The Peshtigo Fire of 1871
A Captivating Guide to the Deadliest Wildfire in the History of the United States of America That Occurred in Northeastern Wisconsin
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Narrated by:
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Jason Zenobia
About this listen
If you want to discover the history of the Peshtigo Fire of 1871, then pay attention...
It’s likely true that most people picking up this book have never even heard of a place called Peshtigo. This is hardly surprising. This little town on the shores of Lake Michigan is hardly a remarkable place in the modern day. Its residents number less than 4,000, and there’s nothing particularly special about it at first glance.
But one does have to look twice at its motto. “A city rebuilt from the ashes.” Peshtigo may be just another small Wisconsin town today, but 150 years ago, it really was nothing but ashes. This town was one of the hardest hit in the deadliest wildfire event in American history - and no, I’m not talking about the Great Chicago Fire, even though it also occurred on the very same night.
The Great Peshtigo Fire of 1871 claimed four times as many lives as the fire in Chicago, yet this cruel twist of fate has left it almost unheard of, while the (untrue) tale of Catherine O’Leary’s cow continues to echo through the centuries with unabated vigor.
The story of the Great Peshtigo Fire has not been told nearly often enough, yet it is a story that will captivate every listener. Parts of it seem to border on science fiction: trees exploding in the heat of the fire, a tornado made of flames sweeping through an entire town in a single hour, birds caught up and burned in mid-air. Yet, all of it is true, and so are the stories of the people who witnessed the fire first-hand and survived it.
So if you want to learn more about the Peshtigo Fire of 1871, scroll up and click the "add to cart" button!
©2020 Captivating History (P)2020 Captivating HistoryListeners also enjoyed...
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- By: Al Roker
- Narrated by: Mirron Willis
- Length: 8 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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A gripping narrative history of the 1889 Johnstown Flood - the deadliest flood in US history - from New York Times best-selling author, NBC host, and legendary weather authority Al Roker. May 1889: After a deluge of rainfall swelled the Little Conemaugh River, panicked engineers watched helplessly as swiftly rising waters threatened to breach the South Fork Dam in central Pennsylvania. Though they telegraphed neighboring towns, warning of the impending danger, residents, used to false alarms, remained in their homes. At 3:10 p.m., the dam gave way....
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Mispronunciation bothers me
- By Tracy on 09-08-18
By: Al Roker
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Washed Away
- How the Great Flood of 1913, America’s Most Widespread Natural Disaster, Terrorized a Nation and Changed It Forever
- By: Geoff Williams
- Narrated by: Jim Vann
- Length: 12 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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The incredible story of a flood of near-Biblical proportions - its destruction, its heroes and victims, and how it shaped America’s natural-disaster policies for the next century. The storm began March 23, 1913, with a series of tornadoes that killed 150 people and injured 400. Then the freezing rains started and the flooding began. It was the nation’s most widespread flood ever - more than 700 people died, hundreds of thousands of homes and buildings were destroyed, and millions were left homeless.
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I love these historical narratives
- By Kim Hamacher on 07-28-15
By: Geoff Williams
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The Indifferent Stars Above
- The Harrowing Saga of the Donner Party
- By: Daniel James Brown
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard
- Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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In April of 1846, 21-year-old Sarah Graves, intent on a better future, set out west from Illinois with her new husband, her parents, and eight siblings. Seven months later, after joining a party of pioneers led by George Donner, they reached the Sierra Nevada Mountains as the first heavy snows of the season closed the pass ahead of them. In early December, starving and desperate, Sarah and 14 others set out for California on snowshoes and over the next 32 days endured almost unfathomable hardships and horrors.
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Absolutely enthralling
- By Sasha Anscum on 06-07-19
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The Worst Hard Time
- The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl
- By: Timothy Egan
- Narrated by: Jacob York
- Length: 12 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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The dust storms that terrorized the High Plains in the darkest years of the Depression were like nothing ever seen before or since. Following a dozen families and their communities through the rise and fall of the region, Timothy Egan tells of their desperate attempts to carry on through blinding black dust blizzards, crop failure, and the death of loved ones. Brilliantly capturing the terrifying drama of catastrophe, he does equal justice to the human characters who become his heroes.
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Excellent history ruined by Egan's bias & cynicism
- By Nathan on 03-21-23
By: Timothy Egan
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1919
- By: Eve L. Ewing
- Narrated by: Eve L. Ewing
- Length: 1 hr and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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The Chicago Race Riot of 1919, the most intense of the riots comprising the nation's Red Summer, has shaped the last century but is not widely discussed. In 1919, award-winning poet Eve L. Ewing explores the story of this event - which lasted eight days and resulted in 38 deaths and almost 500 injuries - through poems recounting the stories of everyday people trying to survive and thrive in the city. Ewing uses speculative and Afrofuturist lenses to recast history and illuminates the thin line between the past and the present.
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visceral felt and poetically read
- By BF J.V. on 01-30-24
By: Eve L. Ewing
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Walden
- Life in the Woods
- By: Henry David Thoreau
- Narrated by: Alec Sand
- Length: 10 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Thoreau's classic account of the solitary life, describing his attempts to simplify his life and sort out his priorities by living alone in a cabin beside Walden Pond for nearly two years, is one of the most influential books ever written. The bible of the environmental movement, Walden vividly portrays Thoreau's reverence for nature, and his understanding of the idea that nature is made up of crucially interrelated parts.
