105-681: The Hartford circus fire , which occurred on July 6, 1944, in Hartford, Connecticut , was one of the worst fire disasters in United States history. The fire occurred during an afternoon performance of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus that was attended by 6,000 to 8,000 people. The fire killed at least 167 people, and more than 700 were injured. It was the deadliest disaster ever recorded in Connecticut . In mid-20th century United States,
210-527: A heat of fusion of 200–220 J⋅g . Paraffin wax phase-change cooling coupled with retractable radiators was used to cool the electronics of the Lunar Roving Vehicle during the crewed missions to the Moon in the early 1970s. Wax expands considerably when it melts and so is used in wax element thermostats for industrial, domestic and, particularly, automobile purposes. If pure paraffin wax melted to
315-513: A couple of families and a few dozen soldiers. The fort was abandoned by 1654, but the area is known today as Dutch Point; the name of the Dutch fort "House of Hope" is reflected in the name of Huyshope Avenue. A significant reason for establishment of the Dutch trading post was to better control the flow of wampum , the de facto currency of New Netherland and portions of New England, to and from valuable Native American fur traders. The Dutch outpost and
420-485: A higher viscosity, smaller crystalline structure, and modified functional properties. Pure paraffin wax is rarely used for carving original models for casting metal and other materials in the lost wax process , as it is relatively brittle at room temperature and presents the risks of chipping and breakage when worked. Soft and pliable waxes, like beeswax , may be preferred for such sculpture, but " investment casting waxes," often paraffin-based, are expressly formulated for
525-521: A household in the city was $ 20,820, and the median income for a family was $ 22,051. Males had a median income of $ 28,444 versus $ 26,131 for females. The per capita income for the city was $ 13,428. Hartford is a center for medical care, research, and education. Within the city of Hartford itself, hospitals include Hartford Hospital , The Institute of Living , Connecticut Children's Medical Center , and Saint Francis Hospital & Medical Center (which merged in 1990 with Mount Sinai Hospital ). Hartford
630-685: A huge commercial success, and production expanded in the Weed factory, with Weed making every part but the tires. Demand for bicycles overshadowed the failing sewing machine market by 1890, so Pope bought the Weed factory, took over as its president, and renamed it the Pope Manufacturing Company . The bicycle boom was short-lived, peaking near the turn of the century when more and more consumers craved individual automobile travel, and Pope's company suffered financially from over-production amidst falling demand. In an effort to save his business, Pope opened
735-588: A local flower company continued to decorate the grave. In 1981, Lowe's widow announced that Lowe had identified the child and contacted her family, but they had requested no publicity. In 1987, someone left a note on the 1565 gravestone reading Sarah Graham is her Name! 7-6-38 DOB, 6 years, Twin. Notes on nearby gravestones indicated that her twin brother and other relatives were buried close by. In 1991, arson investigator Rick Davey (along with co-writer Don Massey) published A Matter of Degree: The Hartford Circus Fire and Mystery of Little Miss 1565 , in which he claims
840-549: A matinee performance of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus on Barbour Street in the city's north end and became known as the Hartford Circus Fire . After World War II , many residents of Puerto Rico moved to Hartford. Starting in the late 1950s, the suburbs ringing Hartford began to grow and flourish and the capital city began a long decline. Insurance giant Connecticut General (now CIGNA ) moved to
945-570: A mission to establish a trading post and fortify the area for the Dutch West India Company . The original site was located on the south bank of the Park River in the present-day Sheldon/Charter Oak neighborhood. This fort was called Fort Hoop or the "House of Hope." In 1633, Jacob Van Curler formally bought the land around Fort Hoop from the Pequot chief for a small sum. It was home to perhaps
1050-469: A motor carriage department and turned out electric carriages, beginning with the "Mark III" in 1897. His venture might have made Hartford the capital of the automobile industry were it not for the ascendancy of Henry Ford and a series of pitfalls and patent struggles that outlived Pope himself. In 1876, Hartford Machine Screw was granted a charter "for the purpose of manufacturing screws, hardware and machinery of every variety." The basis for its incorporation
1155-602: A new factory adjacent to Weed, where it remained until 1948. On the week of April 12, 1909, the Connecticut River reached a record flood stage of 24.5 feet (7.5 meters) above the low-water mark, flooding the city of Hartford and doing great damage. On July 6, 1944, Hartford was the scene of one of the worst fire disasters in the history of the United States. Claiming the lives of 168 persons, mostly children and their mothers, and injuring several hundred more. It occurred at
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#17328553692731260-457: A new technology innovation hub in Hartford, creating up to 1,000 jobs by 2022. The Hartford technology innovation hub will focus on three key sectors- insurance, healthcare and manufacturing. Hartford has continued to attract technology companies including CGI Inc. , Covr Financial Technologies, GalaxE. Solutions, HCL Technologies and Larsen & Toubro . Insurance software provided Insurity
