Great Savannah Fire of 1820

On January 11, 1820, a conflagration affected the city of Savannah, Georgia, United States, burning down almost 500 buildings and causing roughly $4 million (equivalent to $90 million in 2024) in damages. It was the most severe fire in the city's history and one of the most damaging in the country at that time.

The city had experienced several severe fires in the preceding century, and by the late 1810s, the city had at least half a dozen hand-powered fire engines. The fire had started at about 2 a.m. at a livery stable near Franklin Square and spread to City Market on Ellis Square, helped by both the high winds and the lack of rain that the city had experienced over the preceding months. By the time the fire died, almost the entire section of the city bounded by Abercorn, Bay, Broughton, and Jefferson Street had been destroyed, with the exception of a few buildings, including Christ Church.

Following this, donations from across the country flooded into Savannah, including a significant amount from municipalities in the Northern United States. A donation of over $10,000 ($220,000 in 2024) from New York City was turned down over a stipulation that provided the money be distributed without regard for race. While the damaged part of the city was largely rebuilt within a few years, the fire, alongside the Panic of 1819 and a yellow fever epidemic later that year, caused a period of stagnation for Savannah, as its exports fell precipitously and its population increased at a slow pace. The fire also placed African Americans in the city under heightened scrutiny, with Thomas U. P. Charlton, Savannah's mayor, directing fire patrols to arrest vagrant African Americans.