EDITOR’S NOTE: WBBM Newsradio is taking a look at the Great Chicago Fire, on the 150th anniversary of the major event.
(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Once the fire began on Oct. 8, 1871, there was no stopping it.
“The fire, because of its scale, seemed impossible. But if you look at everything that led up to it, it also seems almost a little inevitable,” said Paul Durica, director of exhibitions at Chicago’s Newberry Library.
The summer of 1871 was unusually dry, he said.
“You had conditions that were just perfect for the fire, 150 years ago,” said Larry Langford, director of media affairs for the Chicago Fire Department. “Hot weather, dry conditions. You had a fire department that was worn out. A lot of equipment was broken from fighting previous fires.”
Related
And then, of course, Chicago was largely made of wood and other combustible materials, notes Julius L. Jones, lead curator for the Chicago History Museum's exhibition "City on Fire, Chicago 1871.”
“It’s sort of is able to take on a life of its own because of the climate and the weather at the time,” Jones said.
Said Langford: “It all just came together to be a tragedy.”
More than 100,000 people were left homeless when more than 3 square miles of Chicago burned to the ground. About 300 people perished.