A Herman Ottó Múzeum évkönyve 48. (2009)

Spóner Péter: Tűzvész, tűzoltás, céhek (Tűzvédelem Miskolcon a 18. század második felében)

LEVÉLTÁRI FORRÁSOK B.-A.-Z. M. Lt. IV. 150l/a Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén Megyei Levéltár, Miskolc város levéltára. Miskolc Város Tanácsának iratai, tanácsgyülési jegyzökönyvek HOM HTD Hennán Ottó Múzeum, Miskolc, HTD Történeti Dokumentáció I. céhes gyűjtemény FIRES, FIREMEN, GUILDS (Fires and fire prevention in Miskolc in the later 18th century) Besides floods and floodwaters, the greatest catastrophe befalling the villages and towns of medieval and post-medieval Hungary were fires. Devastation by fire was independent of geographic location for it threatened each and every settlement. Fire, the perhaps most dreaded enemy, spread quickly and could only be curbed with difficulty; at the same time, it caused immense damages within a very short time. The town of Miskolc was no exception. These two factors played an important role in the town's history and in the development of its layout. The historian studying the period in question sees a market town with a growing population and an increasing number of houses, undergoing rapid development and industrialisation. Wood and reed, the two materials most often used in construction, overcrowding and the dynamic growth of guilds engaged in crafts needing fire made Miskolc increasingly prone to conflagrations. Even though the town was not devastated by wars during the later 18th century, the number of fires increased significantly owing to the above. The greatest fire raged in 1781 and the town practically burnt down. The description of this conflagration as recorded in the town register is published in full. Although the fire did not cause a setback in the town's development, it did prompt both the county and the town officials to increase effective protection against fire. Several measures were taken to make the city safer. New, efficient fire extinguishing equipment was purchased, the town's administration was reorganised and strict fines were imposed on individuals causing fires and against individuals threatening with arson. The guilds active in the town played an important role in fire protection for they manufactured most of the fire extinguishing equipment and the leather buckets needed for extinguishing fires. The current study discusses the causes of the devastating fires in Miskolc based on the data contained in the town registers, the techniques used for extinguishing fires and the decrees concerning fires and fire prevention, with a focus on the craftsmen active in the town. Although the chronological boundary of the period examined here was drawn at the turn of the 18th— 19th centuries, many of the observations made for that period are also valid for the earlier 19th century. In spite of the many efforts, the town's fire protection did not improve significantly and the town continued to face the same problems. A radical change can be noted after the organisation of voluntary and professional fire brigades in 1874. By this time, the construction materials had changed too, reflected by the increasing use of stone, brick and tiles. Péter Spóner