The Hull-Ottawa fire of 1900 was a devastating fire in 1900 that destroyed much of

Hull, Quebec Hull is the central business district and oldest neighbourhood of the city of Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. It is located on the west bank of the Gatineau River and the north shore of the Ottawa River, directly opposite Ottawa. As part of the Canadia ...

, and large portions of

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Incident

Plan showing extent of Ottawa-Hull Conflagration

Around 10 AM on April 26 a defective chimney on a house in Hull caught fire, which quickly spread between the wooden houses due to windy conditions. Within two hours the blaze had destroyed several surrounding blocks. At that point it began to spread along the river, where there were large lumber companies on the banks and islands, and huge amounts of stacked lumber that quickly ignited. By 1 PM the fire jumped the river on embers and set the Ottawa side ablaze. Two thirds of Hull was destroyed, including 40 per cent of its residential buildings and most of its largest employers along the waterfront. The fire also spread across the Ottawa River, carried by wind borne embers and destroyed a large swath of western Ottawa from the Lebreton Flats south to

Dow's Lake Dow's Lake in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada is a small man-made lake on the Rideau Canal, situated two kilometres north of Hog's Back Falls in the middle of Ottawa. It is at the south end of Preston Street, just south of Carling Avenue, and just to th ...

. About one fifth of Ottawa was destroyed with almost everything in the band between Booth Street and the rail line leveled. Much of the city's industry was destroyed, including two major ironworks, two flourmills, and both the

Ottawa Electric Railway Ottawa Electric Railway Company was a streetcar public transit system in the city of Ottawa, Canada, part of the electric railway streetcars that operated between 1891 and 1959. Ottawa once had tracks through downtown on Rideau Street, Sparks St ...

and Electric Lighting Company. Parliament was adjourned following the loss of power. Prevailing wind patterns and the higher elevation of central Ottawa prevented the fire from spreading east. The

fire break A firebreak or double track (also called a fire line, fuel break, fireroad and firetrail in Australia) is a gap in vegetation or other combustible material that acts as a barrier to slow or stop the progress of a bushfire or wildfire. A firebre ...

created by the rail line also preserved the

Hintonburg Hintonburg is a neighbourhood in Kitchissippi Ward in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, located west of the Downtown core. It is a historically working-class, predominantly residential neighbourhood, with a commercial strip located along Wellington Street ...

area. The fire engines 'The Conqueror' and 'La France' had to be abandoned to the flames, and the call went out to five communities for assistance in fighting the blaze, including

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

and

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

. Montreal was able to send a fire engine by rail, which arrived in less than two hours. Dynamiting houses to block the fire's spread was considered, but this plan was rejected in view of the danger that falling debris from the blast would only spread the conflagration further. The fire was largely contained by midnight thanks to a shift in winds and the efforts of firefighters as well as the Ottawa Militia. Seven people were killed in the blaze, and fifteen thousand were made homeless, including 14% of the population of Ottawa and 42% of Hull's population.G. W. Shorter,
Ottawa-Hull Fire of 1900
" Ottawa: National Research Council, 1962, p. 5 Property losses amounted to $6,200,000 in Ottawa and $3,300,000 in Hull, with insurance covering 50% of the damage in Ottawa but only 23% of the damage in Hull. More were killed by disease in the densely packed tent cities where the people were forced to live afterwards. Worldwide response to the disaster generated $957,000 in aid.

Legacy

A Souvenir photo views of the big fire, Ottawa & Hull, April 26, 1900, was produced. A postcard was produced showing the aftereffects of the Ottawa Hull Fire of April 26, 1900, with a view of The Hotel Cecil on the south side of Wellington Street in Ottawa.

References

External links

“Great Fire” of 1900
- Outaouais Heritage
The Ottawa Hull Fire, April 26, 1900
- Heritage Ottawa
Ottawa-Hull Fire of 1900
- National Research Council {{DEFAULTSORT:Hull-Ottawa fire, 1900 1900 fire History of Gatineau 1900 fires in North America 1900 in Ontario Disasters in Ontario Disasters in Quebec Urban fires in Canada 1900 disasters in Canada

Incident

Legacy

See also

References

External links