Portland City Hall in ruins after the July 4th fire of 1866, which destroyed 1,500 buildings and left 12,000 homeless.

Because everyone believed City Hall, built on Congress Street in 1862, would escape the disaster, furniture and valuables were stored there for safekeeping.

The building caught fire and these items were lost as the building was gutted, and the town offices, county offices, courtrooms, and record offices were destroyed.