227 Items Tagged

Fires

Pinnacle Knob Fire Tower

Keyser, West Virginia

Pinnacle Knob Fire Tower

This former fire tower found new life as a communications hub complete with a scenic overlook.

The monument with the inscription is the only trace of the convent.

Somerville, Massachusetts

Site of the Destroyed Ursuline Convent

A monument marks where a convent was burned by an anti-Catholic mob in 1834.

A composite highlighting the "three horses."

Vila Nova de Foz Côa, Portugal

Penascosa Petroglyph

These rock drawings in the Côa Valley also create an ancient optical illusion.

Memorial plaque.

Kingman, Arizona

Kingman Explosion Memorial

A memorial to the firefighters who died in an industrial disaster is housed in a small public park.

Webb Mountain Lookout in the Kootenai National Forest in far northwest Montana.

In Montana, Remote Fire Lookouts Keep a Century-Old Tradition Alive

As wildfires rage across the West, an old job feels more critical than ever.

Justin Franz October 1, 2020

Pine cones lie strewn on the floor of a ponderosa pine forest in New Mexico, nearly three decades after fire moved through the area and scarred the tree in the foreground.

The Climate Isn't Just Worsening Wildfires, It Can Hobble Forests' Ability to Recover

"What we’re most concerned about is things can still get worse.”

Luna Shyr September 24, 2020

The Comfort Seeds inspired Diez to become a seed saver.

The Newest Addition to Denmark’s Happiness Museum: Tomato Seeds

A seed stuck to an old shirt grew into a project that helps bereaved kids heal.

Reina Gattuso September 21, 2020

Wildfires—including a blaze near Highway 62 in Eagle Point, Oregon, on September 9 2020—are stretching along America's West Coast, and potentially imperiling heritage sites.

How Does an Archaeologist Keep Heritage Sites Safe From Wildfires?

It involves Twitter, maps, dozer lines, and luck.

Jessica Leigh Hester September 16, 2020

Orange pin flags indicate the location of ceramic pottery sherds collected for analysis after a prescribed burn in the Jemez Mountains of New Mexico in 2012.

What Wildfire Archaeology Tells Us About the Burning American West

Archaeologists in New Mexico are studying past wildfires through tree rings and pottery sherds.

Atlas Obscura September 15, 2020

A Fox Coal Company dump truck plants a load of dirt on the Graffiti Highway in April 2020. It took about 400 loads to cover the one-mile stretch of road.

The End of Centralia's Abandoned, Colorful, Anarchic 'Graffiti Highway'

First the fractured stretch of road became a canvas, then a gathering place. Now it will become forest.

Julie Knutson September 14, 2020

There's smoke, but no wildfire.

To Protect a Recreated Native Village, California Firefighters Fought Fire With Fire

A slow, careful burn insulated Kule Loklo against a fearsome wildfire.

Jessica Leigh Hester September 4, 2020

Inside a Historic Observatory That Almost Went Up in Flames

Lick Observatory in California has lived to see another starry night.

Isaac Schultz September 3, 2020

The organ at Notre Dame was spared direct damage from the fire and ceiling collapse, but needs to be cleaned and restored.

Understanding the Majesty and Complexity of Great Organs

Notre Dame's famed instrument is being dismantled and restored following the 2019 fire.

Luna Shyr September 3, 2020

Towards the end of the burn, the fire can be spread simply by raking the burning straw.

The Lost Art of Growing Blueberries With Fire

Using all four elements to grow the perfect berry.

Luke Fater July 6, 2020

Sremski Karlovci, Serbia

Muzej Šibica

A Museum with a collection of 40,000 matchboxes.

A Phoenix Made From 18,000 Keys Rises From the Ashes of a Wildfire

Horace Burgess's treehouse in Crossville, Tennessee, in 2015.

The Life and Fiery Death of the World's Biggest Treehouse

Its dedicated, sagelike maker isn't at all upset.

Matthew Taub May 4, 2020

Pudding Lane sign

London, England

Pudding Lane

The Great Fire of London and the regulation of one-way streets both started in this alley.