Knowledge

1861 Tooley Street fire

Source 📝

325:
since they had started having private fire engines. Following the fire, insurance companies changed the way they insured wharves, and their fire insurance policies, to encourage safer storage of goods. They also raised their insurance premiums by between 50 and 100%. The fire and insurance premium rises led to the 1865 Metropolitan Fire Brigade Act, which established the London Fire Brigade. The Act also mandated that iron doors be used as these were less flammable, and recommended that they be shut at all times, which was not the case during the Tooley Street fire. The fire also contributed to the establishment of many new fire insurance firms. These included the Commercial Union and Mercantile companies; and in 1867 the Reinsurance Company in London who specialised in insuring damaged buildings was also established.
161: 248: 31: 292:"For near a quarter of a mile, the south bank of the Thames was on fire: a long line of what had been warehouses, their roofs and fronts all gone; and the tall ghastly sidewalls, white with heat, standing, or rather tottering, side by side in the midst of a mountainous desert of red & black ruin, which smouldered & steamed here, & there, sent up sheets of savage intolerable flame a hundred feet high." 239:
as it was low tide and so the river was too shallow. The fire was so great that the river fire engine was forced to retreat. The firefighters were also inhibited when the spice warehouses caught fire, which distributed spices into the air. The Royal Society for the Protection of Life from Fire (which
324:
According to the 1862 House of Commons Report, insurance companies lost over £1 million from the fire. It is believed that one of the owners of Cotton's Wharf was insured for £400,000, and the Royal Insurance Company lost £75,000. It was the first time that most insurance companies had lost money
320:
did, and the water company only supplied water to houses in Tooley Street for 90 minutes a day. An 1867 House of Commons report also criticised the ineffectiveness of the allegedly fire proof floors, and general fire protection in the South London District. It recommended that oil should not be
270:
Around 10 hours after the fire started, it was stabilised and confined to a single area. The fire took two weeks to put out, during which time around 20 police officers remained present at the scene. Over 30,000 people watched the fire burn. The fire caused damage to buildings up to 0.25 miles
337:
An 1836 fire destroyed Topping's Wharf on Tooley Street, and an 1843 fire on Tooley Street destroyed St. Olave's Church. In 1891, there was another large fire which took 19 days to extinguish, and was described as the worst fire since the 1861 Tooley Street fire.
328:
The wharves destroyed in the Tooley Street fire were rebuilt as separated buildings, to make them safer from fire in future. A plaque to commemorate the fire, and memorialise James Braidwood, is located on Battle Bridge Lane, on the corner of Tooley Street.
208:, although it has also been suggested that someone smoking in the wharves may have started the fire. Whilst Cotton's Wharf was classed as good for fire protection, the surrounding buildings were less well protected, which enabled the fire to spread quickly. 271:(0.40 km) away from Cotton's Wharf, and destroyed 11 acres (45,000 m) of land. The range of the fire spanned from St Olave's Church to Battle Bridge Stairs. During the fire, tallow and oil from the wharves spilled into the 283:
