Disaster

Disaster

De-railed train, Hartford
- Connecticut Historical Society and Connecticut History Online

From natural to manmade, disasters in our state’s history help define who we are as a community. In Connecticut’s early centuries, fires were among the most frequently occurring manmade disaster. For example, wood-framed mills and factories housed volatile manufacturing materials, which made them vulnerable to devastating blazes. Natural disasters have included storms, floods, and other forms of severe weather, capable of ravaging the landscape in a matter of minutes. Catastrophic though disasters are, they also remind us of the fragility of the natural and built environments—and of the ability of Connecticut’s people to rebuild and fortify the state.

GALLERY

LEARN MORE

Websites

“Research Guide to the Hartford Circus Fire, July 6, 1944.” Connecticut State Library, 2012. Link.

“The Blizzard of 1888 - The Eye of the Storm: A Journey into the Natural Disasters in Connecticut.” Connecticut History Online, 2012. Link.

“Timeline Connecticut Disasters.” Connecticut State Library, 2012. Link.

Video

“The Tariffville Trainwreck.” Simsbury Community Television, Inc., 2012. Link.

Hanley, Rich, and Connecticut Public Television. When Disaster Struck Connecticut. Vol. 1. Connecticut Collection. Hartford, CT: Connecticut Public Television, 2006.

Books

Grant, Ellsworth S. Connecticut Disasters: True Stories of Tragedy and Survival. Guilford, CT: TwoDot, 2006.

Kendrick, John. History of the Wallingford Disaster. Hartford, CT: Case Lockwood & Brainard Company Printers, 1878. Link.

New England Historical Events Association. Photo Record, Hurricane and Flood, New England’s Greatest Disaster. New York, NY: New English Historical Events Association, 1938.

O’Nan, Stewart. The Circus Fire: A True Story. New York: Doubleday, 2000.

Western Connecticut’s Great Flood Disaster, August 19, 1955. Waterbury, CT: Waterbury Republican-American, 1955.