The Confederate plot to burn New York City stands as one of the most striking attempts to bring the American Civil War into the heart of the Union’s largest metropolis. The operation involved a small group of Confederate agents who sought to strike back at the Union war effort by creating urban chaos through coordinated arson. Their plan reflected the desperation of the Confederacy in the final stages of the war and demonstrated how far its leadership was willing to go to disrupt Northern morale and divert military resources.
The plot emerged from Confederate frustration over the Union’s destructive campaigns in the South, especially General William Tecumseh Sherman’s advance through Georgia. Some Confederate officials argued that retaliation in the North could force a shift in public opinion or reduce the Union’s capacity to wage war. The Confederate Secret Service adopted this logic when it authorized a plan to ignite simultaneous fires across New York City. The city held symbolic and strategic value due to its size, economic power, and role as a center of Northern industry and finance.
A small team of operatives traveled from Canada, where Confederate agents often found relative safety during the war. Many of them had previously attempted sabotage in other Northern cities, but New York offered an ideal target because of its dense population and large number of hotels, theaters, and public buildings. The agents selected high-occupancy structures that they believed would spread fire quickly. They acquired a flammable compound known as “Greek fire,” which they carried into hotel rooms and storage areas throughout the city.
On the evening of November 25, the conspirators lit fires in more than a dozen locations, including the Astor House, the St. Nicholas Hotel, the Metropolitan Hotel, and Barnum’s Museum. Their intention was to overwhelm the city’s firefighting capabilities by setting small fires simultaneously, which would then grow into an uncontrollable blaze. They left the fires to burn on their own, assuming that the chemical mixture would ignite rapidly and spread before anyone could respond.
Their plan failed for several reasons. Greek fire did not burn as expected and produced weaker flames than the agents assumed. Hotel staff and guests quickly noticed the fires, and the New York Fire Department responded with speed and efficiency. Firefighters contained most of the fires before they reached neighboring buildings. Barnum’s Museum experienced some damage, but the city avoided a large-scale disaster. No deaths were recorded in connection with the attempted arson.
The failed operation drew widespread attention and added to wartime tensions in the North. Newspapers described the plot as an attack on civilians aimed at spreading fear rather than achieving a military goal. Federal officials intensified their efforts to track Confederate agents operating from Canada, which contributed to diplomatic pressure on the Canadian government to limit Confederate activities across the border. Although most of the conspirators escaped, one agent, Captain Robert Cobb Kennedy, was captured months later. After a military trial, he was executed in March 1865, becoming the only conspirator punished directly for the operation.
The significance of the plot lies in its illustration of the widening scope of warfare during the Civil War. By late 1864, the conflict had shifted far beyond traditional battlefield engagements. Both sides employed tactics that sought to damage the enemy’s economic strength and civilian morale. The New York arson attempt showed how the Confederacy, facing shortages, battlefield losses, and shrinking territory, tried unconventional methods to alter the course of the war. It also revealed the vulnerability of major Northern cities to sabotage, even if the attempt did not succeed.
The incident demonstrated the strength of New York’s emergency response, which had been tested earlier during events such as the 1863 Draft Riots. The city’s officials, fire companies, and citizens acted quickly to limit the destruction. Their response helped maintain confidence that urban centers could withstand attempts at sabotage, even during a period of national instability.
While the Confederate plot failed to achieve its objectives, it remains a notable example of covert operations during the Civil War. The attempt to burn New York City reflected the pressures facing the Confederacy and the extent to which the war touched civilian life far from the battlefront. The events of November 25, 1864, serve as a reminder that the Civil War was fought not only through armies in the field but also through attempts to influence public sentiment, damage infrastructure, and shape the political landscape of a nation in crisis.
References / More Knowledge:
Cowherd, J. M. The Confederate Agents in Canada and the Plot to Burn New York City. Civil War Chronicles. https://civilwarchronicles.org/confederate-agents-canada-new-york-plot
Gleeson, D. T. The Green and the Gray: The Irish in the Confederate States of America. University of North Carolina Press. https://uncpress.org/book/9780807855504/the-green-and-the-gray
National Park Service. “Attempted Burning of New York City, 1864.” https://www.nps.gov/articles/attempted-burning-of-new-york-city.htm
New-York Historical Society. “Confederate Saboteurs and the 1864 Arson Plot.” https://www.nyhistory.org/confederate-saboteurs-1864-arson-plot
U.S. Army Center of Military History. Civil War Sabotage Operations. https://history.army.mil/html/bookshelves/civilwar-sabotage-operations