Picture Tolland: Anniversary Of The Chicken Coop Fire

TOLLAND, CT — Last weekend marked the 50th anniversary of a harrowing chicken coop fire in Tolland.

It was Feb. 19 1972, and the fire broke out in what Tolland Fire Department archives term "a large chicken coop" on the former Robart Farms property at the northwest intersection of Buff Cap Road and Slater Road.

Fire officials said the coop was made up of two 40-by-500-foot buildings connected by a 50-by-110-foot cooler that contained more than 58,000 chickens.

Firefighters were hindered by a raging snowstorm. Streets were not plowed and many firefighters had to carpool in four-wheel drive vehicles to get to the fire.

The buildings were totally destroyed and this fire became one of the largest investigations in town. Retired Chief Ronald Littell Sr. is shown checking the remains after the fire.

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Picture Tolland is periodic series that examines images of the town, past and present.