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of
Porquis Junction, Iroquois Falls, Kelso, Nushka, Matheson and Ramore. It also partially razed the hamlets of Homer and Monteith, while a smaller fire caused widespread damage in and around Cochrane. The 500,000-acre (2,000 km) holocaust took an estimated 223 lives, more than any other forest fire in Canadian history, and led to the development of improved techniques and legislation for the prevention and control of forest fires.
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On July 29, 1916, fires that had been burning for some weeks around settlers’ clearings along the
Temiskaming & Northern Ontario Railway were united by strong winds into one huge conflagration. Burning easterly along a 40-mile (64 km) front, it largely or completely destroyed the settlements
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Because of forest fire smoke that had covered the region for several weeks and the absence of a forest fire monitoring service, there was almost no warning that the conflagration was upon the communities. Some people escaped on the
Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway (now the
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method. That summer, there was little rain, and the forests and underbrush burned easily. In the days leading up to July 29, several smaller fires that had been purposely set merged into a single large
195:. It was huge; at times its front measured 64 kilometres (40 mi) across. The fire moved uncontrollably upon the towns of Porquis Junction, Iroquois Falls, Kelso,
211:), while others were saved by wading into the nearby Black River or one of the small lakes in the area. 223 people were killed according to the official estimate.
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199:, Matheson, and Ramore, destroying them completely and causing extensive damage to Homer and Monteith. A separate fire burned in and around
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The
Matheson Fire led to the creation of the Forest Protection Branch of the Department of Lands, Forests, and Mines (now known as the
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After the fire, the village of Nushka was completely removed from maps of the region. The village was rebuilt and renamed to
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Proceedings of 3rd Fire
Behavior and Fuels Conference, October 25-29, 2010, Spokane, Washington, USA
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203:. In all, the fires burned an area of approximately 2,000 square kilometres (490,000 acres).
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218:, named after local priest Wilfrid Gagne, who died rescuing churchgoers from the fire.
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381:"A century later, Great Matheson Fire of 1916 still deadliest in Canadian history"
320:"'Lest we forget': Canada's major wildland fire disasters of the past, 1825-1938"
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http://www.ontarioforesthistory.ca/files/fhso_newsl_vol_4_iss_1_spring_2013.pdf
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As was common practice at the time, settlers cleared land using the
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historical plaque stands in Alarie Park near
Matheson and reads:
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that passed through the region surrounding the communities of
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Fortunes in the Ground: Cobalt, Porcupine & Kirkland Lake
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297:. Erin, Ontario: The Boston Mills Press. p. 194.
225:) and the Forest Fires Prevention Act in Ontario.
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428:). Coach House, Toronto, 2013 & London 2015
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228:The great fires are the subject of the books
223:Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry
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477:20th-century wildfires in North America
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420:. 2nd edition, 2004. Cobalt, Ontario:
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346:Ontario Heritage Foundation,
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109:490,000 acres (2,000 km)
487:20th-century fires in Canada
462:1910s fires in North America
32:Temporary morgue at Matheson
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250:Ontario Heritage Foundation
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426:And the birds rained down
209:Ontario Northland Railway
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482:1916 disasters in Canada
293:Barnes, Michael (1986).
274:List of fires in Canada
234:Il pleuvait des oiseaux
232:by Michael Barnes, and
349:The Great Fire of 1916
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257:THE GREAT FIRE OF 1916
318:Martin E. Alexander,
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452:Wildfires in Ontario
183:, on July 29, 1916.
169:Black River-Matheson
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424:; Saucier: (engl.
230:Killer in the Bush
422:Highway Book Shop
244:Historical plaque
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85:48.533°N 80.467°W
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472:1910s wildfires
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387:. July 29, 2016
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42:July 29, 1916
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21:Matheson Fire
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389:. Retrieved
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391:December 9,
165:forest fire
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63:Coordinates
467:1916 fires
446:Categories
434:1552452689
304:091978352X
280:References
159:The great
106:Total area
101:Statistics
216:Val Gagné
193:firestorm
416:Barnes:
268:See also
201:Cochrane
48:Location
366:May 14,
332:May 14,
177:Ontario
114:Impacts
76:80°28′W
73:48°32′N
52:Ontario
38:Date(s)
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197:Nushka
181:Canada
119:Deaths
56:Canada
360:(PDF)
353:(PDF)
323:(PDF)
430:ISBN
393:2023
368:2016
334:2016
299:ISBN
171:and
122:~223
385:CBC
248:An
236:by
127:Map
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