✎✎✎ The Devastating Fire: The Chicago Fire Of 1871
Top 5 Ecological Disasters. Mustard with A Bic? Some people jumped and killed The Devastating Fire: The Chicago Fire Of 1871 rather than getting burned alive, one jumper survived the jump. Perhaps the fire at the O'Leary barn could have been contained if the first company responding had not been exhausted, or project failure examples other companies had been The Devastating Fire: The Chicago Fire Of 1871 to the correct location. When it The Devastating Fire: The Chicago Fire Of 1871 likely that the Palmer House would The Devastating Fire: The Chicago Fire Of 1871 destroyed, its architect, John M. When the New York Home Insurance Company relocated The Devastating Fire: The Chicago Fire Of 1871 business to Chicago, The Devastating Fire: The Chicago Fire Of 1871 challenged the architectural community to come up with a design to bring natural light to all parts The Devastating Fire: The Chicago Fire Of 1871 the building. This was almost The Devastating Fire: The Chicago Fire Of 1871 inches below the average amount The Devastating Fire: The Chicago Fire Of 1871 precipitation that is typically seen over this 3-month period, and as ofthis was the 2nd driest stretch from July 7th through October 8th on record the driest took place inwhen 3. Family Addiction Research Paper Flu Pandemic — — The disease spread from places where there were high concentrations.
Lessons from History: The Chicago Fire of 1871
By the time the sun rose on Monday morning, large parts of Chicago were already burned to the ground. Wooden buildings had simply disappeared into piles of ash. Sturdier buildings of brick or stone were charred ruins. The fire burned throughout Monday. The inferno was finally dying out when the rain began on Monday evening, finally extinguishing the last of the flames in the early hours of Tuesday. The wall of flame that destroyed the center of Chicago leveled a corridor about four miles long and more than a mile wide. The damage to the city was nearly impossible to comprehend.
Virtually all government buildings were burned to the ground, as were the newspapers, hotels, and any just about any major business. There were stories that many priceless documents, including letters of Abraham Lincoln , were lost in the fire. And it's believed that original negatives of classic portraits of Lincoln taken by Chicago photographer Alexander Hesler were lost. Approximately bodies were recovered, but it was estimated that more than people died.
It's believed that many bodies were entirely consumed by the intense heat. More than 17, buildings were destroyed, and more than , people were left homeless. News of the fire traveled quickly by telegraph, and within days newspaper artists and photographers descended upon the city, recording the massive scenes of destruction. Relief efforts were mounted, and the US Army took control of the city, placing it under martial law. Cities in the east sent contributions, and even President Ulysses S. While the Great Chicago Fire was one of the major disasters of the 19th century and a profound blow to the city, the city was rebuilt fairly quickly. And with the rebuilding came better construction and much stricter fire codes.
Indeed, the bitter lessons of Chicago's destruction affected how other cities were managed. And while the story of Mrs. O'Leary and her cow persists, the real culprits were simply a long summer drought and a sprawling city built of wood. Share Flipboard Email. The fire leapt the south branch of the Chicago River and destroyed much of central Chicago and then leapt the main branch of the river, consuming the Near North Side. Help flowed to the city from near and far after the fire. The city government improved building codes to stop the rapid spread of future fires and rebuilt rapidly to those higher standards.
A donation from the United Kingdom spurred the establishment of the Chicago Public Library , a free public library system, a contrast to the private, fee-for-membership libraries common before the fire. The fire is claimed to have started at about p. City officials never determined the cause of the blaze, [5] but the rapid spread of the fire due to a long drought in that year's summer, strong winds from the southwest, and the rapid destruction of the water pumping system, explain the extensive damage of the mainly wooden city structures. There has been much speculation over the years on a single start to the fire. The most popular tale blames Mrs.
O'Leary's cow, who allegedly knocked over a lantern; others state that a group of men were gambling inside the barn and knocked over a lantern. The fire's spread was aided by the city's use of wood as the predominant building material in a style called balloon frame. More than two-thirds of the structures in Chicago at the time of the fire were made entirely of wood, with most of the houses and buildings being topped with highly flammable tar or shingle roofs. All of the city's sidewalks and many roads were also made of wood.
In , the Chicago Fire Department had firefighters with just 17 horse-drawn steam pumpers to protect the entire city. When firefighters finally arrived at DeKoven Street, the fire had grown and spread to neighboring buildings and was progressing toward the central business district. Firefighters had hoped that the South Branch of the Chicago River and an area that had previously thoroughly burned would act as a natural firebreak.
As the fire grew, the southwest wind intensified and became superheated, causing structures to catch fire from the heat and from burning debris blown by the wind. Around midnight, flaming debris blew across the river and landed on roofs and the South Side Gas Works. With the fire across the river and moving rapidly toward the heart of the city, panic set in. About this time, Mayor Roswell B. Mason sent messages to nearby towns asking for help. When the courthouse caught fire, he ordered the building to be evacuated and the prisoners jailed in the basement to be released.
At a. As more buildings succumbed to the flames, a major contributing factor to the fire's spread was a meteorological phenomenon known as a fire whirl. These fire whirls are likely what drove flaming debris so high and so far. Such debris was blown across the main branch of the Chicago River to a railroad car carrying kerosene. Also likely a factor in the fire's rapid spread was the amount of flammable waste that had accumulated in the river from years of improper disposal methods used by local industries. Despite the fire spreading and growing rapidly, the city's firefighters continued to battle the blaze.
