This fire happened at a time when the fire ‘brigade’, formally known as the London Fire Engine Establishment, was still run by insurance companies. It began on 23 June 1861 in a warehouse at Cotton’s Wharf in Tooley Street and raged for two days, destroying many nearby buildings. It was two weeks before the fire went out completely. The head of the Establishment, James Braidwood, was killed by a falling wall while fighting the fire.
Afterwards the insurance companies raised their premiums and threatened to disband the brigade until finally the government agreed take it over. The Metropolitan Fire Brigade Act was passed in 1865 and led to a publicly-funded fire service – the first real London fire brigade.