 Map of the Great Fire of 1901 that destroyed Downtown Jacksonville | |
| Date | May 3, 1901 |
|---|---|
| Location | Jacksonville, Florida |
| Outcome | 2,367 structures destroyed 7 killed |
The Great Fire of 1901 was a conflagration that occurred in Jacksonville, Florida, on May 3, 1901. It was one of the worst disasters in Florida history and the third largest urban fire in the U.S., next to the Great Chicago Fire, and the 1906 San Francisco fire. [1]
In 1901, Jacksonville was a city which consisted mainly of wooden buildings with wood shingled roofs. The city itself had been suffering under a prolonged drought, [2] leaving the building exteriors across the city dry and fire-prone. At around noon on Friday, May 3, 1901, workers at the Cleaveland Fibre Factory, located on the corner of Beaver and Davis Streets, left for lunch. Several minutes later, sparks from the chimney of a nearby building started a fire in a pile of Spanish moss that had been laid out to dry. First, factory workers tried to put it out with a few buckets of water, as they had frequently done on similar occasions. [3] However, the blaze was soon out of control due to the wind picking up out of the east. [4] A brisk northwest wind fanned the flames, which "spread from house to house, seemingly with the rapidity that a man could walk". [2]
In eight hours, the fire burned 146 city blocks, destroyed more than 2,367 buildings, and left almost 10,000 residents homeless, including the Afro-American Insurance Association, the first insurance company in the state. [5] It is said the glow from the flames could be seen in Savannah, Georgia, and the smoke plumes in Raleigh, North Carolina. [6]
James Weldon Johnson, principal of a local school claimed, however, that firemen tried to save the fire from spreading to a white neighborhood, allowing black parts of town to burn down in the process:
"We met many people fleeing. From them we gathered excitedly related snatches: the fiber factory catches afire - the fire department comes - fanned by a light breeze, the fire is traveling directly east and spreading out to the north, over the district where the bulk of Negroes in the western end of the city live - the firemen spend all their efforts saving a low row of frame houses just across the street on the south side of the factory, belonging to a white man named Steve Melton." [7]
Florida Governor William S. Jennings declared martial law in Jacksonville and dispatched several state militia units to help. Reconstruction began immediately, and the city was returned to civil authority on May 17. Seven human deaths were reported. [8] St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, built of bricks in 1887, was the only major church in the city to withstand the fire. The Duval County Courthouse and all its real estate records were destroyed in the fire. To this day real estate deeds in Duval County refer either to "the current public records of Duval County, Florida" or, if the records predate the fire, "the former public records of Duval County, Florida." It is the only county in Florida for which that is the case.[ citation needed ] The only existing pre-Fire real estate records are title abstracts saved by Title and Trust, a title company that still charges for their use.[ citation needed ]
New York City architect Henry John Klutho helped rebuild the city. He and other architects, enamored by the "Prairie Style" of architecture then being popularized by architect Frank Lloyd Wright in Chicago and other Midwestern cities, designed exuberant local buildings with a Florida flair. Buildings designed by Klutho were Dyal-Upchurch Building (1902), Carnegie Library (1905), Bisbee Building (1909), Morocco Temple (1910), and the Florida Baptist Building (1924). While many of Klutho's buildings were demolished or abandoned by the 1980s, several of his creations remain, including his most prominent work, the St. James Building. The Jacksonville City Hall currently uses the St. James Building. [9] [10] Local charity Fresh Ministries recently[ when? ] restored the Klutho Apartments, in Springfield, and converted them into office space for the Community Development Corporation's Operation New Hope.[ citation needed ] Jacksonville has one of the largest collections of Prairie Style buildings (particularly residences) outside the Midwest. [11]
Jacksonville is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of northeastern Florida. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonville consolidated in 1968. It was the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020, and became the 10th largest city by population in 2023.
Springfield is a historic neighborhood of Jacksonville, Florida, United States, located to the north of downtown. Established in 1869, it experienced its greatest growth from the early 1880s through the 1920s. The Springfield Historic District is listed in the National Register of Historic Places, and contains some of the city's best examples of 19th and early 20th century architecture.
The city of Jacksonville, Florida, began to grow in the late 18th century as Cow Ford, settled by British colonists. Its major development occurred in the late nineteenth century, when it became a winter vacation destination for tourists from the North and Midwest. Its development was halted or slowed by the Great Fire of 1901, the Florida Land Bust of the 1920s, and the economic woes of the 1960s and 70s. Since the late 20th century, the city has experienced steady growth, with a new federal building constructed in downtown in 2003.
