruesome, fire-charred bodies of what were once ambitious, hard-working settlers, into the temporary morgues at Moose Lake and Duluth.
“In many cases where one or more of a family had been saved the bodies of the rest of the family were tenderly cared for at nearby farmhouses which had escaped the fire. Rude pine coffins were clumsily fashioned by these neighbors and the bodies so recovered were buried near the scene of their death. It is not known how many bodies were thus disposed of, but it is estimated that the total is more than 300….
“Community funerals were held in Moose Lake and Duluth of the victims whose bodies had been recovered by the military. These interments were made as soon as possible owing to the conditions of the bodies. It was not practicable to defer burial. The larger number were buried on Tuesday and Wednesday, October 15 and 16, 1918….
“…As rapidly as possible the people whose condition necessitated surgical attention or hospital treatment were evacuated to hospitals in Duluth, Minneapolis and St. Paul….
“Light rain began falling in the fire district October 19, 1918, and assisted materially in the work of fire-fighting. While the rains of themselves were not of sufficient volume to extinguish the fires, they dampened the untouched portions to such an extent that the spread of the fires was made difficult….
“Rehabilitation was now the order of the day….it was not uncommon for a four-room house to provide shelter for 30 to 40 people and larger houses in proportion….
“An unusually large percentage of those who were killed or suffered mortal injuries in the fire were women and children. Without adequate explanation, this peculiarity might seem to be an indictment on the manhood of that territory. The facts in the case are these: These forest fires had been burning for days, and in some cases weeks, prior to the coming of the gale of wind on October 12, 1918. The men of this community, alarmed by the prevalence of the fires, were fighting them in an endeavor to control and in this manner save their homes from destruction. When the heavy wind came on Saturday, October 12th, all the able-bodied men of that territory were out on the line of fire fighting it.
“As the fire gained headway these unsung heroes were, in many cases, cut off from their homes by flames. The toll of the dead was increased materially by the efforts made by these men to reach their homes in order to protect their families. This was the reason so many women and children lost their lives….
“The military had at this time been maintained in the burned district for more than two weeks and the work of rescue and rehabilitation as far as they were concerned was practically completed. Just as orders were in preparation to withdraw the military an epidemic of ‘Spanish’ influenza assailed the survivors of the fire horrors, and the relief work of the military began anew.
“Their physical condition weakened by exposure and excitement, these survivors of the fire horrors were ready victims for the influenza germ. Frantic calls for help were again sent out from this district. This time calls were for help to battle disease instead of fire….The overworked doctors, nurses and nurse’s aides who had been combating influenza in the southern part of the state were appealed to to come to the north and care for the new epidemic. The need for these workers was great, but the supply was small. However, after much difficulty, the Adjutant General secured enough doctors and nurses to establish base hospitals at Cloquet and Aitkin, to supplement the work being done at the base hospital at Moose Lake. On the night of October 29, 1918, the Great Northern passenger train scheduled to leave St. Paul at 11:10 P.M. was held two hours while the medical relief party could be gathered together. The private car owned by Louis W. Hill was attached to the train and a seven-passenger state automobile used by General Rhinow was also sent to be used temporarily as an ambulance….
“Private George Vader of the Eighteenth Battalion, M.H.G.,[11] was the first casualty suffered by the state troops. He was a member of Company C located at Moose Lake, and when the fire swept over the town he took a desperate chance in an endeavor to save the life of a woman. He failed in the endeavor and his fire-contorted body was discovered when searching parties started out.
“It is with deep regret that the Adjutant General records the death of Private Guy A Riddle, Company A, Seventh Battalion, Motor Corps, Minnesota Home Guard. Private Riddle was killed October 16, 1918, while on duty conveying supplies to refugees near Duluth. A tree, weakened by the fire, fell across the road just as Private Riddle was driving past. It is thought death was instantaneous. He is survived by a wife and one child….
“Battalion Col. Sergt. W. H. Rand and Private C. D. Kaliher died on return to home station at Elk River….” (Rhinow, Brigadier General W. F. Report of the Adjutant General of the State of Minnesota covering the Thirtieth Biennial Period Ending December 31, 1918 (Vol. One). “Forest Fires,” 1918, pp. 295-306.)
