Since the Colonists had abandoned the city, there was no organized fire brigade to extinguish the flames.  

Great Fire of New York (1776) - 1776 - Six days after the British invasion of New York City, the fire started in a wooden building near White Hall Slip, called the Fighting Cocks Tavern, a fun house visited by the city's most disreputable residents.It spread rapidly south west of the city, demolishing 493 buildings. With fire fighters missing from the scene, the fire consumed a third of the city's infrastructure. The responsibility for putting out the fire fell on the British soldiers, who soon discovered that fire equipment had been sabotaged. Outraged, they immediately put the blame on Americans, arresting over 200 patriot sympathizers and brutally executing many of the primary suspects involved.Anticipating the British invasion of New York, General George Washington had retreated from his base in Harlem Heights only a few days prior to the outbreak of the fire. Before this measure was taken, Washington met with members of the continental congress to discuss a defense strategy for NYC. Knowing that the British had strategic military advantage and that there was little hope of retaining the city, a suggestion was made to burn down NYC to eliminate any profit the British might gain from its capture. This plan was quickly rejected, but it is speculated that some patriot sympathizers carried it out independently. Following this incident the British, upon realizing the threat fire posed to their new base, built their own fire department in the city but otherwise left the damage unrepaired. 

St. Paul's Fire Bucket 1776 - 1776 - Just one week after the British invaded Manhattan in September 1776, a suspicious fire destroyed as much as a quarter of the city, hundreds of the estimated four thousand buildings. A hastily organized bucket brigade drawing water from the Hudson River saved St. Paul's Chapel, which had opened in 1766 and remains Manhattan's oldest and only existing prerevolutionary public building in continuous use. The fire was said to have broken out shortly after midnight at the Fighting Cocks Tavern near Whitehall Slip. It quickly consumed Trinity Church, but the Reverend Charles Inglis, Trinity's assistant minister, rallied men, women, and children to soak the roof of St. Paul's, about a third of a mile away. The fire not only inflicted immediate hardship but would exacerbate the misery inflicted by the prolonged British occupation of New York. Survivors pitched canvas tents on the charred ruins. Loyalists flooded into the city, and both public and private buildings were appropriated to house them and billet British troops. Patriots suspected the British of setting the blaze; the British, meanwhile, suspected American arsonists, and with good reason. George Washington disclaimed any advance knowledge of the fire but wrote his cousin: "Providence or some good honest Fellow, has done more for us than we were disposed to do for ourselves." As a result of their suspicions, the British imposed martial law for the duration of their seven-year occupation. (Perhaps not coincidentally, on that very day, Nathan Hale was arrested in Queens as an American spy.) Their cruel treatment of captured American soldiers consigned to filthy prison ships off Brooklyn may have been another consequence of the suspicion and animosity that the fire created in the occupied city. St. Paul's miraculous survival in the Great Fire was mirrored on September 11, 2001, when the World Trade Center collapsed. Standing in the shadow of the Twin Towers, the church was unharmed. Not a single window was broken. For months, the chapel served as a sanctuary for police, firemen, construction workers, and volunteers at the site. The iron gates of the chapel were festooned with photographs of the missing, teddy bears, flowers, and other tributes.  About a decade later, Omayra Rivera, St. Paul's thirty-seven-year-old program director, maneuvered herself behind the 1804 pipe organ and made her way to the steeple after hearing maintenance workers discussing artifacts they discovered there. She found what may have been evidence of the chapel's original miracle: a three-gallon leather bucket marked "St. Paul's, 1768," the year when tougher fire regulations took effect.

Great Fire of 1835 - 1835 - The 1835 Great Fire of New York was one of three fires that rendered extensive damage to New York City in the 18th and 19th centuries. Flames broke out inside a warehouse on Pearl Street, the center of New York’s dry-goods district.The bitterly cold temperatures that froze the water in their firemen’s hoses, killing two people, the destruction of the nearly 23 blocks and 700 buildings in the city’s prosperous mercantile district. The cold made it tough to get under control. “Whiskey was poured into boots to prevent [firefighters’] toes from icing up,” states Paul Hashagen in Fire Department, City of New York. The estimates of damage that ranged from $18 to $20 million ($529 to $588 million today).The fire department's growth in the 1820s and 1830s had not kept pace with the growth of the city. The fire bankrupted several insurance companies, slowing the processing of claims It forced the city, which rebuilt within a year, to organize a professional fire department and shore up building codes. And it showed the need for a modern water-supply system, resulting in the opening of the Croton Aqueduct and reservoir on 42nd Street seven years later.

