Background
The Great Fire of Chicago of 1871 has been one of the highly debatable issues in the history of the United States. The exact cause leading to the spread of the Great Fire of Chicago and the aftermath of the conflagration remains a critical topic of research for the majority of scholars and students of history. Different theories have been propagated, explaining the origin of the great fire that led to massive loss of life and destruction of property. The Great Fire of Chicago, which began on 8th October 1871 to 10th October 1871, started in the southwest section of Chicago. Estimated to have killed 300 people while leaving one-third of the city homeless, the loss led to the rebuilding of a new urban city characterized by big businesses, innovative structures, and contemporary architectural designs (DeBartolo, 2022). While the exact cause of the fire remains a mystery, thorough research on the topic provides one with evidence and understanding of The Great Chicago Fire.
Cause Of the Fire
The great Chicago fire, which began on 8th October 1871 in the southwest of the city, occurred in a period of hot, dry, and windy conditions. The town’s wooden constructions significantly contributed to the fire’s spread. The fire, which moved towards the southern branch of the Chicago River, went further to cause catastrophe to the central region of Chicago before leaping towards the primary unit of the river, additionally consuming the near north side. The exact cause of the fire is still debatable; different theories state that a cow started the fire at a small shed that bordered the alley. Other ideas hold that a comet created the fire. At the same time, other theories argue that Daniel “Peg Leg” Sullivan started the fire (DeBartolo, 2022). Additionally, a gambler Louis M. Cohn is the only person who has issued a confession to be responsible for the cause of the fire.
According to revelations by Cohn before his demise in a 1944 press release, while 18 years old at the fire period, he and other boys were playing a game. Cohn confessed that during the game, the lantern was knocked over during the game setting fire to the barn, which quickly spread (Grisar, 2022). Another assertation holds that the fire might have been caused by Daniel “Pegleg” Sullivan, who was the first person to report the fire (Kugler, 2022). While claiming to have seen the fire from the side of O’Leary’s barn, recent analysis reveals that it would have been impossible to see the fire from where he claims to sit. Some people hold that Sullivan was inside the barn at the time of the fire, and he likely caused the fire by knocking over a lantern or carelessly throwing hot ashes from his pipe. The most popular theory on the cause of the fire holds that the fire resulted when O’Leary’s cow knocked over a lantern in a barn.
The Great Fire of Chicago is believed to have started on a Sunday noon, where around a third of the houses were made from wood, while the majority of the citizens in the cities had houses made from flammable roofs made from shingles or tar (Davis, 2018). One theory holds that the fire first broke in 37 DeKoven Street at O’Leary’s barn. The myth has that a cow tipped over a lantern in a barn. The fire spread massively in one hour, covering around 100 miles (Britannica, 2021). The fire’s progress developed tornado-like winds that tossed the air and beach sand, making it glass due to the significant forces of the heart. Patrick and Catherine O’Leary were Irish immigrants living with their five children on the city’s West side. Patrick was a labourer, while Catherine sold milk from the five cows they had kept in the barn. Though the family is highly linked with the fire’s origin, an inquiry to determine the cause of the fire revealed that Catherine told the officers that the fire began while she was asleep.
A report by the board of police and the Fire Commissioners reveals that Catherine slept at the same time she went to sleep before being woken by her husband. Their barn was on fire, and the other people outside ran to extinguish the fire at their houses as the fire spread. Different media outlets quickly linked the immigrant family with the fire, while ethnic stereotypes and nativist fears about the growing immigrant population pushed the myth (Britannica, 2021). Nonetheless, historians do not believe the fire broke from O’Leary’s barn when a cow tipped off a lantern. Another theory holds that Daniel “Peg Leg” Sullivan. Different scholars’ postulate that the fire resulted from a comet that led to the development of fires in the Midwest and Chicago.
The theory that the Great Fire of Chicago started due to the comet draws its backing from asserting that Jupiter had disrupted the Biela’s comet. While the comet has a solar orbital duration of about six years and nine months, it is believed Jupiter disrupted it in a previous passage (Byrne, 2021). This disruption led to it breaking into two vast comets; one of them struck the earth, further breaking into various smaller pieces. These pieces likely included combustible gases like Acetylene and methane from frozen comet gases. Once melted, vaporized, and explosively kindled, these gases resulted in incendiary outcomes consistent with the reports given by witnesses. According to the witness reports of The Great Chicago Fire, the basements exploded with a blue flame and with red-hot sand pouring. A two-dimensional evaluation reveals that it is reasonable that Jupiter might have distracted either the primary or the secondary comet sufficiently to speed up its onset on earth (Byrne, 2021). The spread of the fire was not only contributed by the housing materials but also the relatively more minor firefighters, faulty alarms, and previous cases of fires in the region.