Richardson: “Compared with other great conflagrations of historical record, the fires which swept over northeastern Minnesota during the afternoon and night of Saturday, October 12, 1918, will easily take rank among those of exceptional character as to area, rapidity of travel, loss of life and property, and general devastation in the regions affected.
The Burned Areas and the Losses
“In this most recent of Minnesota’s holocausts over 8,000 square miles were affected, and approximately 2,000 square miles of territory, mainly within a radius of 50 to 100 miles of Duluth, were more or less completely burned over, including great tracts of forest – mostly second growth and consisting largely of white pine, tamarack, and birch, as well as vast quantities of cord wood – farm buildings, settlers’ homes, whole villages and one small city, suburban portions of Duluth, and summer homes or cottages and hunting and fishing lodges in the outlying districts. These burned sections…include parts of St. Louis, Carlton, Pine, Aitkin, Itasca, Cass, and Crow Wing Counties, together with tracts adjoining Superior in Douglas County, Wisconsin, opposite the southwestern suburbs of Duluth.
“The greatest damage occurred in St. Louis and Carlton Counties. The following places were either ravaged somewhat or partially or wholly destroyed: Adolph, Aitkin, Arnold, Autumba, Bain, Brookston, Bruno, Caribou Lake, Cloquet, Cloverton, Corona, Cromwell, Exeter Farms, Five Corners, Floodwood, Fond du Lac Indian Reservation, Grand Lake, Harney, Hermantown, Kettle River, Lakewood, McGregor, Maple Grove, Moose Lake, Munger, Pike Lake, Saginaw, Sturgeon Lake, Tamarack, Twig, Wawini, and Willow River, while the affected suburbs of Duluth included most of northwestern Woodland, the Calvary Road district, and portions of Lakeside and Lester Park.
“Nearly 400 persons lost their lives, about 2,000 were more or less seriously burned, and about 13,000 rendered homeless…. [p. 220]
“At the outset it must be borne in mind that this was not merely one great fire, but fifty to seventy-five or more which united to a considerable extent, were fanned to huge proportions by the wind, and then, with the increasing energy developed by the consequent violent air movement attending rapid combustion on such an enormous scale, advanced over vast areas with almost incredible speed.
“Predisposing Factors. For some days before the great fires in question ther had been numerous brush and peat-bog fires burning over limited patches. These were directly traceable to various causes, such as carelessness on the part of campers, automobilists, and train crews and on the part of farmers and settlers in burning brush to clear land. Such fires are quite common to this section, especially during the dry periods in summer and autumn, and the public in general does not ordinarily regard them seriously. The conditions which favored the full development of the great fires were primarily those of drought (the season being the driest for 48 years) and the fresh winds that occurred on October 12…. [p. 221]
“Brookston (about 35 miles west of Duluth) was destroyed at 4 p.m. [12th], and after the belated report of this calamity events moved swiftly. Telephone and telegraph lines to the southwest, west, and northwest were more or less demoralized or down by 6 p.m. and generally so after that hour.
“At 6 p.m., as fires were beginning to menace Woodland (a northern suburb of Duluth), the fire department called upon the military forces for help in fighting the fire and in rescue work. By 7 p.m. companies A, B, C, and D of the Home Guard, C and D of the 4th Minnesota Infantry, and A and B of the Motor Corps were fully mobilized and in action. They were assisted by thousands of volunteer citizens, many of them aiding with their automobiles. All night long these men and also many women toiled with the utmost energy and fortitude, rescuing the helpless, fighting fire, and saving property where possible. Many of the soldiers continued on duty from 36 to 48 hours without rest, and for nearly two weeks hundreds of them kept up the work of rescuing life, guarding property, and patrolling the fire zone….
