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THE ASTORIAN • SATURDAY, DECEMBER 18, 2021
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DailyAstorian
The day that changed
Astoria forever
December marks the 99th anniversary of the Great Astoria Fire
By JULIA TRIEZENBERG
For The Astorian
This month marks the 99th anniversary of one of down-
town Astoria’s worst disasters: the Great Astoria Fire .
On Dec. 8, 1922, the majority of the business district
burned to the ground.
The fi re of 1883 devastated much of Astoria’s water-
front, and locals quickly worked to rebuild what had been
destroyed.
However, in their rush to rebuild as quickly and inex-
pensively as possible, they reused the wooden piling design
that caused the widespread destruction .
Most accounts of the December 1922 fi re report the fi re
started in the basement of a restaurant and pool hall on 12th
and Commercial s treets. Once the fi re started, there wasn’t
much anyone could do.
The pilings that made up Astoria’s downtown acted as a
sort of bellows pumping fuel to the fl ames underneath the
streets. As the fl ames spread down Commercial Street, the
power went out and gas mains ruptured.
The city technically had fi re hydrants, but they were bur-
ied under wooden railways. The lighthouse tender Manza-
nita was brought in to help.
In an attempt to contain the fi re, some Astorians resorted
to blowing up buildings in the vicinity with leftover logging
dynamite to create a fi rebreak in the city. By the end of it
all, an estimated 32 city blocks with 200 shops, hotels and
businesses had burned.
The fi nal costs were estimated to be around $12 million,
which translates to almost $200 million today.
Only a few buildings from that time period survived . The
post offi ce, county courthouse and City Hall all narrowly
escaped the fl ames.
Unfortunately, most buildings weren’t covered by fi re
insurance because the city was made of wood. Still, Astori-
ans were hopeful for a rebuild.
One of the town’s newspapers still published the day
after the fi re, even though the building housing it had
been damaged. A columnist wrote the optimistic message:
An illustration of the burn area printed in The Morning
Astorian after the fi re.
“Phoenix-like, Astoria is unfolding her wings to arise from
a couch of fl ame with greater and more splendid glory … ”
Businesses from Portland shipped food and supplies
for people who had lost everything in the fi re . The Seaside
Hotel opened up to Astorians whose homes were destroyed.
The newly-appointed city manager, O.A. Kratz, was
tasked with the rebuild. Reconstruction was organized into
two phases. The fi rst phase focused on public works proj-
ects. The city made it a priority to improve sidewalks, sew-
ers, water and electricity. The previously wooden streets
downtown were widened and fi lled in to become pavement.
The second phase of reconstruction aimed to help busi-
nesses reinvest in downtown by building brick and concrete
structures.
So much of what you see downtown has a similar archi-
tectural style and feel because of Astorians’ rebuild after
this disaster. Examples of reconstruction are nearly every-
where you look in Astoria today, including the Hotel Elliott
and the Liberty Theatre .
Julia Triezenberg is an educator at the Columbia River
Maritime Museum.
ABOVE: A view of 14th Street downtown toward the Lovell Auto Co., which eventually became part of Fort George Brewery’s campus.
BELOW: The remains of the Weinhard-Astoria Hotel after the 1922 fi re. Pillars from this building now stand at Shively Park.