Great Atlanta Fire of 1917

During the Great Atlanta Fire of 1917, mansions on Ponce were lost, but not from flames. The famous Old Fourth Ward fire became so severe mansions were dynamited to create a break the fire could not cross.

The fire’s exact cause is unknown, but the city’s hot winds, weak infrastructure and poor fire-fighting equipment contributed to its rapid growth. The flames burned for more than 10 hours that day, traveling from Decatur Street to the edge of Piedmont Park.

By the time it was extinguished, the fire had destroyed nearly 3,400 buildings and displaced nearly 10,000 people.

– Caroline Parsley, The 100 Companies