Bad Ends · STOP 12 · Bay Village · COMMEMORATIVE
Cocoanut Grove, 1942
The Cocoanut Grove nightclub stood on this block of Bay Village. On the night of November 28, 1942, a fire killed hundreds of people inside. The main entrance was a revolving door, and other exits were locked or jammed. Fire and building codes across the country changed because of it. A bronze plaque made by a survivor, the club's youngest employee, is set in the sidewalk.
Northeast corner of Piedmont Street and Cocoanut Grove Lane (formerly Shawmut Street Extension), Bay Village. Moved in 2016 from in front of 17 Piedmont Street.
Directions
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The fire was reported at about 10:15 p.m. Its official cause is still recorded as unknown.
More footnotes on the story card, in the app.
Sources (10)
- The Cocoanut Grove (plaque)HMdb.org marker 40673; erected 1993 by the Bay Village Neighborhood Association · photos 2011-03-05 (pre-move)
- Cocoanut Grove Memorial Committee - home, Facts, and Impact of Fire pagesCocoanut Grove Memorial Committee · accessed 2026-10-11
- Cocoanut Grove Fire PlaqueAtlas Obscura · n.d.
- Cocoanut Grove fireWikipedia (lead only) · accessed 2026-10-10
- Cocoanut Grove plaque shoved down the streetThe Boston Globe · 2016-07-09
- MemorialCocoanut Grove Memorial Committee · accessed 2026-10-10
- Bay Village (marker)HMdb.org marker 245473 · accessed 2026-10-10
- Cocoanut Grove Fire plaquesRoadside America, tip 86426 · visitor tip 2025-01-25
- Cocoanut Grove MemorialCity of Boston Arts and Culture · accessed 2026-10-11
- Boston street renamed as memorial to Cocoanut Grove nightclub fireNECN