On the evening of 8 October 1871, the Great Fire of Chicago started to rage through ‘the windy city’, killing hundreds of people and destroying over three square miles of the city over the following two days.
The fire began in a barn owned by Patrick and Catherine O’Leary in Dekoven Street, and it’s rumoured (a rumour started by a newspaper writer) that the cause of the fire was a cow kicking over an oil lantern.
Included below is a newspaper article that reports on the disaster, and also a map that shows how much of the city was destroyed.
The Graphic – Saturday 21 October 1871
Image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000057/18711021/004/0006
Sheffield Independent – Monday 16 October 1871
Image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000181/18711016/016/0003