“….The automobile rescue work on the night of the 12th was rendered especially hazardous by reason of the necessity of speed at a time when even to use lights was almost futile because of the dense, suffocating, and blinding smoke and the flying sparks and brands. Quite often there would be flames on both sides of the road. Many accidents were caused by collisions and ditching of automobiles. Many of the rescuers had to abandon their cars and flee for their lives. Fully one hundred automobiles were thus destroyed, and a very large number were badly damaged. Some of the relief trains also ran through sections where there were roaring and terrifying conflagrations on all sides…. [p. 225]
“The various fires traveled fast, as much as 15 to 20 miles an hour and at even higher speed in some cases. At Moose Lake the fire frontage was about 7 miles in extent, at Arthyde 3 miles, at Corona 4 miles, and at Cloquet 6 to 8 miles, while near Duluth from west to north and including the northern suburbs there was an irregular frontage of fully 10 miles. Occasionally vast billows of detached flame would leap across rivers, streams, small lakes, roads, and other open spaces in front of the walls of fire. An interesting feature observed in a few instances was that, as the main fires advanced or moved abut, there were back-firing effects which eventually caused some of them to die out…Human efforts of this sort were generally unavailing during the worst of the fire storm, but where such work was done sufficiently in advance it was fairly effective. The greatest devastation occurred during the height of the 50 to 60-mile westerly gale, between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m.
“Moose Lake, in Carlton County, about 50 miles southwest of Duluth, had probably the largest proportionate loss of life, 200 being burned to death in that locality. Later 87 charred bodies (many unidentified) were interred there in one large trench grave.
“Cloquet (8,000 population), in Carlton County, about 25 miles west-southwest of Duluth, suffered the most complete fire loss. The property destruction in the residence and business sections was practically total…but most of the lumber and paper mills remained without serious damage. Remarkable feature is that but five lives were lost in what constituted the city limits. By the quick action and good management of the railroad people and prominent citizens practically the whole population was safely moved out in about two hours, mostly to Duluth and Superior. Passenger coaches, box cars, flat cars, and coal cars were utilized and made up in several long trains, the cars being packed to capacity and their occupants carrying little or no baggage. The station was in flames as the last train departed. Great numbers also left in automobiles and other conveyances and even on foot, taking the road to Carlton, six miles distant, which proved a safe refuge. Fully one hundred lives were lost in the district adjacent to Cloquet….. [p. 227]
“….In one case a man lost his wife, his children, and all his immediate relatives – a total of 18 persons; all were buried in one grave….Scores saved themselves by plunging into lakes and streams or by lying face downward in ditches or other depressions. Many such were almost suffocated by the smoke or were badly burned; others were actually drowned; and still others were first suffocated and then burned beyond identification. Some victims were actually burned to death while asleep in their beds.
“For the most part the damage in the burned areas was in the nature of annihilation. The desolation was of an altogether weird and depressing character, reminding one of Doré’s illustrations of Dante’s Inferno…. [p. 228]
“The fire situation was well in hand by October 14, and on the 19th copious rains effectively disposed of smoldering embers which had continued a menace…. [p. 229]
“Reliable reports show that in the immediate vicinity of the big fires the effect was comparable to a great fire of enormous proportions; that there was an accompanying air movement or combustive draft of hurricane force…It has been estimated by some that while the wind at the Weather Bureau Station was blowing at the rate of 60 miles an hour it must surely have been blowing at a rate of 80 to 90 miles adjoining the fire fronts from two to six miles or more distant from the station. There was an attendant deafening roar of fire and wind combined. In numerous instances people were thrown flat on the ground, and some automobiles were overturned by the wind in the vicinity of the fires….In many instances the rescue automobile engines and radiators were found to be clogged or covered with quantities of sand and gravel blown upon them in fire districts…. [pp. 230-231]
“Reasons for Seriousness of the Fire. Indirectly the fire losses of life and property are believed to be largely due to inadequate forest ranger service, over-drainage of swamp lands and the lack of control gates for the drainage ditches, insufficient supervision and control of land-clearing and logging operations (particularly as to brush burnings), insufficient forestry laws and inability to enforce existing laws and to locate and punish offenders, public ignorance of or indifference to forestry laws already enacted, and the difficulty of quickly warning people who live in isolated sections like northeastern Minnesota. The inadequacy of forest fire patrol is illustrated by the fact that, since the state forestry appropriations were reduced by legislative acts in 1915 and 1917, the service in the matter of personnel is so limited that one ranger must patrol from 700 to 1,200 or more square miles, that is anywhere from 20 to 50 townships. And this in an immense section of the state still very largely covered with forest growth and brush, where the cleared areas are generally small in comparison with the surrounding wild country….” [p. 231]
(Richardson, H. W. (U.S. Weather Bureau, Duluth, MN). “The Northeastern Minnesota Forest Fires of October 12, 1918.” Geographical Review, Vol. 7, No. 4. April 1919, pp. 220-232.)
