A massive fire destroys much of Portland, Maine, leaving 10,000 homeless but killing only two.

In the worst fire disaster up to that time to befall an American city, a third of Portland, Maine was burned to the ground after a blaze began in a small boat house near Commercial Street and quickly spread eastwards. The fire burned for twenty-four hours, destroyed more than 1,800 buildings, and left thousands of homeless living in tents.  Miraculously, only two people were reported to have lost their lives in the disaster.  (By John Osborne) 
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Crime/Disasters
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Scene, Commercial Street, Atchison, Kansas, July 1866, artist's impression, detail

Scanned by
Jia Ma, House Divided, Dickinson College
Scan date
Notes
Cropped, sized, and prepared for use by John Osborne, Dickinson College, April 16, 2016
Image type
engraving
Use in Day View?
No
Courtesy of
Archives and Special Collections, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA
Permission to use?
Yes
Original caption
Commercial Street, Atchison, Kansas - Sketched by William R. Merrick.
Source citation

Harper's Weekly Magazine, July 28, 1866, p. 476.

Source note
Cropped from the larger and fuller image, also available here. 

Scene, Commercial Street, Atchison, Kansas, July 1866, artist's impression, zoomable image

Scanned by
Jia Ma, House Divided, Dickinson College
Scan date
Notes
Cropped, sized, and prepared for use by John Osborne, Dickinson College, April 16, 2016
Image type
engraving
Use in Day View?
No
Courtesy of
Archives and Special Collections, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA
Permission to use?
Yes
Original caption
Commercial Street, Atchison, Kansas - Sketched by William R. Merrick.
Source citation

Harper's Weekly Magazine, July 28, 1866, p. 476.

Ruins of City Hall, Portland, Maine, July 1866, artist's impression

Scanned by
Jia Ma, House Divided, Dickinson College
Scan date
Notes
Cropped, sized, and prepared for use by John Osborne, Dickinson College, April 16, 2016
Image type
engraving
Use in Day View?
No
Courtesy of
Archives and Special Collections, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA
Permission to use?
Yes
Original caption
Great Fire in Portland, Maine - Ruins of the City Hall.
Source citation
Harper's Weekly Magazine, July 28, 1866, p. 468.

Tents of the Homeless, Portland, Maine, July 1866, artist's impression

Scanned by
Jia Ma, House Divided, Dickinson College
Scan date
Notes
Cropped, sized, and prepared for use by John Osborne, Dickinson College, April 16, 2016
Image type
engraving
Use in Day View?
No
Courtesy of
Archives and Special Collections, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA
Permission to use?
Yes
Original caption
Great Fire in Portland, Maine - Tents among the Ruins - Sketched by Stanley Fox.
Source citation
Harper's Weekly Magazine, July 28, 1866, p. 465.

Mountjoy Prison, Dublin, Ireland, July, 1866, artist's impression

Scanned by
Jia Ma, House Divided, Dickinson College
Scan date
Notes
Cropped, sized, and prepared for use by John Osborne, Dickinson College, April 16, 2016
Image type
engraving
Use in Day View?
No
Courtesy of
Archives and Special Collections, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA
Permission to use?
Yes
Original caption
Interior of Mountjoy Prison, Dublin, Ireland, where the Fenians are confined.
Source citation
Harper's Weekly Magazine, July 21, 1866, p. 461.

"Creole Night" at the French Opera House, New Orleans, Louisiana, artist's impression

Scanned by
Jia Ma, House Divided, Dickinson College
Scan date
Notes
Cropped, sized, and prepared for use by John Osborne, Dickinson College, April 16, 2016
Image type
engraving
Use in Day View?
No
Courtesy of
Archives and Special Collections, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA
Permission to use?
Yes
Original caption
Sunday Amusements in New Orleans - A Creole Night at the French Opera House - Sketched by our special artist A.R. Waud.
Source citation
Harper's Weekly Magazine, July 21, 1866, p. 452.

Ruins of Richardson Street, Columbia, South Carolina, July, 1866, artist's impression

Scanned by
Jia Ma, House Divided, Dickinson College
Scan date
Notes
Cropped, sized, and prepared for use by John Osborne, Dickinson College, April 16, 2016
Image type
engraving
Use in Day View?
No
Courtesy of
Archives and Special Collections, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA
Permission to use?
Yes
Original caption
The ruins of Columbia, South Carolina - Richardson Street, looking towards the Capitol - Sketched by Theodore R. Davis.
Source citation
Harper's Weekly Magazine, July 21, 1866, p. 449.

African-American family among the ruins of Columbia, South Carolina, July, 1866, artist's impression, detail

Scanned by
Jia Ma, House Divided, Dickinson College
Scan date
Notes
Cropped, sized, and prepared for use by John Osborne, Dickinson College, April 16, 2016
Image type
engraving
Use in Day View?
No
Courtesy of
Archives and Special Collections, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA
Permission to use?
Yes
Original caption
Among the ruins of Columbia, South Carolina - Sketched by Theodore R. Davis.
Source citation
Harper's Weekly Magazine, July 21, 1866, p. 449.
Source note
Cropped from the fuller image, also available here. 

African-American family among the ruins of Columbia, South Carolina, July, 1866, artist's impression

Scanned by
Jia Ma, House Divided, Dickinson College
Scan date
Notes
Cropped, sized, and prepared for use by John Osborne, Dickinson College, April 16, 2016
Image type
engraving
Use in Day View?
No
Courtesy of
Archives and Special Collections, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA
Permission to use?
Yes
Original caption
Among the ruins of Columbia, South Carolina - Sketched by Theodore R. Davis.
Source citation
Harper's Weekly Magazine, July 21, 1866, p. 449.
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