1365-419: A new, modern campus in the suburb of Bloomfield . Constitution Plaza had been hailed as a model of urban renewal, but it gradually became a concrete office park. Once-flourishing department stores shut down, such as Brown Thomson, Sage-Allen , and G. Fox & Co. , as suburban malls grew in popularity, such as Westfarms and Buckland Hills . In 1997, the city lost its professional hockey franchise, with
1470-405: A nineteenth-century palazzo on Asylum Street. Bank of America and People's United Financial have a significant corporate presence in Hartford. In 2009, Northeast Utilities , a Fortune 500 company and New England's largest energy utility, announced it would establish its corporate headquarters downtown. Hartford is a burgeoning technology hub. In March 2018, Infosys announced that opening of
1575-461: A sermon that inspired the writing of the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut , which provided a framework for Connecticut's separation for Massachusetts Bay Colony and the formation of a civil government. The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut were the legal basis for Connecticut Colony until the 1662 royal charter granted to Connecticut by Charles II . The original settlement area contained
1680-405: A shrinking population base and high pension obligations, a $ 65 million budget gap was projected for the year of 2018. The city had cut budget of public services and gotten union concessions however these measures did not balance the budget. A state bailout later that year kept the city from filing for bankruptcy. Downtown Hartford is busy during the day with commuters, but tends to be quiet in
1785-485: A typical circus traveled from town to town by train, performing under a huge canvas tent commonly called a "big top". The Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus was no exception; what made it stand out was that it was the largest circus in the country. The circus had been experiencing shortages of personnel and equipment as a result of the United States' involvement in World War II . Delays and malfunctions in
1890-457: A victims' memorial also stands. Two police investigators, Sgts. Thomas Barber and Edward Lowe, photographed her and took fingerprints, footprints and dental charts. Despite massive publicity and repeated displays of the famous photograph in nationwide magazines, she was never claimed. Barber and Lowe spent the rest of their lives trying to identify her. They decorated her grave with flowers each Christmas, Memorial Day and July 4. After their deaths,
1995-419: A white dress. She is known only as "Little Miss 1565", named after the number assigned to her body at the city's makeshift morgue . Oddly well preserved even after her death, her face has arguably become the most familiar image of the fire. Her true identity has been a topic of debate and frustration in the Hartford area since the fire occurred. She was buried without a name in Hartford's Northwood Cemetery, where
2100-439: Is slack wax , which is a mixture of oil and wax, a byproduct from the refining of lubricating oil. The first step in making paraffin wax is to remove the oil (de-oiling or de-waxing) from the slack wax. The oil is separated by crystallization. Most commonly, the slack wax is heated, mixed with one or more solvents such as a ketone and then cooled. As it cools, wax crystallizes out of the solution, leaving only oil. This mixture
2205-653: Is also headquartered in the city. Paraffin wax Paraffin wax (or petroleum wax ) is a soft colorless solid derived from petroleum , coal , or oil shale that consists of a mixture of hydrocarbon molecules containing between 20 and 40 carbon atoms. It is solid at room temperature and begins to melt above approximately 37 °C (99 °F), and its boiling point is above 370 °C (698 °F). Common applications for paraffin wax include lubrication , electrical insulation , and candles ; dyed paraffin wax can be made into crayons . Un-dyed, unscented paraffin candles are odorless and bluish-white. Paraffin wax
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#17328553692732310-412: Is also the historic international center of the insurance industry, with companies like Aetna , Conning & Company , The Hartford , Harvard Pilgrim Health Care , The Phoenix Companies , and Hartford Steam Boiler based in the city, and companies like Prudential Financial , Lincoln National Corporation , Sun Life Financial Travelers , United Healthcare and Axa XL having major operations in
2415-515: Is an excellent electrical insulator , with a resistivity of between 10 and 10 ohm-metre . This is better than nearly all other materials except some plastics (notably PTFE ). It is an effective neutron moderator and was used in James Chadwick 's 1932 experiments to identify the neutron. Paraffin wax is an excellent material for storing heat , with a specific heat capacity of 2.14–2.9 J⋅g ⋅K ( joules per gram per kelvin ) and
2520-422: Is approximately 47.05 inches (1,200 mm), which is distributed fairly evenly throughout the year. Hartford typically receives about 51.7 inches (131 cm) of snow in an average winter—about 40% more than coastal Connecticut cities like New Haven, Stamford, and New London. Seasonal snowfall has ranged from 115.2 inches (293 cm) during the winter of 1995–96 to 13.5 inches (34 cm) in 1999–2000. During
2625-443: Is believed to be higher than those figures, since many people were seen that day heading home in shock without seeking treatment in the city. It is commonly believed that the number of fatalities is higher than the estimates given, due to poorly kept residency records in rural towns, and the fact that some smaller remains were never identified or claimed. Additionally, free tickets had been handed out that day to many people in and around
2730-534: Is filtered into two streams: solid (wax plus some solvent) and liquid (oil and solvent). After the solvent is recovered by distillation, the resulting products are called "product wax" (or "press wax") and "foots oil". The lower the percentage of oil in the wax, the more refined it is considered to be (semi-refined versus fully refined). The product wax may be further processed to remove colors and odors. The wax may finally be blended together to give certain desired properties such as melt point and penetration. Paraffin wax