also caught fire in the blaze, but the fire was put out by the station's private fire engines. The fire could be seen from up to 15 miles (24 km) away. In total, the damages from the fire were around £2 million. In his diary,
267:, the superintendent of the London Fire Engine Establishment, killing him. Another firefighter was killed in the same incident. Braidwood had been giving his firefighters their brandy rations at the time of the collapse. 1038: 886: 737: 204:
at the time of the fire. Unsafe jute and hemp storage in Cotton's Wharf and nearby wharves helped spread the fire. The cause of the fire is believed to have been
227:
until the London Fire Engine Establishment arrived, as his distillery had two private fire engines. A number of other private fire engines were also used. By 6
381: 1386: 1091: 416: 1342: 1406: 540: 235:, from the London Fire Engine Establishment were at the scene. The Fire Establishment's river fire engine was unable to draw water from the 1234: 497: 148:
reports cited multiple failures in fire prevention, and the fire led to the 1865 Metropolitan Fire Brigade Act, which established the
767: 989: 838: 1034: 608: 309: 145: 1200: 1156: 963: 880: 731: 704: 462: 955: 1230: 536: 173: 912: 872: 312:
report into the fire noted the lack of availability of water when the fire started, as the area did not have a
180:
p.m. Cotton's Wharf was around 100 by 50 feet (30 m × 15 m), and contained around 5,000 tons of
137: 377: 1030: 866: 721: 1123: 1182: 1178:
Market Services and the Productivity Race, 1850–2000: British Performance in International Perspective
160: 1396: 931: 1267: 1081: 1067: 814: 629: 573: 1381: 1401: 1281: 1222: 650: 528: 141: 1311: 1246: 552: 205: 96: 406: 1254: 1054: 985: 801: 616: 560: 280: 489: 297: 759: 8: 1391: 493: 454: 247: 241: 212: 149: 979: 828: 644: 918: 450:
Governing Future Emergencies: Lived Relations to Risk in the UK Fire and Rescue Service
1152: 959: 876: 727: 700: 458: 951:
Handbook of International Insurance: Between Global Dynamics and Local Contingencies
1196: 1176: 1142: 1118: 1011: 949: 793: 690: 600: 448: 317: 264: 252: 30: 132:, London, England, on 22 June 1861. The fire lasted for two weeks, and caused £2 1329: 1316: 1297: 1103: 696: 428: 313: 1375: 1357: 1344: 169: 129: 67: 285: 272: 236: 232: 224: 296:
At the time, the fire was described as the worst London fire since the
1148: 1086: 763: 411: 220: 833: 201: 185: 794:"Great Fire of 1861. Total destruction of Cotton's Wharf, etc" 276: 197: 193: 189: 181: 86: 829:"Nostalgic photos show 150 years of London Fire Brigade" 168:
The fire started on 22 June 1861, at Cotton's Wharf on
263:
30 p.m., a section of a warehouse collapsed on top of
692:
The Victorian City: Everyday Life in Dickens' London
948:Cummins, J. David; Venard, Bertrand (2007). "4.1". 913:"Dreadful Conflagration and Loss of Life in London" 911: 215:(later the London Fire Brigade) were alerted by 5 1373: 332: 1170: 1168: 947: 275:, destroying four sailing boats and numerous 1282:"London's Tooley Street Fire Still Burning" 684: 682: 680: 446: 244:) also assisted with controlling the fire. 1174: 1165: 943: 941: 787: 785: 678: 676: 674: 672: 670: 668: 666: 664: 662: 660: 136:million worth of damage. During the fire, 29: 1136: 1134: 1116: 1025: 1023: 860: 858: 856: 719: 1387:19th-century fires in the United Kingdom 688: 595: 593: 591: 589: 587: 585: 583: 246: 159: 938: 791: 782: 657: 642: 401: 399: 1374: 1140: 1131: 1035:House of Commons of the United Kingdom 1020: 992:from the original on 21 September 2017 906: 904: 864: 853: 636: 609:House of Commons of the United Kingdom 371: 321:stored in places where it could flow. 1237:from the original on 21 February 2017 580: 543:from the original