The Spread of The Great Chicago Fire
In 1871, Chicago only had 185 firefighters working at the Chicago fire department, with only 17 horse-drawn steam pumpers operational. Though the fire’s initial response was swift, a watchman’s error led the dispatched team to the wrong location. While an alarm system failed to notify guards at the courthouse, firefighters were also facing burnout from putting off various small fires and a large fire that had engulfed the city a week before. When these factors combined, the situation led to the development of a small fire into a conflagration.
When firefighters arrived at DeKoven Street, the fire had fully-fledged and spread to adjoining buildings while continuing to the central business district. While the firefighters thought the Chicago River and location previously completely burned would act as a natural firebreak, it turned out wrong. Instead, the warehouses, lumber yards, barges, various bridges, and coal yards further catalyzed the fire. As the southwest wind increased, burning materials blown by the wind blew across the river and dropped on roofs within the South. Gasworks. The development of fire whirls further escalated the situation as flaming debris was taken so high and far, including the primary section of the Chicago River to a railroad car ferrying kerosene. These developments meant the fire crossed the river the second time while advancing towards the city’s northern side. The town was left dry and helpless when the fire burned down the waterworks building. This blow meant the fire burned undisturbed from one building to another across blocks. On 9th October of 1871, the rain started and helped stop the fire, which had started to burn itself out as it had burned densely populated sections within the North.
The Consequences of The Great Chicago Fire
The consequences of the great 1871 Chicago fire were catastrophic, leading to massive destruction of property and loss of life. According to Rosenwald (2017), the fire led to the death of 300 people while leaving 100,000 homeless. The fire further erased an estimated 2,100 acres of the city, wiping out the central business district and the centre of Chicago. Property estimated to be worth around $200 million is recorded to have been destroyed due to the inferno. The report indicates that the city lost an estimated 73 miles of roads; over 2,000 lampposts had been damaged, while the inferno further destroyed 120 miles of sidewalk. On 11th October 1871, general Sheridan Philip was tasked with rebuilding the city.
Rebuilding Of the City
After the great inferno, Chicago was under martial law for two weeks to prevent violence and safeguard the remaining property from looting. Together with a group of police, militia units, and regular troops, Gen. Sheridan formed the “First Regiment of Chicago Volunteers.” The group was also essential in providing relief until 24th October 1871, when they were relieved of their duties. Weeks after the fire, Chicago received numerous monetary donations from within the city and abroad. Different states within the United States offered not only financial support but also fire equipment, books, clothing, and food. The development of the Chicago Public Library resulted from A. H. Burgess of London’s proposal calling for the establishment of an “English Book Donation” as an expression of sympathy to the people of Chicago as a result of the fire (Kugler, 2022). The fire’s aftermath would also see the development of new building codes to ascertain that the new buildings had better fire-resistant stone and brick.
The Great Fire of Chicago significantly contributed to questioning development within the United States. Poor building materials, designs, and techniques were some factors that influenced the spread of the fire. Pressured by fire-prevention reformers and top insurance executives, the Chicago construction sector and fire-fighting institutions in Chicago experienced a transformation in different policies (Chicago Architecture Center, 2022). While the fire led to the levelling of most wooden buildings, the majority of the Chicago industries had not been destroyed by the fire. These industries were crucial to the city’s physical and economic rebuilding. The stone and brick buildings resisted the fire and were quickly rebuilt. As the land rush began in the town, the new land owners appreciated using stone, brick, and iron construction materials. The change in building techniques in the city led to the development of four-story buildings typical to the downtown commercial buildings.
The Great Fire of Chicago has been one of the prominent topics among historians. Research on the exact cause, the spread of the fire, and the consequences of the fire provide insight to today’s generation. The effect of the fire includes not only loss of life and destruction of property but also the development of new building and construction techniques. The Great Fire of Chicago shows how some early catastrophes have influenced people’s buildings today. Following the fire, Chicago experienced an upsurge of early skyscrapers by developing eight- to ten-story commercial buildings. These structures were fitted with elevators and steel frames and stood on innovative foundations.
References
Davis, R. (2018). City of Chicago destroys town of Singapore — aftermath of the great Chicago fire of 1871. ChicagoNow. Web.
Grisar, P. (2022). The secret Jewish history of the great Chicago fire. The Forward.
Britannica. (2021). Chicago Water Tower. Encyclopedia Britannica.
Byrne, D. (2021). A comet caused the Chicago Fire and a worse one in Peshtigo, Wis. Chicago Now. Web.
Chicago Architecture Center. (2022). The Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Architecture & Design Dictionary | Chicago Architecture Center.
DeBartolo, A. (2022). The Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Fireseries.
Kugler, D. (2022). What happened during the Great Chicago Fire? explorethearchive.com.
Rosenwald, M. (2021). ‘The night America burned’: The deadliest – and most overlooked – fire in U.S. history. The Washington Post.