Smith: “…the worst American fire of the twentieth century, in terms of loss of life, ravaged the forests of Northern Minnesota [in 1918]…. In many ways this fire was virtually a carbon copy of the inferno that had wiped out vast areas of the Wisconsin woodlands around Peshtigo forty-seven years earlier. The causes of the two were the same—exceptional dryness, smaller fires burning freely in the forest, and a freshening breeze that spread the flames, feeding upon their growing heat until the breeze became a sixty-mile-an-hour firestorm.
“The Minnesota fires burnt out about the same amount of land that the Peshtigo fire had – approximately fifteen hundred square miles. As in the 1871 conflagration, several towns were totally burned out and numerous farms destroyed.
“Thanks to trains and motorcars, not available to the victims of Peshtigo, many more people were able to flee the raging forest fires to safety. Even so, a total of 559 people, half of the Peshtigo toll, were killed.” (Smith. Dennis Smith’s History of Firefighting in America... 1978, p. 129.
Wisc. Historical Society: “1918: the Cloquet, Minn., forest fire in October killed 800, burned 21 towns, caused $100,00,000 property damage and threatened Superior, causing darkness to fall upon that city early in the afternoon. About 15,000 suits were brought against the federal government to recover losses incurred in the Cloquet fire. About $15,000,000 was awarded litigants after it was proved in some cases that sparks from the government’s operation of trains ignited the forests.” (WI Historical Society. Dictionary of Wisc. History, “Forest Fires in Wisconsin.”)
Newspapers
Oct 14: “Moose Lake, Minn., Oct. 14. Shortly after 1 o’clock this afternoon, there were more than 120 bodies in the improvised morgues. Rescue workers this morning brought in forty children, many of whom were severely burned, who were found in the razed districts about Moose Lake. A number of these children may die.
“St. Paul, Minn., Oct. 14. – A dispatch received at the state capitol early this afternoon for Adjt. Gen. Rhineow, at Moose Lake, stated that the general forest fire situation was well in hand. No further spread of the fires is feared and it is expected that the burned area will be cleared of bodies by tonight. State officials, believing that the death-list in the Minnesota forest fire zone will total between 850 and 1,000 today, arranged for an additional shipment of 200 coffins to Moose Lake, which has become one of the centers of relief supplies….Official information confirmed reports that Grand Rapids, Minnesota, was safe and that more than forty bodies were brought to Aitkin. The home guard at Aitkin is credited with having saved the town of Tamarack from the conflagration which swept around the city.
“The bodies of 42 fire victims in and near Aitkin are in local morgues and official reports from searchers indicated that a score or more bodies would be brought here.” (Racine Journal-News, WI. “Forest Fires Now Are Under Control.” 10-14-1918, p. 1.)
Oct 15: “Duluth, Minn., Oct 15. – One hundred bodies were buried in a single grave at Moose Lake today, shortly before noon. Other community graves were covered during the morning hours and until late in the day the services continued, while motor trucks were bringing in additional bodies from fire wasted districts.
Known Dead 681
“Moose Lake and Cloquet are now the centers of the harvest of the gruesome tall taken by the greatest forest fire in the history of the northwest. Fifty additional bodies had been brought into the morgue at Moose Lake since daybreak this morning. Cloquet and Carlton added another fifty to the total, with reports from the Fond du Lac Indian reservation showing that at least 100 additional bodies will be recovered in that section. The total of known dead at morgues has amounted to 681.” (La Crosse Tribune and Leader-Press, WI. “Multiple Funerals for Scores of Dead in Great Wood Fire.” 10-15-1918, p.1.)
