How New York City Got Its Juicy Nickname “The Big Apple” — And What It Means To The World

 By Ugo Chuwkwu

On a cold, wet morning in 1959, a terrible tragedy shook the small town of Wrightsville, Arkansas. It was a night that would leave scars on the hearts of many families forever. 

Sixty-nine African American boys, aged 13 to 17, were locked inside their dormitory at the Negro Boys Industrial School. They were just kids—some homeless, some sent there for small mistakes like playing pranks. But that night, their lives changed in the worst way imaginable.

The boys were locked in their dormitory, as they were every night. The doors were padlocked from the outside, trapping them inside. The building was old, run-down, and poorly funded. It was barely big enough to hold all the boys, who slept just one foot apart from each other. Their bathroom was a single bucket in the corner of the room. This was no place for children, but it was their reality.

Around 4 a.m., a fire broke out. No one knows exactly how it started, but it spread quickly. The boys woke up to smoke and flames. Panic filled the air as they realized they were trapped. The doors were locked. The windows were barred. They were surrounded by fire, and there was no easy way out.

Some of the boys fought with all their strength to escape. They clawed at the doors and windows, desperate to break free. Forty-eight of them managed to get out, but twenty-one boys were not so lucky. They couldn’t escape the flames. Their young lives were taken too soon, leaving behind families who would never see their sons again.

The fire was a horrifying tragedy, but it also revealed the terrible conditions these boys were living in. The school was supposed to help them, but instead, it treated them like prisoners. They were crammed into a small space, with no proper bathroom or even enough room to move around. It was a place of neglect, not care.

When the news of the fire spread, people were shocked and heartbroken. How could this happen? Why were these boys locked in like animals? Why was their school so poorly funded and unsafe? These questions haunted the community, but for many, there were no answers. The fire was ruled an accident, but to this day, some believe there was more to the story.

The families of the boys who died were left to grieve. Their sons were gone, and nothing could bring them back. The boys who survived carried the trauma of that night for the rest of their lives. They had seen their friends die, and they would never forget the fear and pain of that night.

This tragedy reminds us of the importance of treating every child with care and respect. No child should ever have to live in such terrible conditions. No child should ever be locked in a burning building, fighting for their life. The boys who died that night deserved better. The boys who survived deserved better. And every child, no matter their background, deserves a safe and loving place to grow up.

Today, we remember the twenty-one young lives lost in that fire. We honor their memory by fighting for justice and equality for all children. Their story is a painful reminder of the past, but it also inspires us to build a better future—one where no child has to suffer as they did.