At lunchtime on September 16, 1920, as clerks and businessmen bustled through the streets, a massive bomb tore through the Financial District. Set off from a rickety horse-drawn wagon at the corner of Wall and Broad Streets, the explosion was heard and felt for blocks. Thirty-eight men and women were killed, while hundreds were injured.

A fire broke out on January 9, 1912, at the Equitable Life Assurance Building. As firefighters attempted to control the blaze weather conditions rendered their efforts ineffective: freezing temperatures and wind gusts reduced spray from fire hoses to droplets, eventually encasing the building’s facade in ice while the interior continued to burn.

19th century fires didn't just destroy wood-frame houses and clapboard chapels. This is the 1895 blaze that ravaged Brooklyn City Hall.

In 1883, a fire at the school of the Church of the Most Holy Redeemer led to the deaths of 16 children. When smoke climbed into the second and third-story classrooms a panic took hold among the students. The deaths of most of the victims occurred due to a panicked crush. This event spurred needed changes to school safety measures.

The Brooklyn Theatre caught fire on December 5, 1876. When the fire broke out backstage, actors and stagehands attempted to extinguish the blaze while other actors on stage attempted to carry on with the show to avoid panic in the audience. Unfortunately almost 300 patrons still died.

On a cold and windy morning in January of 1890, a gust of wind picked up the entire brick wall of one side of this then roof-less and under-construction church and tossed it onto the wood-frame house next door. The home was destroyed, and two children were killed while other family members were injured.

In 1966 a fire tore through the basement of the building behind this one. Firefighters attempted to approach the blaze through this store and the floor collapsed, killing 12. Prior to September 11, this disaster claimed the lives of more fire personnel than any other disaster in the city.

In 1871, the Loyal Order of Orange (an Irish Protestant group) organized a parade. Angry Irish Catholic crowds met the marchers and when rocks, shoes, and bottles were thrown, the police and militia responded with clubs, bayonets, and guns. The riot caused the deaths of over 60 civilians – mostly Irish laborers.

In Novemeber 1903, a gas explosion caused a massive fire that was the death knell for this original location of the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

On a cold morning in December of 1960, a mid-air collision between two commercial airplanes resulted in the crashing of one of the planes on a quiet intersection in Park Slope. Despite having the nose of the fallen plane on its doorstep, and the surrounding buildings aflame from the debris, the corner home at 21 Seventh Avenue remained remarkably undamaged.

Just before noon on March 6, 1970, a bomb being constructed in the basement of 18 West 11th Street exploded prematurely. The bomb makers were members of the radical left group, the Weather Underground. Three Weathermen were killed and the building was reduced to a pile of smoldering rubble (seen here as the empty lot).

It was here in 1914 that a bomb intended for John D. Rockefeller exploded prematurely, killing four — including the three would-be assassins — and destroying the top half of the building.

A few minutes after 7 a.m. on September 11, 1905, a downtown-bound train on the Ninth Avenue El plunged from the tracks at the corner of 53rd Street, ultimately killing 13 and injuring 48, in what was then the worst transit accident in city history.

This was the corner of Catherine and Cherry Street during the 1863 Draft Riots. The Draft Riots were a violet protest against the wealthy who could buy their way out of conscription for $300. The protests quickly devolved in race riots, the aftermath of which resulted in a dramatic shift of the black population to Brooklyn.

The Blizzard of 1888 was a catastrophic snowstorm that blanketed large parts of the East Coast. New York had 85 mph wind gusts and snow drifts that reached the second stories of some buildings. The wind and snow combined to create a dangerous situation with overhead electrical and telegraph wiring falling and killing people.

On November 1, 1918 the worst transit disaster in city history occurred just outside the eastern edge of Prospect Park. A train on the Brighton Beach line took a sharp turn, derailing the first car and sending the other cars smashing into the tunnel walls. In all about 100 people were killed, and more than 250 passengers were injured.

In 1904, while on a summer time outing more than 1000 members of the congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of St. Mark (as the building was originally known) were killed when the General Slocum steamboat caught fire.

On the first anniversary of the disaster, this memorial was dedicated to those who lost their lives in the 1904 steamboat tragedy. The monument was erected over the graves of the disaster's unidentified victims.

On a Saturday afternoon in March 1911, just as the work day was ending, a fire began on the 8th floor of the Asch building. The top three floors of this 10-story building housed the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. The fire spread quickly due to the flammable scraps of clothing that filled the factory.

The workers (mostly young immigrant women) had little time or means to escape. Some of the doors to the stairs were locked from the outside to prevent theft, but caused a crush of people attempting to use them. In all 146 people died, making it one of the most deadly industrial disasters in the United States.

On St. Patrick's Day, 1899, as thousands of revelers streamed by the Windsor Hotel, a fire started on the top floor. It spread extremely fast and soon the entire building was engulfed. Despite their best efforts, the firefighters were pushed back by the heat and were forced to watch as people jumped from windows to escape the flames. In the end, more than 90 people were killed.

The building was largely collapsed by 4:30 pm, just an hour after the blaze started. The still burning ruins took days to cool down enough for a thorough search of the building. The charred ruins of the building were not demolished immediately and the search for victims went on for nearly a month.