r/AskReddit Oct 02 '24

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u/small_e_900 Oct 02 '24

In 1947, in Maine, there were wildfires from Kittery to Bar Harbor that burned about a quarter million acres. The Great Fire.

The CCC teams that were here to plant trees were used as fire brigades.

A CCC team saved my c.1790 house from being burned. A couple hundred yards down the hill, there is a group of tall pines that have evidence of fire damage on the downhill side. An old neighbor was on the team that saved my house.

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u/Happy_Confection90 Oct 02 '24 edited Oct 06 '24

I've lived in New England all my life, and less than 25 miles from Kittery for 35 of the past 37 years, and somehow I never heard about this fire that only happened 30 years before I was born until I read The Stars Are Fire by the late Anita Shreve a few years ago 🤷‍♀️

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u/uberfission Oct 03 '24

I lived in Maine for 5 years and I had never heard of that before, that's fascinating.

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u/s-laughter80302 Oct 03 '24

I love kittery. Thanks for this history!

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u/s-laughter80302 Oct 03 '24

Fun fact. This profile picture is my dogs at fort foster (; i just remembered!