In 1915, the small hamlet of Hopewell became one of Virginia's early 20th century boomtowns with the establishment of a DuPont Company dynamite and gunpowder factory. And in less than a year, nearly the entire town had burned to the ground.

The fire started on the afternoon of Dec. 9, 1915, around 1:45 p.m., when an oil stove in a downtown Greek restaurant was accidentally turned over. Initial efforts to put out the fire failed, and the oil from the stove spread the flame throughout the building, eventually reaching outside and being picked up by the breeze.

Available firefighting measures proved inadequate, and the flames rapidly swept over the city upon 20-mile-an-hour winds.

Yet while the fire's devastation was swift, so was the response.

"Within one hour and forty-five minutes after fire bells sounded the military call, fifteen strokes, yesterday afternoon, the Richmond Light Infantry Blues battalion and two companies of Richmond Grays were entrained at Byrd Street Station and ready to move to the protection of Hopewell," reads an article in the Dec. 10, 1915, Times-Dispatch. "The troop train pulled out with over 200 aboard at 5:50 o'clock."

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Troops were ordered to Hopewell by Gov. Henry Carter Stuart after he received a 4 p.m. telegram that read, "Militia will be in service here, as town in chaos and afire." As the flames burned, there was chaos and confusion, but looting was kept to a minimum.

Remarkably, despite the flammability of the materials therein, none of the DuPont powder plant buildings were affected.

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As the devastation became apparent, authorities began dynamiting buildings to limit the spread of the fire. People exited the city en masse, some in cars, others in horse-drawn conveyances, and many on foot.

Thousands of people were left without homes, and over 300 buildings were destroyed in the fire. A full 60 acres of 80 total in Hopewell had burned to the ground. The total property damage was estimated at more than $1 million.

"Not a building left in the town proper was left standing," the Times-Dispatch article reported.

Incredibly, nobody died in the fire, despite the magnitude of it. And nearly as incredible, the effort to rebuild began that same day.

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A separate article in the Dec. 10, 1915, edition of The Times-Dispatch states, "A score of building contracts were placed last night for construction of new and better buildings on the sites from which houses were swept by the flames yesterday. Material for these buildings will be shipped into Hopewell this morning."

J. Walter Long, of the Farmers' and Mechanics' Bank of Hopewell, described the fire as a "blessing in disguise," adding that "It means the rebuilding of a town on a more enduring foundation."

Within only a matter of days, real estate agents were reporting a "brisk" pace of transactions, and plans were being set to erect sturdier buildings.

In just a little over a week, more than 600 building permits were issued in Hopewell, and the Du Pont company, whose plant was located in Hopewell, donated building supplies. More than 200 of the mostly wood structures that burned down were replaced with those built from brick and steel.

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Additionally, more rigid regulations were put in place to prevent more ramshackle structures from being erected, mandating the use of brick and steel in buildings in the restricted area.

In only four months, the entire town was rebuilt, and likewise, a rapid rebound and growth into a population of over 20,000, reinforcing Hopewell's nickname as the "Wonder City."

As an article in the April 9, 1916, Times-Dispatch stated, "History records no parallel of a city founded on an idea, destroyed eight months later and rebuilt and re-established before its first anniversary."

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"From the Archives" explores the history of Richmond and the region through the files of The Times-Dispatch. Have a topic you'd like us to check out? Email jterich@timesdispatch.com.

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A 1915 fire burned through Hopewell. In four months, the "Wonder City" rebuilt.