on 17 December 2016 523: 521: 519: 517: 515: 500:from the original on 12 November 2016 369: 367: 365: 363: 361: 359: 357: 355: 353: 351: 231:p.m., 14 fire engines, including one 1407:1861 disasters in the United Kingdom 1215: 1094:from the original on 18 January 2017 1041:from the original on 18 January 2017 889:from the original on 18 January 2017 770:from the original on 18 January 2017 740:from the original on 18 January 2017 484: 482: 480: 478: 476: 474: 442: 440: 438: 419:from the original on 18 January 2017 396: 384:from the original on 18 January 2017 1203:from the original on 11 August 2016 901: 375: 13: 1016:. Vol. 69. Tudor Press. 1931. 512: 348: 14: 1418: 471: 435: 1231:Cassell, Petter, Galpin & Co 841:from the original on 3 July 2016 720:Henderson, Ronald (March 2016). 537:Cassell, Petter, Galpin & Co 213:London Fire Engine Establishment 176:, and was first noticed around 4 142:London Fire Engine Establishment 1304: 1274: 1189: 1110: 1074: 1004: 972: 956:Springer Science+Business Media 821: 752: 128:, started in Cotton's Wharf on 1090:. 9 December 1882. p. 9. 873:University of Pittsburgh Press 713: 35:The Tooley Street fire of 1861 1: 1144:Insurance Theory and Practice 341: 164:Tooley Street on 23 June 1861 1175:Broadberry, Stephen (2006). 760:"London's Other Great Fires" 649:. C. and E. Layton. p.  333:Other fires on Tooley Street 303: 174:St Olave's Church, Southwark 7: 1117:Dodd, A.; Smith, A (1861). 643:Walford, Cornelius (1876). 447:O'Grady, Nathaniel (2018). 255:, who died during the fire. 126:Great Fire of Tooley Street 78:Great Fire of Tooley Street 10: 1423: 1183:Cambridge University Press 723:British Steam Fire Engines 240:was later merged into the 1141:Thoyts, Rob (2010). "7". 1119:"Royal Insurance Company" 1082:"Tooley Street fire cost" 1031:"Reports from Committees" 932:British Newspaper Archive 922:. 25 June 1861. p. 4 865:Broich, John (May 2013). 689:Flanders, Judith (2012). 646:The Insurance Cyclopeadia 110: 102: 92: 82: 74: 63: 55: 40: 28: 1124:The Gentleman's Magazine 490:"The Tooley Street fire" 288:described the scene as: 155: 140:, superintendent of the 726:. Amberley Publishing. 316:as other areas such as 122:1861 Tooley Street fire 24:1861 Tooley Street fire 1262:Cite journal requires 1247:British History Online 1062:Cite journal requires 809:Cite journal requires 624:Cite journal requires 601:"Parliamentary Papers" 568:Cite journal requires 553:British History Online 294: 256: 206:spontaneous combustion 165: 97:Spontaneous combustion 44:22 June 1861 1199:. Plaques of London. 986:Yale University Press 290: 281:London Bridge station 250: 163: 1312:"Tooley Street Fire" 1286:The Buffalo Enquirer 1223:"Old and New London" 1197:"Tooley Street Fire" 1013:The Insurance Record 792:Vickers, H. (1861). 529:"Old and New London" 378:"Tooley Street Fire" 298:Great Fire of London 200:and 18,000 bales of 184:, 10,000 barrels of 1354: /  494:London Fire Brigade 455:Springer Publishing 242:London Fire Brigade 223:acted as temporary 150:London Fire Brigade 25: 18:1861 fire in London 1037:. 1862: 112, 258. 919:Caledonian Mercury 457:. pp. 37–38. 257: 166: 124:, also called the 23: 1320:. 24 October 1891 1288:. 23 October 1891 766:. 8 August 2016. 539:. 1878: 100–117. 118: 117: 1414: 1397:June 1861 events 1369: 1368: 1366: 1365: 1364: 1359: 1358:51.506°N 0.085°W 1355: 1352: 1351: 1350: 1347: 1334: 1333: 1327: 1325: 1308: 1302: 1301: 1295: 1293: 1278: 1272: 1271: 1265: 1260: 1258: 1250: 1244: 1242: 1233:. 1878: 89–100. 1219: 1213: 1212: 1210: 1208: 1193: 1187: 1186: 1172: 1163: 1162: 1138: 1129: 1128: 1127:. Vol. 211. 