2835-552: Is home of the University of Hartford and also houses the largest per capita of residents claiming Jamaican-American heritage in the United States. Other neighborhoods in Hartford include Barry Square, Behind the Rocks, Clay Arsenal, South West, and Upper Albany, which is dotted by many Caribbean restaurants and specialty stores. At the 2010 United States census , there were 124,775 people, 44,986 households, and 27,171 families residing in
2940-404: Is home to Keney Park and a number of the city's oldest and most ornate homes. The South End features "Little Italy" and was the home of Hartford's sizeable Italian community. South Green hosts Hartford Hospital . The South Meadows is the site of Hartford–Brainard Airport and Hartford's industrial community. The North Meadows has retail strips, car dealerships, and Comcast Theatre. Blue Hills
3045-403: Is mostly found as a white, odorless, flavourless, waxy solid, with a typical melting point between about 46 and 68 °C (115 and 154 °F), and a density of around 900 kg/m . It is insoluble in water, but soluble in ether , benzene , and certain esters . Paraffin is unaffected by most common chemical reagents but burns readily. Its heat of combustion is 42 MJ/kg. Paraffin wax
3150-402: Is sold in either liquid or solid form. In industrial applications, it is often useful to modify the crystal properties of the paraffin wax, typically by adding branching to the existing carbon backbone chain. The modification is usually done with additives, such as EVA copolymers, microcrystalline wax , or forms of polyethylene . The branched properties result in a modified paraffin with
3255-516: Is the chief." Hartford has been the sole capital of Connecticut since 1875. (Before then, New Haven and Hartford alternated as dual capitals, as part of the agreement by which the Colony of New Haven was absorbed into the Colony of Connecticut in 1664.) Hartford was the richest city in the United States for several decades following the American Civil War . Since 2015, it has been one of
Hartford circus fire - Misplaced Pages Continue
3360-579: Is the most populous city in the Capitol Planning Region and the core city of the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Founded in 1635, Hartford is among the oldest cities in the United States. It is home to the country's oldest public art museum ( Wadsworth Atheneum ), the oldest publicly funded park ( Bushnell Park ), the oldest continuously published newspaper (the Hartford Courant ),
3465-651: Is the second-largest concentration of Puerto Ricans in the Northeast , behind only Holyoke, Massachusetts , approximately 30 miles (48 km) to the north along the Connecticut River. There are small but recognizable concentrations of people with origins in Mexico, Colombia , Peru , and the Dominican Republic as well. Among the non-Hispanic population, the largest ancestry group is from Jamaica ; in 2014, Hartford
3570-454: The 1938 New England Hurricane , as well as with Hurricane Irene in 2011. The highest officially recorded temperature is 103 °F (39 °C) on July 22, 2011, and the lowest is −26 °F (−32 °C) on January 22, 1961; the record cold daily maximum is −2 °F (−19 °C) on December 2, 1917, while, conversely, the record warm daily minimum is 80 °F (27 °C) on July 31, 1917. The central business district, as well as
3675-582: The Hartford Whalers moving to Raleigh, North Carolina—despite an increase in season ticket sales and an offer from the state for a new arena. In 2005, a developer from Newton, Massachusetts tried unsuccessfully to bring an NHL team back to Hartford and house them in a new, publicly funded stadium. Hartford experienced problems as the population shrank 11 percent during the 1990s. Only Flint, Michigan ; Gary, Indiana ; St. Louis, Missouri ; and Baltimore , Maryland experienced larger population losses during
3780-958: The Podunks , mostly east of the Connecticut River; the Poquonocks north and west of Hartford; the Massacoes in the Simsbury area; the Tunxis tribe in West Hartford and Farmington ; the Wangunks to the south; and the Saukiog in Hartford itself. The first Europeans known to have explored the area were the Dutch under Adriaen Block , who sailed up the Connecticut in 1614. Dutch fur traders from New Amsterdam returned in 1623 with
3885-417: The hysteria . Witnesses said some simply ran around in circles trying to find their loved ones rather than try to escape from the burning tent. Some escaped but ran back inside to look for family members. Others stayed in their seats until it was too late, assuming that the fire would be put out promptly. Because at least two of the exits were blocked by the chutes used to bring the show's big cats in and out of
3990-454: The Dutch fort. The settlement was originally called Newtown, but it was changed to Hartford in 1637 in honor of Stone's hometown of Hertford , England. Hooker also created the nearby town of Windsor in 1633. The etymology of Hartford is the ford where harts cross, or "deer crossing." As the Puritan minister in Hartford, Thomas Hooker wielded a great deal of power; in 1638, he delivered
4095-569: The July 5, 1944, evening show ran as planned, many circus employees may have been on their guard, half-expecting an emergency or catastrophe. The next day was a Thursday; the crowd at the 2:15 afternoon performance was dominated by women and children. The size of the audience that day has never been established with certainty, but the best estimate is about 7,000. The big top could seat 9,000 spectators around its three rings and measured 200 feet wide by 450 feet long. It had 15-foot-high sidewalls and its roof
