The president and CEO of the National Susan B. Anthony Museum & House told WXXI News on Wednesday that an arsonist targeted the historic landmark a second time.
Deborah Hughes says the fire that destroyed the back porch of the house in September was set intentionally, and the person who set it returned to the house on December 17 to set a second fire. Hughes shared the information during a discussion on WXXI’s “Connections with Evan Dawson.”
"We know that the fire was set. It was definitely arson. We didn’t share with the general public what I would share with you now, which is that the person came back several months later and there was a second attempt to set the building on fire.”
Hughes says the second fire caused minor damage to another area of the porch, but there was no damage to the inside of the house.
Following the first fire, teams used air scrubbers to remediate any smell of smoke. According to Hughes, Rochester fire crews had to break through the front door and run hoses through the house to extinguish the fire. She credits them for their “gentle and careful” work handling historical artifacts.
“They removed pictures on the back wall which were within two feet of the doors that were burning and carefully placed them in another room, and then apologized that they might have gotten them out of order.”
The investigation of both fires is ongoing, and Hughes says the museum has increased surveillance in the event that the arsonist returns. While she’s upset by the events, she says she’s choosing to focus on the positives.
“To me, it was actually a story about lots of really good things and amazing heroism and everything that went well.”
