Artifacts from the Great DeLand, Florida Fire of 1886.

The Great Fire of 1886 in DeLand, Florida destroyed much of the town's business district, including 22 buildings and 33 businesses. The fire started in the back of the Wilcox Saloon on the east side of town, sometime after midnight on September 27, 1886. The cause is unclear, but some say it may have been started by someone dropping a cigar on the saloon's sawdust floor. The sawdust and heavy smoking in the saloon created a dangerous combination, and the fire spread quickly to adjacent buildings. 

DeLand lacked a fire alarm, so townspeople spread the alarm by yelling, beating on dishpans, and firing guns. The town's small fire brigade, organized just three years earlier, wheeled in two 30-gallon chemical engines, but were immediately overwhelmed. Bucket brigades were organized, and wet blankets were draped on roofs. 

The fire was so devastating because DeLand was built from long leaf pine forest, and many of the downtown businesses were constructed in a similar fashion. After the fire, DeLand adopted an ordinance requiring brick or stone construction in the commercial district. Townspeople rebuilt with brick and mortar and poured concrete instead of wooden structures.