Sources
Askov American. “Pine County Also in Great Forest Fire.” 10-17-1918. Accessed at: http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mnpine/mooselakefire.html
Brady, Tim. “Fire and Flu.” Minnesota Medicine, Jan 2005. Accessed 12-2-2014 at: http://minnesotamedicine.com/Past-Issues/Past-Issues-2005/January-2005/Fire-and-Flu-Jan-2005
Carroll, Francis M. and Franklin R. Raiter. The Fires of Autumn: The Cloquet-Moose Lake Disaster of 1918. Minnesota Historical Society Press, October 1990, 246 pages. A review can be accessed at: http://collections.mnhs.org/MNHistoryMagazine/articles/52/v52i05p198-204.pdf
Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters. EM DAT Database. Louvain, Belgium: Universite Catholique do Louvain. Accessed at: http://www.emdat.be/
Haines, Donald A. and Rodney W. Sando. Climatic Conditions Preceding Historically Great Fires in the North Central Region (USDA Forest Service Research Paper NC-34). St. Paul MN: North Central Forest Experiment Station, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1969, 23 pages. Accessed at: http://www.ncrs.fs.fed.us/pubs/rp/rp_nc034.pdf
History.com. This Day in History, Disaster, October 12, 1918. “Fire Rages in Minnesota.” Accessed at: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history.do?action=Article&id=51600
Johnson, Lois E. “Commemorating the 80th Anniversary of the Fires of 1918.” Minnesota History Interpreter, Vol. XXVI, No. 6, June 1998. Accessed at: http://www.mnhs.org/about/publications/interpreter/June1998.pdf
Johnson, Lois. “Fires of 1918, 95 years later.” Moose Lake Star Gazette, MN, Vol. 118, No. 41, 10-10-2013. Accessed 12-1-2014 at: http://www.mlstargazette.com/story/2013/10/10/news/fires-of-1918/791.html
La Crosse Tribune and Leader-Press, WI. “Multiple Funerals for Scores of Dead in Great Wood Fire. List of Known Dead Now 681 and Steadily Increasing as Searchers Scour Forest.” 10-15-1918, p.1. At: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=53067661&sterm=forest
Minnesota Forest Fires Relief Commission. Final Report of Minnesota Forest Fires Relief Commission Appointed Under Authority Granted by the Act Known as Chapter 37, General Laws of Minnesota for the Year 1919, Providing for the Great Forest Fires which Swept Over Portions of Northern Minnesota in October 1918. Duluth, MN: 2-28-1921, 56 pages. Google digitized. Accessed 12-2-2014 at: http://books.google.com/books?id=SMovAQAAMAAJ&dq=inauthor:%22Minnesota+Forest+Fires+Relief+Commission%22&source=gbs_navlinks_s
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http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=980CEFDD1539E13ABC4C52DFB6678383609EDE&oref=slogin
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[1] This is a projection of anticipated loss of life made at the time. Anytime a nice round figure such as 1,000 is presented it should be taken as inaccurate. One does not know, until further research is done, whether such a figure is a close approximation, a wild swag, based on rumor, or made up in an effort to gain the attention of readers.
[2] No information is given concerning source or sources for this figure. EM-DAT is not always a reliable source.
[3] Link no longer works. When it did work, the material presented seemed a bit ambiguous.
[4] “The total of known dead at morgues has amounted to 681.” This is a report at the time, and one can imagine all the types of rumors, false reports, and reports based on assumptions that were being gathered.
[5] Authors cite the MN Forest Fires Relief Commission report to the effect that 453 died in “the whole fire.” These were direct fire deaths. 106 others died from influenza and pneumonia which broke out the next week.
[6] 453 noted as “Number of people burned to death.” Note that 85 people were “seriously burned,” 2,100 injured received treatment, and that 106 people “died from Flu and Pneumonia immediately after the fire.”
[7] Described as “outright” fire deaths the morning of October 13. Notes 106 addition deaths from the flu, citing the Final Report of the Minnesota Forest Fires Relief Commission (Duluth, 1921).
[8] Six in Cloquet and over 100 in surrounding rural areas.
[9] Richardson writes that “five lives were lost in what constituted the city limits.” Notes “Fully one hundred lives were lost in the district adjacent to Cloquet.”
[10] “…reports from the Fond du Lac Indian reservation showing that at least 100 additional bodies will be recovered in that section.” (La Crosse Tribune, WI. “Multiple Funerals for Scores of Dead…, 10-15-1918, p.1.)
[11] Minnesota Home Guard.