A short time after the fire jumped the river, a burning piece of timber lodged on the roof of the city's waterworks. Within minutes, the interior of the building was engulfed in flames and the building was destroyed. With it, the city's water mains went dry and the city was helpless. Finally, late into the evening of October 9, it started to rain, but the fire had already started to burn itself out. The fire had spread to the sparsely populated areas of the north side, having consumed the densely populated areas thoroughly.
Once the fire had ended, the smoldering remains were still too hot for a survey of the damage to be completed for many days. On Oct 11, — General Philip H. Sheridan came quickly to the aid of the city and was placed in charge by a proclamation, given by mayor Roswell B. Mason :. General P. Sheridan, U. To protect the city from looting and violence, the city was put under martial law for two weeks under Gen. Sheridan's command structure with a mix of regular troops, militia units, police, and a specially organized "First Regiment of Chicago Volunteers.
Sheridan and his soldiers:. Thank God, those most dear to me and the city as well are safe. For two weeks Sheridan's men patrolled the streets, guarded the relief warehouses, and enforced other regulations. On October 24 the troops were relieved of their duties and the volunteers were mustered out of service. Of the approximately , inhabitants of Chicago in , 90, Chicago residents 1 in 3 residents were left homeless. In the days and weeks following the fire, monetary donations flowed into Chicago from around the country and abroad, along with donations of food, clothing, and other goods.
These donations came from individuals, corporations, and cities. Milwaukee , along with other nearby cities, helped by sending fire-fighting equipment. Food, clothing and books were brought by train from all over the continent. Operating from the First Congregational Church , city officials and aldermen began taking steps to preserve order in Chicago. Many people who were left homeless after the incident were never able to get their normal lives back since all their personal papers and belongings burned in the conflagration.
After the fire, A. Burgess of London proposed an "English Book Donation", to spur a free library in Chicago, in their sympathy with Chicago over the damages suffered. In April , the City Council passed the ordinance to establish the free Chicago Public Library , starting with the donation from the United Kingdom of more than 8, volumes. The fire also led to questions about development in the United States. Due to Chicago's rapid expansion at that time, the fire led to Americans reflecting on industrialization. Based on a religious point of view, some said that Americans should return to a more old-fashioned way of life, and that the fire was caused by people ignoring traditional morality.
On the other hand, others believed that a lesson to be learned from the fire was that cities needed to improve their building techniques. Frederick Law Olmsted observed that poor building practices in Chicago were a problem: [20]. Chicago had a weakness for "big things", and liked to think that it was outbuilding New York. It did a great deal of commercial advertising in its house-tops. The faults of construction as well as of art in its great showy buildings must have been numerous. Their walls were thin, and were overweighted with gross and coarse misornamentation.
Olmsted also believed that with brick walls, and disciplined firemen and police, the deaths and damage caused would have been much less. Almost immediately, the city began to rewrite its fire standards, spurred by the efforts of leading insurance executives, and fire-prevention reformers such as Arthur C. Chicago soon developed one of the country's leading fire-fighting forces. Business owners, and land speculators such as Gurdon Saltonstall Hubbard , quickly set about rebuilding the city. The first load of lumber for rebuilding was delivered the day the last burning building was extinguished. By the World's Columbian Exposition 22 years later, Chicago hosted more than 21 million visitors. The Palmer House hotel burned to the ground in the fire 13 days after its grand opening.
Its developer, Potter Palmer , secured a loan and rebuilt the hotel to higher standards across the street from the original, proclaiming it to be "The World's First Fireproof Building". In , the remaining structures on the original O'Leary property at W. A bronze sculpture of stylized flames, entitled Pillar of Fire by sculptor Egon Weiner , was erected on the point of origin in Michael's Church and the Pumping Station were both gutted in the fire, but their exteriors survived, and the buildings were rebuilt using the surviving walls.
Additionally, though the inhabitable portions of the building were destroyed, the bell tower of St. James Cathedral survived the fire and was incorporated into the rebuilt church. The stones near the top of the tower are still blackened from the soot and smoke. Almost from the moment the fire broke out, various theories about its cause began to circulate. The cow kicked over a lantern or an oil lamp in some versions , setting fire to the barn. The O'Leary family denied this, stating that they were in bed before the fire started, but stories of the cow began to spread across the city. Catherine O'Leary seemed the perfect scapegoat : she was a poor, Irish Catholic immigrant. On October 8 to October 10, in , a big fire happen in Chicago that really took a toll in Chicago.
The fire last around 2 to 3 days leaving Chicago in flames and thick black smoke Billings,et al. PG Most likely the dry weather and the buildings that was mostly made out of wood started the fire. Since most of the buildings was made out of wood the fire burned it easily and spreaded quick. The Great Chicago Fire burned for two days straight. From October eighth to October tenth, There are many questions people ask about the fire. Like what "caused it to burn out of control? The Chicago Fire was a very destructive and devastating fire. This fire killed more than people. It left more than people homeless. The fire burned for two days before it was able to be put out by rain. On the 18 of October in a fire started in a backyard barn. The reason it took so long to get the fire out was because of the wind, and when it was called in it was called to the wrong address.
This fire leveled Chicago. Most of the buildings and houses were made mostly of wood and other highly flammable materials, so when the fire hit it caught everything on fire immediately. This fire would be remembered throughout history. Even though people became discouraged very quickly every one worked together and helped each other keep. Show More. Read More.
At a. The Dystopian Literature Essay near the The Devastating Fire: The Chicago Fire Of 1871 of the tower The Devastating Fire: The Chicago Fire Of 1871 still blackened from the soot and smoke. They were all very surprised. At times, deploying specially-trained meteorologists known as Incident Meteorologists IMETs to the incident command at The Devastating Fire: The Chicago Fire Of 1871 fire to support frontline firefighting efforts.