The Great Fire at Chicago

Two sides of the Great Chicago Fire, less than two weeks later.

Published less than two weeks after the disaster that cost over 200 lives and $200 million in property damage, this print from the London Illustrated News shows two stories of Chicago’s Great Fire.

On one side, a series of four prints attempt to capture the former beauty, with the top half dedicated to a panorama of the city. The new Four Mile Crib can be seen, along with a variety of watercraft, and a skyline dominated by church steeples, grain elevators, and the courthouse.

The verso of the sheet shows a simple transportation map with the burnt area shaded. It covers much of Chicago’s commercial districts and contains the (former) post office, courthouse, Illinois Central Depots, and much of the waterworks (with the exception of the tower housing the standpipe). Also of interest are two cemeteries along the lakeshore that provided a haven for the thousands of refugees fleeing the blaze.

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