Mckinley Fire

Wildfire in San Bernardino County, September 1956

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Printed October 28, 2026 from www.firezones.info/fire/1527/mckinley-fire-1956

Key facts

Started September 21, 1956
Contained Not recorded
Burned 10,698 acres
4th largest fire of 1956
Cause Not recorded
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Where it burned

County

  1. San Bernardino County 10,698 acres

Communities

  1. Lake Arrowhead 1,463 acres
  2. Running Springs 357 acres

Acres are the land the fire burned in each county and community, and places where it burned less than an acre are not listed. Communities are cities, towns and the unincorporated places the Census Bureau names, so land outside any of them is counted only in its county.

The same land, other fires

Burned before

  1. 1906 Unnamed fire 229 acres in total 139 acres shared
  2. 1911 Unnamed fire 17,062 acres in total 1,751 acres shared
  3. 1922 Unnamed fire 19,326 acres in total 7,993 acres shared
  4. 1938 Unnamed fire 12,493 acres in total 809 acres shared
  5. 1941 Unnamed fire 2,178 acres in total 247 acres shared
  6. 1952 San Manuel Fire 298 acres in total 64 acres shared
  7. 1955 Unnamed fire 477 acres in total 177 acres shared
  8. 1955 City Creek Fire 244 acres in total 6 acres shared

Burned again

  1. 1960 Mckinley Fire 1,781 acres in total 57 acres shared
  2. 1963 Unnamed fire 73 acres in total 50 acres shared
  3. 1970 Bear Fire 51,655 acres in total · Cause: Campfire 750 acres shared
  4. 1979 Shadow Fire 2,601 acres in total · Cause: Equipment use 266 acres shared
  5. 1980 Unnamed fire 836 acres in total 37 acres shared
  6. 1980 Unnamed fire 14 acres in total · Cause: Smoking 13 acres shared
  7. 1989 Unnamed fire 652 acres in total 75 acres shared
  8. 1997 Hemlock - July Fire 3,947 acres in total · Cause: Playing with fire 999 acres shared
  9. 1997 Mill Fire 1,326 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 78 acres shared
  10. 2003 Bridge Fire 1,157 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 149 acres shared
  11. 2003 Old Fire 91,428 acres in total · Cause: Arson 10,307 acres shared
  12. 2007 Slide Fire 12,769 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 326 acres shared

And 2 more fires that burned less of the same land. Acres are the land each fire shares with the Mckinley Fire, and fires that shared less than an acre are not counted. Some older or smaller fires may be missing, and a fire perimeter can include unburned patches. How to read fire history

Sources

Fire history
CAL FIRE Fire and Resource Assessment Program
Published 28 July 2026
Building damage
CAL FIRE Damage Inspection
Updated 19 October 2026

This site is independent and not affiliated with CAL FIRE or the CPUC, so for an official determination, check with the agency or your city or county. How we read the data