10/26/2021
This October marks 150 years since the Great Chicago Fire. Although Mrs. O’Leary’s legendary cow has been exonerated, the fire’s exact origin on the night of October 8, 1871, remains unknown.
Once ignited, the fire quickly raged out of control thanks to ferocious winds, extremely dry conditions, and plenty of fuel. By the time rain extinguished the final flames on October 10, the conflagration had consumed The Loop (Chicago’s central business district), left an estimated 300 people dead, and one-third of the city’s residents homeless.
At the time, Chicago was built almost entirely of wood. Even the Chicago River, which was packed with wooden docks and vessels along its banks, did little to halt the conflagration. After hitting The Loop, the fire jumped the Chicago River’s main branch and destroyed virtually the entire North Division of the city before dying out.
Fires were a common occurrence in Chicago, and few residents took notice when alarm bells rang out from the city’s West Side. Panic set in once the fire jumped the river and moved toward the heart of the city. Assembled 70 years after the last flames died out, this poem, published 1941's "Gone to Blazes: Episodes in Verse About the Great Chicago Fire," still powerfully conveys the terror and confusion as people fled for their lives.
Recovering required an equally great rebuilding effort. Over 17,000 structures were destroyed in a more than three square mile area known as the “Burnt District.” The National Archives holds a 1872 petition sent to the U.S. Senate in an effort to secure financial relief from tariffs and import duties on building materials.
The city recovered quickly; however, Chicagoans did not benefit equally. Poorer residents who lacked the resources of the wealthy faced much greater hardship rebuilding their homes and reclaiming their livelihoods.
You can see this document and others on display in the East Rotunda Gallery through November 16, 2021, or online https://go.usa.gov/xeq3y
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Image: Page 5 from "Gone to Blazes: Episodes in Verse About the Great Chicago Fire," 1941. National Archives Identifier 1416418.