Great Chicago Fire (1871)

The Great Chicago Fire started at approximately 9:00 P.M. on October 8, 1871, and burned until October 10. It began in a barn behind 137 DeKovan Street, spreading quickly through the city. By the time the fires were extinguished, the fire had killed more than 200 people and left almost 100,000 homeless. The fire destroyed nearly four square miles, and caused more than $200 million in losses, equating to $51.2 billion in 2009.

In 1871, Chicago was one of the largest cities in the United States, with a population exceeding 300,000. The public water works, built in 1863, was designed to provide sufficient water for predicted needs, including fires. Chicago created a paid fire department in 1858. However, although training and equipment of the fire department were considered state-of-the-art, the fire chief considered the department understaffed. The department had 26 engine companies, staffed by a total of 193 full-time employees, to protect the entire city. In 1871, prior to October 8, there had been over 700 fires, three times more than the previous year. The fire chief believed the increased incidence of fire and the growth of the city, combined with the understaffing, contributed to an environment where a conflagration might occur.

On the day of the fire, the weather conditions were ideal for rapid fire spread. The city had not experienced rain for nearly three months, and the weather was hot, dry, and windy. The precise cause of the fire is unknown, but has long been attributed to Mrs. O'Leary's cow kicking over a lantern in a barn, which ignited nearby straw. An urban legend holds that a man named Daniel Sullivan reported the fire. Several historians have researched the matter, agreeing the fire started in the O'Leary's barn (now the site of the Chicago Fire Department Fire Academy), but believe the fire was accidentally actually started by Daniel Sullivan while smoking in the barn, perhaps in the accompaniment of Dennis Regan. The story of the cow starting the fire apparently rose soon after the event, attributed to several sources.

Whatever the cause, there is agreement of a delay in fire department notification, which was made at approximately 9:40 P.M. By the time they arrived, the fire had already spread to several nearby buildings and was uncontrollable given the immediately available resources. While firefighting activities were initiated and additional resources were requested, the primary concern was to notify and evacuate occupants of buildings [Page 251][Page 252]immediately threatened by the expanding conflagration. While the weather supported a rapid fire spread, the problems were exacerbated by the building pattern in Chicago, which consisted of closely built wooden structures. This facilitated a rapid, continuous fire spread. Firefighting activities continued, but were hampered by various factors. Additional firefighting resources were brought in from neighboring localities, but to no avail. Eventually, the fire destroyed the public water works, causing the fire department to lose their water supply. After that, most fire fighting activities ended. Eventually, the fire essentially burned itself out, helped by a light rain that had begun on October 9.

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