4200-468: The Manicurist" in advertising for Palmolive dishwashing detergent) and Emmett Kelly (renowned circus clown). Those who survived carried the trauma for decades. Seventy years after the fire, Carol Tillman Parrish, who was six at the time, said that "until this day, I can smell the stench of human flesh" as the blaze consumed its victims. The best-known victim of the circus fire was a young blond girl wearing
4305-542: The State Capitol, Old State House and a number of museums and shops are located Downtown. Parkville, home to Real Art Ways , is named for the confluence of the north and the south branches of the Park River. Frog Hollow, in close proximity to Downtown, is home to Pope Park and Trinity College , which is one of the nation's oldest institutions of higher learning. Asylum Hill, a mixed residential and commercial area, houses
Hartford circus fire - Misplaced Pages Continue
4410-593: The Weed Sewing Machine Company took over its factory. The invention of a new type of sewing machine led to a new application of mass production after the principles of interchangeability were applied to clocks and guns. The Weed Company played a major role in making Hartford one of three machine tool centers in New England and even outranked the Colt Armory in nearby Coltsville in size. Weed eventually became
4515-417: The approximate flash point in a half open glass vessel which is then suddenly cooled down, then its vapors may autoignite as result of reaching boiling liquid pressure . Paraffin wax was first created in 1830 by German chemist Karl von Reichenbach when he attempted to develop a method to efficiently separate and refine waxy substances naturally occurring in petroleum. Paraffin represented a major advance in
4620-520: The banks of the Connecticut River. These events are held outdoors and include live music, festivals, dance, arts and crafts. Hartford also has a vibrant theater scene with major Broadway productions at the Bushnell Theater as well as performances at the Hartford Stage and TheaterWorks (City Arts). In July 2017, Hartford considered filing Chapter 9 bankruptcy . After years of contending with
4725-505: The birthplace of both the bicycle and automobile industries in Hartford. Industrialist Albert Pope was inspired by a British-made, high-wheeled bicycle (called a velocipede) that he saw at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exposition , and he bought patent rights for bicycle production in the United States. He wanted to contract out his first order, however, so he approached George Fairfield of Weed Sewing Machine Company, who produced Pope's first run of bicycles in 1878. Bicycles proved to be
4830-426: The bleachers. I remember somebody yelling and seeing a big ball of fire near the top of the tent. And this ball of fire just got bigger and bigger and bigger. By that time, everybody was panicking. The exit was blocked with the cages that the animals were brought in and out with. And there was a man taking kids and flinging them up and over that cage to get them out. I was sitting up in the bleachers and jumped down — I
4935-559: The body and it did not fit the description they provided. The Connecticut State Police forensics unit compared hair samples and determined they were probably from the same person. The body was exhumed in 1991 and buried next to her brother, Edward, who had also died in the fire. Various assertions put forth in A Matter of Degree have been fiercely disputed by investigators who worked on the case, as well as by other writers, most notably Stewart O'Nan , who published The Circus Fire: A True Story of an American Tragedy in 2001. O'Nan points to
5040-407: The boundary between Hartford and East Hartford, and is located on the east side of the city. The Park River originally divided Hartford into northern and southern sections and was a major part of Bushnell Park , but the river was nearly completely enclosed and buried by flood control projects in the 1940s. The former course of the river can still be seen in some of the roadways that were built in
5145-484: The brother of Eleanor Cook and a victim of the circus fire himself. In 1992, her death certificate was officially changed from the previous identification of "1565". Since then, the Cook family has raised questions about whether the body is indeed that of Eleanor Cook, and some investigators have come to believe that Eleanor's body may have been among the fire's unclaimed bodies and was not that of Little Miss 1565. The cause of
5250-455: The candle-making industry because it burned cleanly and was cheaper to manufacture than other candle fuels such as beeswax and tallow . Paraffin wax initially suffered from a low melting point. This was remedied by adding stearic acid . The production of paraffin wax enjoyed a boom in the early 20th century due to the growth of the oil and meatpacking industries, which created paraffin and stearic acid as byproducts. The feedstock for paraffin
5355-463: The circus accepted full responsibility for the financial damages, it did not accept responsibility for the disaster itself. The five men charged were brought to trial in late 1944, and four were convicted. Although the four were given prison terms, they were allowed to continue with the circus to its next stop, Sarasota, Florida , to help the company set itself up again after the disaster. Shortly after their convictions, they were pardoned entirely. One of
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#17328553692735460-418: The circus until 1955. Others, such as Judith Shapiro [Cohen], who was about seven years old, were taken higher up into the stands and instructed to jump off the bleachers. Being afraid to do so, Judith refused to jump and instead was pushed off, landing on a chair underneath. Because of the paraffin wax waterproofing of the tent, the flames spread rapidly, helped by the wind. The waterproofing indeed protected
5565-592: The city holds high sufficiency as a global city , as home to the headquarters of many insurance companies, the region's major industry. Other prominent industries include the services, education and healthcare industries. Hartford coordinates certain Hartford–Springfield regional development matters through the Knowledge Corridor Economic Partnership. Various tribes lived in or around Hartford, all Algonquian peoples . These included
