The Day of the Fire

In Chicago, October 8, 1871 started out like any other Fall day, but turned into a day in Chicago history that could never be forgotten. It was the day the Great Chicago Fire started. It started around 9 p.m. on October 8th and burnt through the morning of October 10, 1871. Approximately 300 people died and thousands of buildings were destroyed with damage estimates at about $200 million. Approximately 100,000 residents were left homeless. This was a third of Chicago’s population which at the time was 300,000. It devastated the downtown area  and headed up toward the North side almost to Fullerton. The South side suffered some damages, but the West side was mostly intact. It burnt approximately 3.3 miles. It started at the general vicinity of 137 DeKoven Street on the Southwest side. It was long rumored that the fire was started by Mrs. O’Leary’s cow kicking over a lantern. That has since been disputed and likely isn’t true. The fire has also been blamed on a meteor shower (which is also unlikely). The fire most likely started due to extremely dry weather conditions and extreme heat and winds; as well as the fact that most buildings, streets and sidewalks were made of wood and there were many lumberyards in the area. Fires occurred at this time in three other nearby areas: Peshtigo WI; Holland MI; and Urbana IL.

Fortunately, most of Chicago’s physical infrastructure and transportation systems remained intact and reconstruction efforts began quickly. Many of the world’s first skyscrapers were built in Chicago at this time. By 1890 the population of Chicago had grown to 1 million and the city was a major economic and transportation hub.

And fittingly enough, today the Chicago Fire Department Training Academy is located at 137 DeKoven Street.