Great Chicago Fire facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Great Chicago Fire |
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Artist's rendering of the fire, by Currier and Ives; the view faces northeast across the Randolph Street Bridge
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| Location | Chicago, Illinois, United States |
| Statistics | |
| Cost | $222 million (1871 USD) (approx. $4.7 billion in 2020) |
| Date(s) | October 8, 1871 – October 10, 1871 |
| Burned area | 2,112 acres (8.55 km2) |
| Cause | Unknown |
| Buildings destroyed | 17,500 buildings |
| Deaths | 300 (estimate) |
The Great Chicago Fire was a large fire that started on Sunday October 8, 1871 in Chicago, Illinois, United States.
The second red star of the Chicago flag represents the fire.
Contents
How did it start
No one is sure what caused the fire. A legend says that it started when a cow knocked over a lantern in Catherine O'Leary's barn on DeKoven Street. The fire began in a neighborhood southwest of the city center. A long period of hot, dry, windy conditions, and the wooden construction of the buildings made the fire jump from place to place and also leapt the river.
When did it end and why
It burned until Tuesday October 10, 1871 when rain started to fall.
How much did it destroy
The fire destroyed 3.3 square miles (8.5 square kilometers) and $192,000,000 in property. About 100,000 people were left homeless. Three hundred people died. Because of a large fire the night before, firefighters were too tired to quickly put out these fires.
The oldest structure left standing in the area where the fire burned is the Couch family tomb. This stone tomb was built in 1858.
Not all of the city was destroyed. Important places like the Stock Yards, where animals were slaughtered, were not damaged. Neither was the railroad system.
Panorama of damage
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Timeline
- October 8, 1871 - A fire begins around 9:00 p.m. near a small farm on 137 DeKoven St.
- October 9, 1871 - The fires continue burning.
- October 10, 1871 - The fires are finally extinguished in the early morning hours. President Grant orders donations to be shipped into the city.
- October 11, 1871 - A myth that the O’Leary cow caused the fire is circulated in the New-York Tribune. The city of Chicago is placed under martial law.
- October 12, 1871 - Business is able to partially resume.
- October 17, 1871 - Temporary residences are built, but 100,000 people remain homeless.
- October 19, 1871 - A writer for the Nashville Union largely discredits the Catherine O’Leary story after an interview with her.
- November 11, 1871 - The police and fire commissioner begin an investigation into Ms. O’Leary.
Images for kids
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1871 Chicago view before the 'Great Conflagration'
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The cottage of Catherine and Patrick O'Leary, 137 (now 558) W. DeKoven St. As this view suggests, the neighborhood was congested with mean wooden buildings and a variety of industry, a condition which helped to spread the fire of 1871 as rapidly as it did. A strong wind blowing towards the northeast spared the O'Leary cottage and the buildings seen here to its west. From a stereoptican view by A.H. Abbott, Photographer, whose studio at 976 (now 2201) N. Clark Street was consumed by the flames.
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1869 map of Chicago, altered to show the area destroyed by the fire (location of O'Leary's barn indicated by red dot)
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Aftermath of the fire, corner of Dearborn and Monroe Streets, 1871
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General Philip H. Sheridan, who saved Chicago three times: the Great Fire in October 1871, when he used explosives to stop the spread; again after the Great Fire, protecting the city; and lastly in 1877 during the "communist riots", riding in from 1,000 miles away to restore order.
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Chicago Tribune editorial
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More than 20 years after the Great Fire, 'The World Columbian Exposition of 1893', known as the 'White City', for being lit up with newly invented light bulbs and electric power.
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A pre-fire house in Chicago on Cleveland Avenue (photographed in 2016)
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1871 illustration from Harper's Magazine depicting Mrs. O'Leary milking the cow
See also
In Spanish: Gran incendio de Chicago para niños