5670-482: The city requested in damages. The circus paid almost $ 5,000,000 to the 600 victims and families who had filed claims against them by 1954. All circus profits from the time of the fire until then had been set aside to pay off these claims. In 2002, the Hartford Circus Fire Memorial Foundation was established to erect a permanent memorial to the people killed in the fire. Ground was broken for
5775-424: The city, some of whom appeared to eyewitnesses and circus employees to be drifters who would never have been reported missing. Some died from injuries sustained after leaping from the tops of the bleachers in hopes they could escape under the sides of the tent, though that method of escape ended up killing more than it saved. Others died after being trampled by other spectators, with some asphyxiating underneath
5880-467: The city. At the American Community Survey 's 2019 estimates, the population increased to 123,088. The 2020 United States census tabulated a population of 121,054. Hartford's racial and ethnic makeup in 2019 was 36.0% White, 42.7% Black or African American, 23.7% some other race, 3.4% Asian, 1.2% American Indian or Alaska Native, and 0.3% Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islanders. 43.4% of
5985-598: The city. Insurance giant Aetna had its headquarters in Hartford before announcing a relocation to New York City in July 2017. However, when CVS acquired Aetna a few months later, they announced Aetna would remain in Hartford for at least four years. The city is also home to the corporate headquarters of CareCentrix, Choice Merchant Solutions, Global Atlantic Financial Group, Hartford Healthcare, Insurity, LAZ Parking, ProPark Mobility, U.S. Fire Arms , and Virtus Investment Partners . In 2008, Sovereign Bank consolidated two bank branches as well as its regional headquarters in
6090-742: The city. This type of event caught on and eventually became a staple of mid-to-late 19th-century campaigning. Hartford was a major manufacturing city from the 19th century until the mid-20th century. During the Industrial Revolution into the mid-20th century, the Connecticut River Valley cities produced many major precision manufacturing innovations. Among these was Hartford's pioneer bicycle and automobile maker Pope . Many factories have been closed or relocated, or have reduced operations, as in nearly all former Northern manufacturing cities. Around 1850, Hartford native Samuel Colt perfected
6195-521: The company expanded into aircraft engine design at its Hartford factory. Just three years after Colt's first factory opened, the Sharps Rifle Manufacturing Company set up shop in 1852 at a nearby site along the now-buried Park River , located in the present-day neighborhood of Frog Hollow . Their factory heralded the beginning of the area's transformation from marshy farmland into a major industrial zone. The road leading from town to
6300-404: The crowds. The only animals in the big top at the time were the big cats trained by May Kovar and Joseph Walsh that had just finished performing when the fire started. The big cats were herded through the chutes leading from the performing cages to several cage wagons and were unharmed except for a few minor burns. Though most spectators were able to escape the fire, many people were caught up in
6405-473: The decade. However, the population has increased since the 2000 Census. In 1987, Carrie Saxon Perry was elected mayor of Hartford, becoming the first female African-American mayor of a major American city. Riverfront Plaza was opened in 1999, connecting the riverfront and the downtown area for the first time since the 1960s. A significant number of cultural events and performances take place every year at Mortensen Plaza (Riverfront Recapture Organization) by
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#17328553692736510-453: The differences in the dental records of Eleanor Cook and the records made of Little Miss 1565 after her death. As O'Nan and others have pointed out, the most likely scenario is that a family claiming a body early on mistakenly identified Eleanor Cook as their own child and that she is buried under that child's name. Even when Little Miss 1565's picture ran in the papers, the family failed to recognize her as their own because they wished to put
6615-615: The evenings and weekends. However, more residential and retail development in recent years has begun changing the pattern. According to the United States Census Bureau , the city has a total area of 18.0 square miles (47 km ), of which 17.3 square miles (45 km ) is land and 0.7 square miles (1.8 km ) (3.67%) is water. The city of Hartford is bordered by the towns of West Hartford , Newington , Wethersfield , East Hartford , Bloomfield , South Windsor , Glastonbury , and Windsor . The Connecticut River forms
6720-502: The event became known as "the day the clowns cried". While many people burned to death, others died as a result of the ensuing chaos. Sources and investigators differ on how many people were killed and injured. Various people and organizations say it was 167, 168, or 169 persons (the 168 figure is usually based on official tallies that included a collection of body parts that were listed as a "victim") with official treated injury estimates running over 700 people. The number of actual injuries
6825-475: The fact that Little Miss 1565 had blond hair while Eleanor Cook was a brunette. The shape of Little Miss 1565's face and that of Eleanor Cook are dissimilar, and the heights and ages of the two girls do not match. Perhaps most significantly, when shown a photograph of Little Miss 1565, Eleanor's mother Mildred Corintha Parsons Cook immediately stated that it was not that of her daughter. She firmly maintained that stance until her death in 1997, age 91. Badly injured in
