Fire destroys house at Plimoth Plantation

Fire destroys house at Plimoth Plantation
By CAPE COD TIMES
November 19, 2011

PLYMOUTH -- A chimney fire broke out inside a wooden house on the grounds of Plimoth Plantation this morning.

Firefighters were called to the plantation around 9:45 a.m. after the fire got out of control quickly. Re-enactors had started a cooking fire as a teaching demonstration.

Flames burned the thatched roof before firefighters were able to extinguish it with foam and water. Visitors and workers were already at the plantation but no one was injured.

Officials said the structure, known as the Francis Cooke House, will have to be rebuilt.
The Cooke House is a part of the recreation of a 17th Century English village.

The last fire at the plantation was about 15 years in the Hopkins house, which began as a fire in a wall near the chimney.
_______________________________________________________
I got early news about this yesterday as I was at the annual Massachusetts Society of Mayflower Descendants meeting. One of the re-enactors broke the news. It's being used as a learning moment of fire control in the 17th century. When it first started (after calling 911) workers went up on the roof and started cutting parts of the roof thatching away as was done back in that period.
More reports and links as I find them.

Historical home at Plimoth Plantation goes up in flames

PLYMOUTH (FOX25 / MyFoxBoston.com) - The Plymouth Fire Department was called to the scene of a house fire at Plimoth Plantation on Saturday morning.

The early morning blaze burned through the thatched roof of the Cooke House in the English Colony section of the plantation.

Authorities say the fire broke out after a re-enactor lit a fire inside the hearth of the home.

It took firefighters nearly half an hour to get the flames under control, but the cleanup took a while longer. The remnants of the burned out roof were removed requiring the area to be continuously wet down.

The fire breaks an over half century lucky streak for the plantation. According to Executive Director Ellie Donovan, this is the first fire to break out at Plimoth Plantation in its 65 years of operation.

Some artifacts were saved from the home, but repairs to the home itself will not be easy since power tools are not used on the plantation.

In spite of the blaze, the historic plantation known for the first Thanksgiving remained open to the public.

From the Herald:
Plimoth Plantation house burned
By Herald Staff
Sunday, November 20, 2011 - Updated 9 hours ago

Fire swept through the Cooke House at Plimoth Plantation yesterday, severely damaging the replica Colonial-era building, the plantation said.

The museum was open but no one was in the house at the time and there were no injuries, said Robert Kluin, director of marketing and communications for Plimoth Plantation. It was the first fire in about 15 years in the village, he said.

“We’re just thankful here that we’re open and that no one was hurt,” he said.

Kluin said the blaze began after one of the Colonial role players lit a fire in the fireplace. Flames leapt up the chimney and the thatched roof caught on fire, he said.

“The roof burned extensively and there was damage to the walls,” Kluin said.

Plymouth Fire Department Battalion Chief Dean DelTorto said the call came in at 9:37 a.m. and fire was coming through the roof when firefighters arrived.

“You could see embers flying that way,” he said.

DelTorto said the fire was under control in 30 minutes and was “not at all” suspicious.

This is such a cool place.

What a shame. Never a good time for this sort of tradgedy.

Will be intriguing to follow how they re-build...

Richard Warren broke the news to the Massachusetts Society of Mayflower Descendants