Porvoo's black night on the 11th of June 1760
The early summer was very dry. That, combined with hard northerly wind and boiled fish destroyed Porvoo in 1760. On the 11th of June, burgess Anders Bergman's household was getting ready to receive workers for the day's chores. Maria Holm, a hardworking mother, woke up early in the morning, between 3 and 4 to cook fish soup for the labourers.
She was aware of the fire hazard, and was therefore extra careful. For cooking, she used small sticks which burn easily. She closed the damper only after the fire had gone out entirely. After an hour, in spite of her
precautions, the sleeping household woke up in a rumbling sound. There
was a sea of fire on the roof, the flames had already caught the walls of
the neighbouring house, and there were people on the yard trying to put
the fire out. Of the 293 houses then in Porvoo, 202 were burned down.