6930-425: The factory was called Rifle Lane; the name was later changed to College Street and then Capitol Avenue. A century earlier, mills had located along the Park River because of the water power, but by the 1850s water power was approaching obsolescence. Sharps located there specifically to take advantage of the railroad line that had been constructed alongside the river in 1838. The Sharps Rifle Company failed in 1870, and
7035-449: The fire as late as 1994 during an interview. Because of this, many investigators, historians and victims believe that the true arsonist—if it had indeed been arson—was never found. On July 7, 1944, charges of involuntary manslaughter were filed against five officials and employees of Ringling Bros. Within the ensuing days, the circus reached an agreement with Hartford officials to accept full financial responsibility and pay whatever amount
7140-410: The fire had shorted out the power and he could not be heard. Bradna and the ushers unsuccessfully tried to maintain some order as the panicked crowd tried to flee the big top. The ushers also worked to attempt to douse the fire with water jugs that had been stationed in the big top and to pull down the canvas sections that were on fire; after realizing their attempts were futile they began to help evacuate
7245-399: The fire remains unsolved. Investigators at the time believed it was caused by a carelessly flicked cigarette; however, others suspected an arsonist . In 1950, while being investigated on other arson charges, Robert Dale Segee (1929–1997), who was an adolescent at the time of the fire, confessed to starting the blaze. He was never tried for the crime and later recanted his confession. Although
7350-421: The fire, Mrs. Cook had been unable to claim her two dead children and was too emotionally traumatized to pursue it later. She had been told that Eleanor was not in any of the locations where bodies were kept for identification. She believed that Eleanor was one of two children who had been burned beyond recognition and remained unidentified. O'Nan thinks that Eleanor Cook may be body number 1503. He further points to
7455-661: The five New England states ( Maine was still part of Massachusetts at that time) gathered at the Hartford Convention to discuss New England's possible secession from the United States. During the early 19th century, the Hartford area was a center of abolitionist activity, and the most famous abolitionist family was the Beechers. The Reverend Lyman Beecher was an important Congregational minister known for his anti-slavery sermons. His daughter Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote Uncle Tom's Cabin ; her brother Henry Ward Beecher
7560-495: The girl was Eleanor Emily Cook and from Massachusetts. Davey also contends that there was a conspiracy within the judicial system to convict the Ringling defendants, and that Segee was the arsonist. Before writing the book, Davey spent six years researching the case and conducting his own experiments as to how the fire really may have started. He described the original investigation as both "flawed and primitive", though he did not work on
7665-656: The headquarters of several insurance companies as well as the historic homes of Mark Twain and Harriet Beecher Stowe . The West End, home to the Governor's residence, Elizabeth Park , and the University of Connecticut School of Law , abuts the Hartford Golf Club. Sheldon Charter Oak is renowned as the location of the Charter Oak and its successor monument as well as the former Colt headquarters including Samuel Colt 's family estate, Armsmear . The North East neighborhood
7770-553: The line that they agreed on was more than 50 miles (80 km) west of the original settlement. The English began to arrive in 1636, settling upstream from Fort Hoop near the present-day Downtown and Sheldon/Charter Oak neighborhoods. Puritan pastors Thomas Hooker and Samuel Stone , along with Governor John Haynes , led 100 settlers with 130 head of cattle in a trek from Newtown in the Massachusetts Bay Colony (now Cambridge ) and started their settlement just north of
7875-448: The lions performed, on the southwest sidewall of the tent, while The Flying Wallendas were performing. Circus bandleader Merle Evans was said to have been the first to spot the flames and immediately directed the band to play " The Stars and Stripes Forever ", a musical composition that traditionally signaled distress to all circus personnel. Ringmaster Fred Bradna urged the audience not to panic and to leave in an orderly fashion, but
7980-417: The men, James A. Haley , went on to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives for 24 years. In 1950, Robert Dale Segee of Circleville, Ohio , claimed during a police interview that he was responsible for setting the fire. Following the interview, Segee signed a statement admitting to setting the circus fire, a series of other fires, and several murders since his youth. Segee, a 16-year-old roustabout for
8085-469: The monument on July 6, 2004, at the site where the fire occurred. Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey visited Hartford during its final tour, putting on its final performance there on April 30, 2017. Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut . The city, located in Hartford County , had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 census . Hartford
8190-606: The north. The white population forms a majority in only two census tracts: the downtown area and the far northwest. Nevertheless, many areas in the middle of the city, in Asylum Hill, and in West End, have a significant white population. More than three-quarters (77%) of the Hispanic population was Puerto Rican (with more than half born on the island of Puerto Rico) and fully 33.7% of all Hartford residents claimed Puerto Rican heritage. This
