The next installment of our "Collars, Canals & Conflagration" series sees City of Albany historian Anthony Opalka and former Assembly member Jack McEneny discuss the great Albany Fire of 1848. Ten people died and scores were injured in the blaze which burned for about six hours. Almost 600 buildings, including rows of residences, were destroyed. The burned section amounted to the city's entire commercial heart, and it disrupted mercantile trade and dealt a severe and lasting economic blow. At the time of The Great Fire, Albany had an all-volunteer firefighting force - many of them Irish American. Our panelists reveal other potential Irish links as well as the changes that the City enforced to prevent such a disaster from ever happening again.
This program is supported by a grant from the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area.