Great Chicago Fire In The Gilded Age

To contextualize, during this time period the Gilded Age was taking place. This was where on the surface, things looked good, but really they weren’t. The Great Chicago Fire was something that tremendously impacted everything in its path including people, infrastructure, and nature. Due to the Great Chicago Fire devastating Chicago and the surrounding areas, it left the city in a large amount of debt, thousands of people homeless, and massive destruction to the city. The Great Chicago Fire devastated many regions surrounding the area. The causes of the Great Chicago fire are uncertain but a theory a cow in a stable knocked over a lantern that lit the stable and the surrounding houses on fire. Another theory is that the dry weather and the
abundance of wooden houses, streets, and sidewalks could’ve been a factor in the cause. The fire spread through the city of Chicago, starting on the night of October 8th. With the help of some much needed rain, the fire ended on October 10th. “My room in the second story had one window to the North. Just after getting to bed, after my light was out and the shade raised, I saw falling past my window a flaming cinder--it seemed like part of a burning shingle” (Burley, 1). The fire killed about 300 people. It caused the city about $200 million in damage with about 17, 000 structures destroyed. The fire destroyed about four miles long and almost a mile wide of Chicago destroyed and in ruins. Leaving the city in mass destruction, the Great Chicago Fire devastated the city.
Reconstruction efforts began soon after that employed many people, sparked population growth and started great economic development. . Architects laid the foundation for new, modern, and some of the world’s first skyscrapers. From before and nine years after the fire, the population increased about 266, 000 people, going from 234, 000 to 500, 000 people. About a month after the fire, a new mayor was elected. His victory might possibly be linked to the fact that the majority voting records for the city, were lost in the fire, making it near impossible to manage people to make sure they don’t vote more than once. By 1890, the city was a transportation and major economic hub and a population of over one million people. The Chicago Fire Department training academy, today, is located on the property where the fire started; Patrick and Catherine O’Leary’s barn at 137 DeKoven Street on the city’s southwest side. A Relief and Aid Society was created that had secured some order out of their strenuous task and commenced to bring order out of the mess. “ My individual orders on the chartered Relief and Aid Society were cashed for expenses incurred as soon as they were organized well enough to do so.They having secured hundreds of thousands of dollars the first week of the fire” (Clapp, 1). The Relief and Aid Society made a lot of money to go towards helping people affected by the
fire.