8295-406: The ordinarily smooth order of the circus had become commonplace; on August 4, 1942, a fire had broken out in the menagerie , killing a number of animals. When the circus arrived in Hartford, Connecticut , on July 5, 1944, the trains were so late that one of the two shows scheduled for that day had been canceled. In circus superstition , missing a show is considered extremely bad luck , and although
8400-425: The original case. Eleanor Cook's brother Donald Cook had contacted authorities in 1955 insisting that the girl was his sister, but nothing came of it, and Donald later worked with Davey to establish her identity. Donald believes that family members were shown the wrong body in the confusion at the morgue. In 1991, the body was declared to be that of 8-year-old Eleanor Emily Cook, though Cook's aunt and uncle had examined
8505-539: The period from April through October is warm to hot in Hartford, with the hottest months being June, July, and August. In the summer months there is often high humidity and occasional (but brief) thundershowers. The cool to cold months are from November through March, with the coldest months in December, January, and February having average highs of 35 to 38 °F (2 to 3 °C) and overnight lows of around 18 to 23 °F (−8 to −5 °C). The average annual precipitation
8610-528: The piles of people who fell over each other. Most of the dead were found in piles, some three bodies deep, at the most congested exits. A small number of people were found alive at the bottoms of these piles, protected by the bodies on top of them when the burning big top ultimately fell down. Notable survivors included; Eunice Groark (first female lieutenant governor of Connecticut), The Flying Wallendas , Charles Nelson Reilly (actor, comedian, and director), actress Jan Miner , (best known for portraying "Madge
8715-511: The poorest cities in the country, with three out of ten families living below the poverty threshold. In sharp contrast, the Greater Hartford metropolitan statistical area was ranked 32nd of 318 metropolitan areas in total economic production and 8th out of 280 metropolitan statistical areas in per capita income in 2015. Nicknamed the "Insurance Capital of the World" and "America's filing cabinet",
8820-446: The population were Hispanic or Latino, chiefly of Puerto Rican origin. Non-Hispanic Whites were 15.8% of the population in 2010. The city's Hispanic and Latino population primarily consisted of Puerto Ricans (33.63%), Dominicans (3.0%), Mexicans (1.6%), Cubans (0.4%) and other Hispanic or Latinos at 5.63%. The Hispanic and Latino population is concentrated on the city's south side, while African Americans are concentrated in
8925-550: The precision manufacturing process that enabled the mass production of thousands of his revolvers with interchangeable parts. A variety of industries adopted and adapted these techniques over the next several decades, and Hartford became the center of production for a wide array of products, including: Colt , Richard Gatling , and John Browning firearms; Weed sewing machines ; Columbia bicycles; Pope automobiles; and leading typewriter manufacturers Royal Typewriter Company and Underwood Typewriter Company which together made Hartford
9030-429: The purpose. In a histology or pathology laboratory, paraffin wax is used to impregnate tissue prior to sectioning thin samples. Water is removed from the tissue through ascending strengths of alcohol (75% to absolute), and then the alcohol is cleared in an organic solvent such as xylene . The tissue is then placed in paraffin wax for several hours, then set in a mold with wax to cool and solidify. Sections are then cut on
9135-634: The river's place, such as Jewell Street and the Conlin-Whitehead Highway . The Köppen climate classification categorizes Hartford as the hot-summer humid continental climate ( Köppen Dfa ) bordering on Cfa humid subtropical under the 0 °C isotherm. Winters are moderately cold, with periods of snow, while summers are hot and humid. Spring and fall are normally transition seasons, with weather ranging from warm to cool. The city of Hartford lies in USDA Hardiness zone 6b-7a. Seasonally,
9240-505: The second-oldest secondary school ( Hartford Public High School ), and the oldest school for deaf children ( American School for the Deaf ), founded by Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet in 1817. It is the location of the Mark Twain House , in which the author Mark Twain wrote his most famous works and raised his family. He wrote in 1868, "Of all the beautiful towns it has been my fortune to see this
9345-519: The show from June 30 to July 14, 1944, claimed that he had a nightmare in which an American Indian riding on a "flaming horse" told him to set fires. According to police authorities, Segee further stated that after this nightmare his mind went blank, and by the time it cleared the circus fire had been set. Some of Segee's hand-drawn images of his bizarre dreams, and images depicting his claimed murders, appeared in Life on July 17, 1950. In November 1950, Segee
9450-411: The site of the Charter Oak , an old white oak tree in which colonists hid Connecticut's Royal Charter of 1662 to protect it from confiscation by an English governor-general. The state adopted the oak tree as the emblem on the Connecticut state quarter. The Charter Oak Monument is located at the corner of Charter Oak Place, a historic street, and Charter Oak Avenue. On December 15, 1814, delegates from
9555-424: The summer, temperatures reach or exceed 90 °F (32 °C) on an average of 17 days per year; in the winter, overnight temperatures can dip to a range of 5 to −5 °F (−15 to −21 °C) on at least one night a year. Tropical storms and hurricanes have also struck Hartford, although the occurrence of such systems is rare and is usually confined to the remnants of such storms. Hartford saw extensive damage from