1114: 1108: 1107: 1101: 1099: 1078: 1072: 1071: 1065: 1060: 1058: 1050: 1048: 1046: 1027: 1018: 1017: 1008: 1002: 1001: 999: 997: 981:Dirty Old London 976: 970: 969: 945: 936: 935: 929: 927: 915: 908: 899: 898: 896: 894: 862: 851: 850: 848: 846: 837:. 8 April 2016. 825: 819: 818: 812: 807: 805: 797: 789: 780: 779: 777: 775: 756: 750: 749: 747: 745: 717: 711: 710: 686: 655: 654: 640: 634: 633: 627: 622: 620: 612: 597: 578: 577: 571: 566: 564: 556: 550: 548: 525: 510: 509: 507: 505: 486: 469: 468: 444: 433: 432: 426: 424: 415:. 25 June 1861. 407:"The Great Fire" 403: 394: 393: 391: 389: 373: 310:House of Commons 262: 230: 218: 196:, 3,000 tons of 192:, 1,100 tons of 188:, 1,000 tons of 179: 146:House of Commons 135: 51: 49: 33: 26: 22: 1422: 1421: 1417: 1416: 1415: 1413: 1412: 1411: 1382:Fires in London 1372: 1371: 1362: 1360: 1356: 1353: 1348: 1345: 1343: 1341: 1340: 1338: 1337: 1323: 1321: 1310: 1309: 1305: 1291: 1289: 1280: 1279: 1275: 1263: 1261: 1252: 1251: 1240: 1238: 1221: 1220: 1216: 1206: 1204: 1195: 1194: 1190: 1173: 1166: 1159: 1139: 1132: 1115: 1111: 1097: 1095: 1080: 1079: 1075: 1063: 1061: 1052: 1051: 1044: 1042: 1029: 1028: 1021: 1010: 1009: 1005: 995: 993: 978: 977: 973: 966: 946: 939: 925: 923: 910: 909: 902: 892: 890: 883: 863: 854: 844: 842: 827: 826: 822: 810: 808: 799: 798: 790: 783: 773: 771: 758: 757: 753: 743: 741: 734: 718: 714: 707: 687: 658: 641: 637: 625: 623: 614: 613: 599: 598: 581: 569: 567: 558: 557: 546: 544: 527: 526: 513: 503: 501: 488: 487: 472: 465: 445: 436: 422: 420: 405: 404: 397: 387: 385: 380:. Historic UK. 376:Appleby, Rita. 374: 349: 344: 335: 318:West India Dock 306: 265:James Braidwood 260: 253:James Braidwood 228: 216: 177: 158: 138:James Braidwood 133: 111:Property damage 47: 45: 36: 19: 12: 11: 5: 1420: 1410: 1409: 1404: 1402:1861 in London 1399: 1394: 1389: 1384: 1363:51.506; -0.085 1336: 1335: 1330:Newspapers.com 1317:St. Paul Globe 1303: 1298:Newspapers.com 1273: 1264:|journal= 1214: 1188: 1185:. p. 207. 1164: 1157: 1130: 1109: 1104:Newspapers.com 1073: 1064:|journal= 1019: 1003: 971: 964: 937: 900: 881: 875:. p. 25. 852: 820: 811:|journal= 781: 751: 732: 712: 705: 697:Atlantic Books 656: 635: 626:|journal= 579: 570:|journal= 511: 470: 463: 434: 429:Newspapers.com 395: 346: 345: 343: 340: 334: 331: 314:hydraulic pump 305: 302: 157: 154: 144:, was killed. 116: 115: 112: 108: 107: 104: 100: 99: 94: 90: 89: 84: 80: 79: 76: 72: 71: 65: 61: 60: 57: 53: 52: 42: 38: 37: 34: 17: 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 1419: 1408: 1405: 1403: 1400: 1398: 1395: 1393: 1390: 1388: 1385: 1383: 1380: 1379: 1377: 1370: 1367: 1331: 1319: 1318: 1313: 1307: 1299: 1287: 1283: 1277: 1269: 1256: 1248: 1236: 1232: 1228: 1224: 1218: 1202: 1198: 1192: 1184: 1180: 1179: 1171: 1169: 1160: 1158:9781136963452 1154: 1150: 1146: 1145: 1137: 1135: 1126: 1125: 1120: 1113: 1105: 1093: 1089: 1088: 1083: 1077: 1069: 1056: 1040: 1036: 1032: 1026: 1024: 1015: 1014: 1007: 991: 987: 983: 982: 975: 967: 965:9780387341637 961: 957: 953: 952: 944: 942: 933: 921: 920: 914: 907: 905: 888: 884: 882:9780822978664 878: 874: 870: 869: 861: 859: 857: 840: 836: 835: 830: 824: 816: 803: 795: 788: 786: 769: 765: 761: 755: 739: 735: 733:9781445657806 729: 725: 724: 716: 708: 706:9780857898814 702: 698: 694: 693: 685: 683: 681: 679: 677: 675: 673: 671: 669: 667: 665: 663: 661: 652: 648: 647: 639: 631: 618: 610: 606: 602: 596: 594: 592: 590: 588: 586: 584: 575: 562: 554: 542: 538: 534: 530: 524: 522: 520: 518: 516: 499: 495: 491: 485: 483: 481: 479: 477: 475: 466: 464:9783319719917 460: 456: 452: 451: 443: 441: 439: 430: 418: 414: 413: 408: 402: 400: 383: 379: 372: 370: 368: 366: 364: 