There are more than 500 neighborhoods within the area of Jacksonville, Florida, the largest city in the contiguous United States by area. These include Downtown Jacksonville and surrounding neighborhoods. Additionally, greater Jacksonville is traditionally divided into several major sections with amorphous boundaries: Northside, Westside, Southside, and Arlington, as well as the Jacksonville Beaches.
The Dyal–Upchurch Building is a six-story, 43,747-square-foot historic building in Jacksonville, Florida. It is located at 4 East Bay Street, and was designed by architect Henry John Klutho. On April 17, 1980, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
The Henry John Klutho House is a historic home in Jacksonville, Florida. The house was designed and lived in by the New York City architect Henry John Klutho, who helped in the rebuilding of Jacksonville after the Great Fire of 1901. It is located at 28-30 West 9th Street. On December 19, 1978, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
The Thomas V. Porter House is a historic home in Jacksonville, Florida. It is located at 510 Julia Street, and was designed by New York City architect Henry John Klutho. On May 13, 1976, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
The St. James Building is a historic building in Downtown Jacksonville, Florida, currently housing Jacksonville City Hall. It was designed by architect Henry John Klutho and opened in 1912. One of many structures in downtown Jacksonville designed by Klutho after the Great Fire of 1901, it is considered his Prairie School masterpiece.
The Morocco Temple is a historic Shriners International building in Jacksonville, Florida. It is located at 219 Newnan Street, and was designed by Jacksonville architect Henry John Klutho. On November 29, 1979, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. The building is the oldest Shrine temple in Florida.
Henry John Klutho (1873–1964) was an American architect known for his work in the "Prairie School" style. He helped in the reconstruction of Jacksonville, Florida after the Great Fire of 1901—the largest-ever urban fire in the Southeast—by designing many of the new buildings built after the disaster. This period lasted until the beginning of World War I. Several Jacksonville architects began their careers in the offices of Klutho's firm.
LaVilla is a historic African American neighborhood of Jacksonville, Florida and a was formerly an independent city. It developed after the American Civil War and was eventually annexed to the city of Jacksonville in 1887 and is now considered part of downtown.
The Duval County Courthouse is the local courthouse for Duval County, Florida. It houses courtrooms and judges from the Duval County and Fourth Judicial Circuit Courts. The new facility is located Downtown Jacksonville, Florida; it was built starting in 2009 and opened in 2012.
The Laura Street Trio is a group of three historic buildings located on and near Laura Street in downtown Jacksonville, Florida. The Trio consists of two perpendicularly arranged skyscrapers, the Florida Life Building and the Bisbee Building, plus a third structure, the Old Florida National Bank, which is framed by the other two in a unique pattern. The three buildings, constructed in the wake of the Great Fire of 1901, are architecturally significant, but are currently endangered.
121 Atlantic Place, formerly the Atlantic National Bank Building, is a historic skyscraper in Jacksonville, Florida. It was built in 1909 as the headquarters for the Atlantic National Bank, and is located at 121 West Forsyth Street. It was the tallest building in Jacksonville and in Florida from 1909 to 1912, and remains an office building today.
Wilbur Bacon Camp (1860-1918) was one of a number of out-of-town architects and builders attracted to Jacksonville, FL by the construction opportunities created by the disastrous Great Fire of 1901.
Henry J. Klutho Park is an 18.34-acre (74,200 m2) public park, located between downtown Jacksonville, Florida and the historic neighborhood of Springfield. It is part of a network of parks that parallel Hogans Creek, Klutho Park being the largest. Klutho Park is home to an 18-hole disc golf course.
The architecture of Jacksonville is a combination of historic and modern styles reflecting the city's early position as a regional center of business. According to the National Trust for Historic Preservation, there are more buildings built before 1967 in Jacksonville than any other city in Florida, though few structures in the city center predate the Great Fire of 1901. Numerous buildings in the city have held state height records, dating as far back as 1902, and last holding a record in 1981.
Laura Street is a north–south street in Jacksonville, Florida, United States, named for the daughter of the city's founder, Isaiah D. Hart. Historically, the downtown portion of Laura Street has been considered the financial district of Jacksonville.
The Richmond Hotel is a historic building located in the LaVilla neighborhood of Jacksonville, Florida. The building was originally built in 1909 as a hotel for Black patrons. Following desegregation, the hotel closed in 1969. As of 2018, the ground-level area of the Richmond Hotel is occupied by Delo Studios.
Jacob Elias Cohen was an American businessman who served as president and CEO of Cohen Brothers department store in Jacksonville, Florida. He was nicknamed "Wanamaker of the South" after John Wanamaker the proprietor of Wanamaker's department store.
