On
October 9, 1871, Chicago's "
Great Conflagration"...
was brought under control. The fire started the night before and was not completely extinguished until much needed rain fell the following day. Several factors contributed to the severity of the
Great Chicago Fire. The bustling Midwestern city was built primarily of wood, and several woodworking industries operated within the city limits. Also, rainfall during the preceding months had totaled just one fourth of normal precipitation while early October was unseasonably warm.
No one knows for certain how the fire started, though an eyewitness did see the beginnings of the blaze in Mr. and Mrs. O'Leary's barn. One widely circulated rumor held the O'Leary's cow responsible for knocking over an oil burning lamp and setting the straw afire. Whatever the cause, chaos resulted as hundreds fled their home to escape the rapidly spreading flames. One Chicagoan described his experience on the night of the fire:
I jumped out of bed and pulled on my pants. Everybody in the house was trying to save as much as possible. I tied my clothes in a sheet. With my clothes under my arm and my pack on my back, I left the house with the rest of the family. Everybody was running north. People were carrying all kinds of crazy things. A woman was carrying a pot of soup, which was spilling all over her dress. People were carrying cats, dogs and goats. In the great excitement people saved worthless things and left behind good things. I saw a woman carrying a big frame in which was framed her wedding veil and wreath. She said it would have been bad luck to leave it behind.
"Pack on My Back,"
Chicago, Illinois,
Hilda Polacheck, interviewer,
circa 1938-1939.
American Life Histories, 1936-1940
By the time the fire was extinguished, 300 Chicagoans were dead, and 90,000 of 500,000 residents were left homeless. Four square miles, including the business district, were completely leveled. But, Chicago rapidly rebuilt in conformance with new fire regulations. Hosting the World's Columbian Exposition in 1893, Chicago again reigned as the "Queen of the West."
Search on Chicago fire in the collection The Nineteenth Century in Print: Books to access several books on the subject, such as Chicago and the Great Conflagration by Elias Colbert and Everett Chamberlin (1871).
Search the collection Music for the Nation: American Sheet Music, 1870-1885 on Chicago Fire to find a variety of songs on the theme.
Search across American Memory on the words fire engine, fire house or fire department to see all manner of fire fighting equipment and read stories about other disastrous fires in history.
Search the collection Touring Turn-of-the-Century America, 1880-1920 on Chicago to access hundreds of images of the rebuilt city.
Read stories about the fair of 1893. Search on Chicago World's Fair in California as I Saw It, 1849-1900. For recollections of world's fairs, including the Columbian Exposition, search on world's fair in American Life Histories, 1936-1940.
Search the Today in History Archive on Chicago to read more about the history of this great American city and some of its famous inhabitants including architects Daniel Burnham and Louis Sullivan and social reformers Jane Addams and Grace Abbott. 