9660-413: The tent from the rain, but, as had been repeatedly shown, it was highly flammable. Many people were badly burned by the melting paraffin, which rained down from the roof. The fiery tent collapsed in about eight minutes according to eyewitness survivors, trapping hundreds of spectators beneath it. Because of a picture that appeared in several newspapers of sad tramp clown Emmett Kelly holding a water bucket,
9765-411: The tent there were three rings and two stages with a 25-foot wide oval shaped track separating the performance area and seating, which could be either bleacher or un-secured folding chairs. One could exit the tent by either a main entrance or eight other smaller exits; however, during the fire many of the alternative exits were blocked by circus wagons or other items. The fire began as a small flame after
9870-419: The tent, people trying to escape could not bypass them. Survivor Maureen Krekian was 11 at the time of the fire and lived on the same road on which the circus was held. On the day of the event, she was supposed to go to the circus with a neighbor and her daughter. When she went to their house, she found that they had already left without her. She decided to go to the circus on her own, where she seated herself in
9975-455: The tiny contingent of Dutch soldiers who were stationed there did little to check the English migration, and the Dutch soon realized that they were vastly outnumbered. The House of Hope remained an outpost, but it was steadily swallowed up by waves of English settlers. In 1650, Peter Stuyvesant met with English representatives to negotiate a permanent boundary between the Dutch and English colonies;
10080-468: The traumatic event behind them. While DNA analysis could end this debate definitively, the logistics of exhuming all of the likely candidates for this potential mix-up make such an undertaking unlikely. With the true identity of Little Miss 1565 still unresolved for many, the body was exhumed after the release of A Matter of Degree and buried in Southampton, Massachusetts , next to the body of Edward Cook,
10185-589: The “Typewriter Capitol of the World” during the first half of the 20th century. The Pratt & Whitney Company was founded in Hartford in 1860 by Francis A. Pratt and Amos Whitney. They built a substantial factory in which the company manufactured a wide range of machine tools, including tools for the makers of sewing machines, and gun-making machinery for use by the Union Army during the American Civil War. In 1925,
10290-418: Was 48 feet high. The tent's canvas had been coated with 1,800 pounds (820 kg) of paraffin wax dissolved in 6,000 US gallons (23,000 L) of gasoline , a common waterproofing method of the time; both substances are hydrophobic but also highly flammable . The big top had been erected over freshly mowed grass and exposed dirt that had been watered down and then covered with hay and wood shavings. Inside
10395-456: Was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.33. In the city, the population distribution skews young: 30.1% under the age of 18, 12.6% from 18 to 24, 29.8% from 25 to 44, 18.0% from 45 to 64, and 9.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.0 males. The median income for
10500-489: Was a noted clergyman who vehemently opposed slavery and supported the temperance movement and women's suffrage. The Stowes' sister Isabella Beecher Hooker was a leading member of the women's rights movement . In 1860, Hartford was the site of the first " Wide Awakes ", abolitionist supporters of Abraham Lincoln . These supporters organized torch-light parades that were both political and social events, often including fireworks and music, in celebration of Lincoln's visit to
10605-482: Was convicted in Ohio of unrelated arson charges and sentenced to 44 years of prison time. However, Hartford investigators raised doubts over his confession, as he had a history of mental illness and it could not be proven that he was in Connecticut when the fire occurred. Connecticut officials were also not allowed to question Segee, even though his alleged crime had occurred in their state. Segee, who died in 1997, denied setting
10710-578: Was first created by Carl Reichenbach in Germany in 1830 and marked a major advancement in candlemaking technology, as it burned more cleanly and reliably than tallow candles and was cheaper to produce. In chemistry, paraffin is used synonymously with alkane , indicating hydrocarbons with the general formula C n H 2 n +2 . The name is derived from Latin parum ("very little") + affinis , meaning "lacking affinity " or "lacking reactivity ", referring to paraffin's unreactive nature. Paraffin wax
10815-461: Was home to an estimated 11,400 Jamaican Americans , as well as another 1,200 people who identified otherwise as West Indian Americans . There were 44,986 households, out of which 34.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 25.2% were married couples living together, 29.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.6% were non-families. 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.6% had someone living alone who
10920-401: Was the invention of the first single-spindle automatic screw machine. For its next four years, the new firm occupied one of Weed's buildings, milling thousands of screws daily on over 50 machines. Its president was George Fairfield, who ran Weed, and its superintendent was Christopher Spencer, one of Connecticut's most versatile inventors. Soon Hartford Machine Screw outgrew its quarters and built
11025-521: Was three-quarters of the way up. You jump down and it was all straw underneath. There was a young man, a kid, and he had a pocketknife. And he slit the tent, took my arm and pulled me out. As she was being pulled out, Krekian grabbed another little girl's arm and pulled her out as well. Frieda Pushnik, who performed with the circus as the "Armless and Legless Wonder", was rescued by a minstrel show performer who rushed on stage, picked up Pushnik's chair and carried her to safety. Pushnik continued to perform with
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