362: 360: 358: 356: 354: 352: 347: 339: 330: 326: 322: 319: 315: 311: 301: 299: 293: 289: 287: 282: 278: 274: 268: 266: 254: 249: 245: 243: 238: 234: 226: 222: 219:p.m. A local 214: 209: 207: 203: 199: 195: 191: 187: 183: 175: 171: 170:Tooley Street 162: 153: 151: 147: 143: 139: 131: 130:Tooley Street 127: 123: 113: 109: 105: 101: 98: 95: 91: 88: 85: 81: 77: 75:Also known as 73: 69: 68:Tooley Street 66: 62: 58: 54: 43: 39: 32: 27: 21: 16: 1339: 1328:– via 1322:. Retrieved 1315: 1306: 1296:– via 1290:. Retrieved 1285: 1276: 1255:cite journal 1245:– via 1239:. Retrieved 1226: 1217: 1205:. Retrieved 1191: 1177: 1143: 1122: 1112: 1102:– via 1096:. Retrieved 1085: 1076: 1055:cite journal 1043:. Retrieved 1012: 1006: 994:. Retrieved 980: 974: 950: 930:– via 924:. Retrieved 917: 891:. Retrieved 867: 843:. Retrieved 832: 823: 802:cite journal 772:. Retrieved 754: 742:. Retrieved 722: 715: 691: 645: 638: 617:cite journal 604: 561:cite journal 551:– via 545:. Retrieved 532: 502:. Retrieved 449: 427:– via 421:. Retrieved 410: 386:. Retrieved 336: 327: 323: 307: 295: 291: 286:Arthur Munby 273:River Thames 269: 258: 237:River Thames 233:steam engine 225:fire marshal 210: 167: 125: 121: 119: 20: 15: 1361: / 1392:1861 fires 1376:Categories 1346:51°30′22″N 1241:17 January 1098:17 January 1045:17 January 996:17 January 926:17 January 893:17 January 845:17 January 774:17 January 744:17 January 547:17 January 504:17 January 423:17 January 388:17 January 342:References 251:Statue of 172:, near to 114:£2 million 48:1861-06-22 1349:0°05′06″W 1149:Routledge 1087:The Times 764:Londonist 412:The Times 304:Aftermath 221:distiller 59:Two weeks 1324:17 April 1292:17 April 1235:Archived 1207:17 April 1201:Archived 1092:Archived 1039:Archived 990:Archived 988:. 2014. 887:Archived 839:Archived 834:BBC News 768:Archived 738:Archived 541:Archived 498:Archived 417:Archived 382:Archived 308:An 1862 259:Around 7 70:, London 64:Location 56:Duration 611:. 1867. 46: ( 1155:  962:  879:  868:London 796:: 4–7. 730:  703:  461:  277:barges 261:  229:  217:  202:cotton 186:tallow 178:  134:  103:Deaths 198:sugar 156:Blaze 93:Cause 1326:2020 1294:2020 1268:help 1243:2017 1209:2020 1153:ISBN 1100:2017 1068:help 1047:2017 998:2017 960:ISBN 928:2017 895:2017 877:ISBN 847:2017 815:help 776:2017 746:2017 728:ISBN 701:ISBN 630:help 574:help 549:2017 506:2017 459:ISBN 425:2017 390:2017 211:The 194:jute 190:hemp 182:rice 120:The 87:Fire 83:Type 41:Date 1378:: 1314:. 1284:. 1259:: 1257:}} 1253:{{ 1229:. 1225:. 1181:. 1167:^ 1151:. 1147:. 1133:^ 1121:. 1084:. 1059:: 1057:}} 1053:{{ 1033:. 1022:^ 984:. 958:. 954:. 940:^ 916:. 903:^ 885:. 871:. 855:^ 831:. 806:: 804:}} 800:{{ 784:^ 762:. 736:. 699:. 695:. 659:^ 651:93 621:: 619:}} 615:{{ 607:. 605:10 603:. 582:^ 565:: 563:}} 559:{{ 535:. 531:. 514:^ 496:. 492:. 473:^ 453:. 437:^ 409:. 398:^ 350:^ 300:. 279:. 152:. 106:2+ 1332:. 1300:. 1270:) 1266:( 1249:. 1227:6 1211:. 1161:. 1106:. 1070:) 1066:( 1049:. 1000:. 968:. 934:. 897:. 849:. 817:) 813:( 778:. 748:. 709:. 653:. 632:) 628:( 576:) 572:( 555:. 533:6 508:. 467:. 431:. 392:. 50:)

Index

Burning buildings on the River Thames
Tooley Street
Fire
Spontaneous combustion
Tooley Street
James Braidwood
London Fire Engine Establishment
House of Commons
London Fire Brigade
Burning buildings on the River Thames.
Tooley Street
St Olave's Church, Southwark
rice
tallow
hemp
jute
sugar
cotton
spontaneous combustion
London Fire Engine Establishment
distiller
fire marshal
steam engine
River Thames
London Fire Brigade
See caption
James Braidwood
James Braidwood
River Thames
barges

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.