Harrowing stories from families and historians shared for "Peshtigo: American Firestorm" film

Thomas Slough in Oconto, Wisconsin

We want to take a moment to say how grateful we are to the Peshtigo Fire Museum for all of their help and support on this documentary project. We don't know what we would do without them. From the very beginning Museum Director Laura Marotz, Mary Jo Seidl and the rest of the Board have been incredible in providing us access to archival materials, visuals, art and resources; giving us guidance, sharing information, location and historical details; and helping us to fundraise for the project.

Interviewing Peter Stark about the Samuel Thomas fishermen family of Oconto. 

We just returned from filming footage and interviews in Oconto, Wisconsin for PESHTIGO: AMERICAN FIRESTORM. Our thanks to Oconto County Historical Society's Peter Stark and Peter Gabrielson for sitting down to talk with us about the impact of the deadly 1871 Peshtigo wildfire on Oconto and the other areas near Peshtigo. We are grateful to the OCHS for for allowing us to conduct interviews at the beautiful Beyer Home and Carriage Museum.

Kelly & Tammy Rundle with Peter Gabrielson and Richard McDowell.

The production trip provided us the pleasure of meeting and interviewing Richard McDowell, a farmer, about an ancestor who helped bury the dead. Ancestor Mary McDowell began cooking breakfast for the scores of injured, exhausted, traumatized survivors who found a safe haven on the McDowell farm, which was miraculously spared by the wildfire.

Interviewing Jane Erickson.

We also met Jane and Dave Erickson in Wild Rose. Jane shared the tragic story of loss in Dave's family when his great grandfather's brother and a son who tried to escape the fire in a wagon were consumed by flames. Two of the man's daughters made it to the river and survived, but a small two-year-old child was lost in the chaos and her body never found.

Kelly & Tammy Rundle with Jane and Dave Erickson.

It is a lot to ask of people to reflect on such harrowing accounts handed down through the generations. Family members try to puzzle out and make sense of what took place--the terror experienced, and the acts of kindness offered to those in desperate need; examples of faith and hope and miracles; and the unbearable grief in having to accept the loss of loved ones and everything they possessed.

PESHTIGO: AMERICAN FIRESTORM has been an amazing journey into the past. We have learned so much and our 'education' continues.

Our sincere thanks to those who have donated to the documentary film project. PESHTIGO: AMERICAN FIRESTORM would not be possible without you! Visit the SPONSORS & SUPPORTERS link here.

If YOU would like to add your name to the list of the documentary film credits, please visit the Peshtigo Fire Museum (our fiscal sponsor) website https://peshtigofiremuseum.com/donate/ and note your donation is for the "Documentary Film". We are truly grateful!

Popular posts from this blog

Final production on new PESHTIGO documentary set for May and June

Image
Emmy award-winning filmmakers Kelly and Tammy Rundle of Fourth Wall Films will return to Peshtigo, Wisconsin in late May to conduct several more interviews for their new documentary PESHTIGO: American Firestorm. The documentary combines vintage photos, artists renderings, limited re-enactments and archival materials with eye-witness accounts and perspectives from present-day historians, conservationists, wildfire experts, scholars and survivor ancestors to tell the dramatic story of America’s deadliest firestorm.  PESHTIGO is funded in part by a grant from Wisconsin Humanities, with funds from the National Endowment for the Humanities, as well as generous supporters of the project. The documentary is slated for a "Sneak Preview" in October 2026 . Check back for more details. Add your name to the film's credits! You can make a tax-deductible contribution for $100 or more via our Fiscal Sponsor, the Peshtigo Historical Society. Visit their website here:  Peshtigo Historic...
Read more

May "Peshtigo" production features stories from descendants of wildfire survivors

Image
Tammy Rundle interviews artist Marvin Carl Marotz about his family connection to the Peshtigo fire. Emmy award-winning filmmakers Kelly and Tammy Rundle of Fourth Wall Films were back in Peshtigo, Wisconsin to film interviews with descendants of several of the survivors of the deadly 1 871 wildfire. The firestorm claimed the lives of approximately 2,500 people and incinerated 1.2 million acres . It is considered the deadliest fire in American history. Peshtigo Historical Society's Mary Jo Seidl, Peshtigo Mayor Katie Berman and filmmakers Tammy and Kelly Rundle. Interviews were held at the Peshtigo Municipal Building thanks to the assistance of Peshtigo Mayor Katie Berman. "We are very grateful to Mayor Berman for arranging a quiet space in the building in which to conduct these important interviews," said producer Tammy Rundle. "It was truly a pleasure to meet her and we appreciated her kind support of our work on the film project." Tammy and Kelly Rundle with ...
Read more

154th Anniversary of Tragic Peshtigo Fire Commemorated October 8 by Peshtigo Historical Society

Image
October 8th, 2025 marked the 154th anniversary of the great Peshtigo, Wisconsin fire. The Peshtigo Historical Society presented its annual memorial commemorating the tragedy and honoring the victims and those who survived. The 1871 October firestorm incinerated 1.2 million acres and killed approximately 2,500 people. It is considered the deadliest fire in American history. Kelly and Tammy Rundle of Fourth Wall Films filmed the commemoration and the candlelight vigil for their documentary PESHTIGO: American Firestorm . They also filmed the mass grave at Peshtigo Fire Cemetery, and Harmony Cemetery and Mays Corners Cemetery where other victims of the fire are buried. “PESHTIGO: American Firestorm” (working title) will combine vintage photos, artists renderings, limited re-enactments and archival materials with eye-witness accounts and perspectives from present-day historians and scholars, including Jerry Apps, PhD, the author of “When the White Pine was King”, and conservationists to tel...
Read more