"The Air Was Full of Smoke & Cinders!"

On May 10th, 1862, a huge conflagration destroyed a major bridge over the Hudson and more than 500 buildings in the city of Troy. Today, “The Great Fire” is still deemed one of the most formative events in Troy’s history. Using excerpts from newspapers, letters, and recollections of people who lived through the event, we will walk back into history and retrace the path of the flames that in just a brief few hours made disastrous impacts on both local and national levels.