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Excellent book and narration
- By Kindle Customer on 06-14-11
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The Unlikely Peace at Cuchumaquic
- The Parallel Lives of People as Plants: Keeping the Seeds Alive
- By: Martín Prechtel
- Narrated by: Martín Prechtel
- Length: 18 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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The Unlikely Peace at Cuchumaquic is both an epic story and a cry to the heart of humanity based on the author’s realization that human survival depends on keeping alive the seeds of our “original forgotten spiritual excellence.” Prechtel relates our current state of ecological crisis to the rapid disappearance of biodiversity, indigenous cultures, and shared human values. He demonstrates how real human culture is exterminated when real (not genetically modified) seeds are lost.
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Absolutely awesome and delicious!
- By Joange on 08-18-21
By: Martín Prechtel
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The Galveston Hurricane of 1900
- The Deadliest Natural Disaster in American History
- By: Charles River Editors
- Narrated by: Steve Rausch
- Length: 1 hr and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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The hurricane that struck Galveston, Texas, on September 8, 1900, killed between 6,000 and 12,000 people. Prior to advanced communications, few people knew about impending hurricanes except those closest to the site. In the days before television or even radio, catastrophic descriptions were merely recorded on paper, limiting our understanding of the immediate impact. Thus it was inevitable that the category 4 hurricane would cause almost inconceivable destruction.
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The Hurricane
- By scott massey on 06-14-24
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Ordeal by Hunger
- By: George R. Stewart
- Narrated by: Jeff Riggenbach
- Length: 12 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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The tragedy of the Donner party constitutes one of the most amazing stories of the American West. In 1846, 87 people, men, women, and children, set out for California, persuaded to attempt a new overland route. After struggling across the desert, losing many oxen, and nearly dying of thirst, they reached the very summit of the Sierras, only to be trapped by blinding snow and bitter storms. Many perished; some survived by resorting to cannibalism; all were subjected to unbearable suffering.
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Life Changing
- By Gyropilot on 06-03-08
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The Storm of the Century
- Tragedy, Heroism, Survival, and the Epic True Story of America's Deadliest Natural Disaster: The Great Gulf Hurricane of 1900
- By: Al Roker, William Hogeland
- Narrated by: Byron Wagner
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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On the afternoon of September 8, 1900, 200-mile-per-hour winds and 15-foot waves slammed into Galveston, the prosperous and growing port city on Texas' Gulf Coast. By dawn the next day, when the storm had passed, the city that had existed just hours before was gone. Shattered, grief-stricken survivors emerged to witness a level of destruction never before seen: 8,000 corpses littered the streets and were buried under the massive wreckage.
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Review of "The Storm of the Century "
- By S. Noe on 09-04-15
By: Al Roker, and others
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Believers
- Making a Life at the End of the World
- By: Lisa Wells
- Narrated by: Lisa Wells
- Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Like many of us, Lisa Wells has spent years overwhelmed by news of apocalyptic-scale climate change and a coming sixth extinction. She did not need to be convinced of the stakes. But what can be done? Wells embarked on a pilgrimage, seeking answers in dedicated communities - outcasts and visionaries - on the margins of society.
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I believe
- By Amazon Customer on 08-19-21
By: Lisa Wells
What listeners say about The Peshtigo Fire of 1871
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Kateee
- 06-15-20
Enjoyed It
There wasn't anything about this story that I didn't enjoy and learn from.
Wild fire, what is not frightening and fascinating about it?
Love of country, nature and looking to the future while fighting the largest fire in our nation's history along with absent, greedy bureaucrats is for only a very brave man. You will meet him here.
The narration is superb.
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- Ellen Mcguire
- 06-20-20
Knew nothing about it
This work is an engaging description of the fire. The exploits of several survivors of the fire are described. An explanation of the scientific factors pointing to the disaster provides helpful learning.
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- Darlene Barton
- 06-20-20
This audibIe About A Town That Many People Never
The introduction of the audible says that most people picking up this work have never even heard of a place called . That demands to me personally, since I never heard of it before I was aware of the presence of this remarkable work.
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- Jeffery Klein
- 06-20-20
Peshtigo: More Deadly than the Chicago Fire,
We’ve all heard of the Great Chicago Fire of October 8, 1871. But have you heard of the Fire? No. It was more dangerous and more destructive, and it stopped the bustling town in Wisconsin in less than an hour.
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- Grace Moody
- 06-20-20
eyewitness account and scientific comment
the work draws heavily upon the eyewitness account of a very articulate priest. the descriptions by eyewitnesses then are further developed by the scientific explanations of the present day.
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- Inc Wtc
- 06-20-20
Suitable for Young Teens
I purchased this work because I had a strong interest in learning more about a nearly forgotten major historical event. I was disappointed because the work listens like a junior high...
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- Erin Padilla
- 06-19-20
This verifies other audible on this fire.
This story of the fire gives much of the same information about other works on this fire. My mother uses to say her family's records were burned up in the fire. It wasn't until a few years ago that I learned that her grandmother was a King related to the King family that mostly perished in the Sugar Bushes area.
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- Marcos Turner
- 06-19-20
Peshtigo: More Deadly than the Chicago Fire,
We’ve all heard of the Great author of October 8, 1871. But have you heard of the Fire? No. It was more deadly and more destructive, and it destroyed the bustling town in Wisconsin in less than an hour. It has been termed the classic . But almost no one has heard of it.
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- Hazel Goodwin
- 06-20-20
Captivating to say the least!
As a history nut who is always in a hurry, I found this to be interesting, enlightening and firing without the time-consuming filler. I'm shocked that I had never heard of the tragedy until this work.
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- Jessie Holmes
- 06-20-20
Wisconsin had the worst fire in American History
Such a super job by Captivating History & making the story come alive . Great examination & now I want to know more so I clearly will be looking more into this story.
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