Late on the evening of October 8th, 1871, at 137 DeKoven Street, Catherine O’Leary saw bursts of flames located in the family cow barn. Within about an hour from the initial bursts, blocks of poorly built shacks and houses were destroyed by the fire carried by wind. Following, within two-day time, the fire had destroyed businesses, factories, houses, homes and land. The fire continued blazing, completely obliterating over 70,000 buildings and approximately 73 miles of Chicago’s streets, killing over 300 people.2 The fire finally was extinguished on October 10th, when it rained. Legend and myths?
Many theorize that one of the family O’Leary cows kicked over a just lit lantern, but Catherine O’Leary denied, ending that the cause of the Great Chicago Fire was never …show more content…
After the Great Chicago Fire, technology was at an all time high. Innovators and engineers were able to build and design architecture with a new outlook. The aftermath of the conflagration caused Chicago to be one of the most popular cities. Tourist attraction and architecture are the main focus of Chicago. Later years from the Great Chicago Fire, architects Louis Sullivan, Mies van der Rohe and Walter Gropius hosted "World's Columbian Exposition", held in the White City of Gilded Age