The Great Toronto Fire

Mike Filey, a Toronto historian, is author of Like No Other in the
World: A History of Toronto’s Skydome and co-author of Pantages
Theatre: Rebirth of a Landmark.

Another of the multitude of books to be released in tribute to Toronto’s 150th anniversary (and, incidentally, with a grant from the Toronto Sesquicentennial Board) The Great Toronto Fire is a short, concise look at one of the most fearful days in the city’s 150-year history. Tracing the ordeal from the discovery of flames leaping from the E. & S. Currie Neckwear factory on the north side of Wellington, west of Bay, at 8:04 p.m. on April 19, 1904, to the sifting of the ashes and placing of the blame days later, this slim volume makes fascinating reading. Loaded with a multitude of photos from numerous government archives, the extent of the conflagration and the resulting concerns of the citizens about the very future of their Toronto are more easily understood. Of particular interest is the chapter that deals with the response to the city’s plea for help by other fire-fighting agencies. Thirty firemen, two hose wagons, and two engines were supplied by the City of Buffalo, New York. Ten men and 1,450 feet of fire hose were supplied by Hamilton in our hour of need. These “outsiders” worked alongside 26 other firemen from Toronto Junction, East Toronto, and Kew Beach. In all, 262 firefighters battled the great Toronto fire, which ultimately destroyed more than 100 buildings containing 137 businesses in the heart of Toronto.