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2003 NB
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It
started with a flicker in the barn of Catherine and Patrick O'Leary after
dark on October 8, 1971. The fire roared its way northeast and ravaged
downtown. It finally died down on the morning of the 10th. Thousands of
Chicagoans escaped the flames by wading into Lake Michigan, limiting the
death toll to 300. The fire, which thrived on a windy night in a city filled
with wooden buildings, led to a reinvention of Chicago. When the rubble
was cleared the city gave birth to the skyscraper and became synonymous
with industrial progress. Today the city's Fire Department Training Academy
stands on the site of the O'Leary cabin. -NB
-More on the
Great Chicago Fire from the Chicago
Landmarks Commission, Chicago
Historical Society, the Chicago
Public Library, and About.com. |
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