Hartford Circus Fire: Smoke Rising from Bleachers
PhotographerPhotographed by
Unknown
DateJuly 6, 1944
MediumPhotography; gelatin silver print on paper
DimensionsPrimary Dimensions (image height x width): 3 3/8 x 4 3/8in. (8.6 x 11.1cm)
Sheet (height x width): 3 5/8 x 4 5/8in. (9.2 x 11.7cm)
ClassificationsGraphics
Credit LineGift of Craig Hotchkiss
Object number2011.216.6
DescriptionMen stand in the foreground. Some men appear to be handling ropes or hoses. The smoking remains of bleachers are in the left background. Trailers are in the right background. Smoke fills the sky.
Label TextThe Hartford Circus Fire took place in Hartford, Connecticut, on the afternoon of July 6, 1944. The large tent housing the main performance area of the circus caught fire and burned at an incredibly rapid rate. The tent had been soaked with a mixture of gasoline and paraffin in order to waterproof it, and as a result once it started there was no stopping it. Several hundred people were injured, and 168 people were killed.
Status
Not on view
July 6, 1944
July 6, 1944