Great New York City Fire of 1845 - 1845 - The fire started in a whale oil and candle manufacturing establishment and quickly spread to other wooden structures. It reached a saltpeter warehouse on Broad Street and caused a massive explosion that spread the fire even farther. The fire destroyed 345 buildings in the southern part of what is now the Financial District, resulting in property damage estimated at the time between $5 million and $10 million (equivalent to between $157 million and $314 million in 2022). Four firefighters and 26 civilians died. There were multiple reports of looting during the fire and in its aftermath, both of businesses and private residences. At least two elderly women reported being approached by young men who offered to help them move their belongings from their damaged buildings, only to have their valuables stolen.While very destructive, the 1845 fire confirmed the value of building codes restricting wood-frame construction, which had been implemented in 1815. In spite of general improvements, the 1845 fire prompted public calls for a more proactive stance in fire prevention and firefighting, and the city established a reserve unit called the Exempt Fireman's Company.

Fire at Cruger's Wharf - 1778 - On August 3, 1778, a fire ravaged two blocks in lower Manhattan, destroying numerous shops and houses, including most structures on Cruger’s Wharf and half of the adjacent block north of Water Street. While not as catastrophic as the 1776 inferno during George Washington’s retreat, it still caused significant damage to around 60 buildings. In the aftermath, the Superintendent-General’s Office mandated the removal of salvaged wooden materials outside the city limits due to fire hazards. Notices in the Royal Gazette sought to recover lost or stolen items, warning of theft consequences. One affected area later became the site of the 7 Hanover Square archaeological project in the early 1980s.

Chatham Street Fire of 1811 - 1811 - The 1811 Chatham Street Fire in New York City started in a coach factory and rapidly spread, destroying nearly 100 buildings. High winds carried embers across Lower Manhattan, igniting additional fires, including the steeple of the Brick Church. A brave man, McCormick, climbed the church and cut away the burning sections, preventing a larger disaster. Firefighters eventually contained the blaze, but 52 buildings were lost, and firefighter William Peterson died. The fire prompted changes in city planning, including street realignments and infrastructure improvements.

New York World Building fire 1883 - 1882 - A fire broke out in the World building around 10:00 p.m. on January 31, 1882, supposedly because of a draft of wind from the nearby Temple Court Building. The fire destroyed much of the block within a few hours, killing six people and causing more than $400,000 in damage (equivalent to $11 million in 2020). The World building was said to have "made itself notorious the country over for burning up in the shortest time on record", and it took a week to examine the wreckage, Several days after the fire, the Real Estate Record and Guide said that "the ground is so valuable that it will no doubt be immediately built upon".

Elm St. Fire - 1860 - The new "Superintendent of Buildings" position at the Fire Department was caused by a tenement fire which killed 20 people Elm St. Fire.

Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire - 1911 - On Saturday, March 25, 1911, at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory, a lethal fire broke out on the factory floor, trapping many of the textile workers inside. 

1st Modern Fire Hydrant - 1817 - The 1st Modern Fire Hydrant was placed in front of fireman George B Smith's house; due to design flaws, it didn't work very well

New York City Fire Museum - 1934 - The museum contains a wide array of fire related artifacts dating back from the late 18th century to the present, displaying them in a way that is both informing and intriguing. 

Fire Ordinance enacted in New Amsterdam - 1648 - Fire Ordinance enacted mandating the cleaning of chimneys and the purchase of ladders and buckets and establishing 8 fire wardens.

Setting up New York City's Fire Department - 1736 - The city's first firehouse was built in 1736 in front of City Hall on Broad Street.

1st Steam Powered Fire-Engine demostrated at Castle Garden - 1841 - The earliest engines were small and were either carried by four men, or mounted on skids and dragged to a fire. As the engines grew larger they became horse-drawn and later self-propelled by steam engines. John Ericsson is credited with building the first American steam-powered fire engine.Until the mid-19th century, most fire engines were maneuvered by men, but the introduction of horse-drawn fire engines considerably improved the response time to incidents. The first self-propelled steam pumper fire engine was built in New York in 1841. Unfortunately for the manufacturers, some firefighters sabotaged the device and its use of the first engine was discontinued. However, the need and the utility of power equipment ensured the success of the steam pumper well into the twentieth century. Many cities and towns around the world bought the steam fire engines.