Pekin Distillery Fire Neg.
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Unedited footage capturing the aftermath of a fire at the American Distillery in Pekin, IL on August 3-4, 1954.
Credits
Frank Koza (filmmaker)
Complete catalog record
Cfa collection: Frank Koza Collection
Notes: Men roll whiskey barrels out of the wreckage as bulldozers and a scoop shovel move debris and search for bodies. Some parts of the structure continue to burn, and most of the interior has been gutted by the fire. Two men survey the scene as a firehose continues to douse the smoking debris. A man with a camera (Koza?) can be seen filming the scene. Firefighters dig through the rubble.; Three distillery workers were killed and a number of plant workers and firefighters were injured in the two-day fire. Three rack houses exploded and burned and the fire destroyed 42,000 barrels of aging whiskey.
Subjects: Disasters; Fires; Alcoholic beverages
Places: North America > United States > Illinois > Pekin
Language: English
Cfa elements: Negatives, 200 feet
Cfa records: https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/12191
Notes: Men roll whiskey barrels out of the wreckage as bulldozers and a scoop shovel move debris and search for bodies. Some parts of the structure continue to burn, and most of the interior has been gutted by the fire. Two men survey the scene as a firehose continues to douse the smoking debris. A man with a camera (Koza?) can be seen filming the scene. Firefighters dig through the rubble.; Three distillery workers were killed and a number of plant workers and firefighters were injured in the two-day fire. Three rack houses exploded and burned and the fire destroyed 42,000 barrels of aging whiskey.
Subjects: Disasters; Fires; Alcoholic beverages
Places: North America > United States > Illinois > Pekin
Language: English
Cfa elements: Negatives, 200 feet
Cfa records: https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/12191
Sources
- Chicago Film Archives · record ↗ — title, year, creator, length, format, color, sound, genre, description, credits, catalog record, video
Record added 2026-11-08 21:25:15