Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1871-10-17
THE GREAT FIRE
IN CHICAGO!
Half the City in Ashes-Five
Hundred Millions of Prop.
erty Destroyed-One Hun
dred Thousand People
Homeless -ManyLives
Lost - Thrilling Ac-
counts - Incidents
Of the Fire, &c.

The fire broke out on the corner Of
Dckovon and Twelfth streets, al
about nine O'clock on Sunday eve-
ming, being caused by q cows kick
Ing over kerosene lamp in stable
ia which a woman was milking. An
alarm was Immediately given, but
owing to the high southwest wind,
the building was speedily consumed,
and thence the fire spread rapidly
The frcmen could not, with all their
efforts, get the mastery of the flames.
Building after building was fired by
flying cinders, which, landing on the
roofs, which were as dry as finder,
owing to the protracted dry wealth
or instantly took fire, Northwardly
and ENTHUSIASTICALLY the flames took
their course, tapping up house after
house, block after block, street after
street, all night long The scene of
ruin and devastation is beyond the
power OF words to describe. Never
in the history Of the world has such
scene Of extended, terrible and
complete destruction, by conhagra-
ton been recorded and never has u
more frightful scene ofpanic, distress
and horror been witnessed among a
helpless, sorrowing, suffering popula-
ton.
1t is utterly impossible, at the first
thought, for the mind to take in any
conception of the fearful ravages Of
the tire-fend, although the astound-
ing facts narrated above are enough
to appall the most heroic The aw-
full truth Of the situation will be more
fully comprehended by glance at
the following very imperfect list Of
the city's loss
The first to be mentioned, and pos
sibly the most startling feature of
this carnival Of flame, is the total de.
struction Of the City Water Works,
by which calamity the fremen were
rendered helpless to make the least
endeavOr to arrest the fires onward
march. At about II o'clock last
night the flames licked across the
river in the neighborhood of Jackson
street, first igniting small wooden
building, which communicated the
fire to the Armory, and soon to the
South Side Gas Works, the immense
gasometer exploding with fearful
defamation, heard all over the city
Then began the fearful ravages, that
laid the entire South Side in ashes in
a few hours. The Post Office and
Custom House, tho Chamber of Com
merce, the Court House, and the rest
soon went down in the ocean of fire
and smoke. la brief, the following
prominent buildings have persisted
with, in almost every case, their en-
tire contents:
The New Jerusalem Church, on
Adams street, and the Roman Catho-
lie Church on Desplaines street.
The Journal office, the Tribune,
the Times, the Republican, The Post
the Mail the Staats Zeitung, the IN
ion, and many other publications
Crosby's Opera House, McVicker's
Thcater, Hooley's Opera House, the
Dearborn Thcater, and Woods Muse
um.
First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth,
Union, Northwestern, Manufacture
ers', Cook County, aud Illinois Ma
tional Banks.
The Second Presbyterian Church,
ST, Pauls Universalist Church, Trim
ity (EpiscopaD Church.
The magnificent depot Of the Chi
cago, Rock Island and Pacific and
Lake Shore and Michigan Southern
Railroad, on Van Buren, street, at the
head of La Sale street. The great
Central Union Depot, and the Wells
street Depots of the Chicago and
Northwestern Railroad.
The National Elevator, corner Of
Adams and the river, Armour, Dole
4 Co.'S Elevator, corner Market and
the river, Hiram Wheeler's Elevator,
on same corner as above, the Galena
Elevator, corner Rush street bridge
and river and a of the Illinois Cen
trial, near the Illinois Depot at the
basin.
fremont House, Sherman House,
Briggs House, Metropolitan, Palmer,
Adams, Bigelow, European, (Burks),
Garden City, aud the new Pacific in
process of erection on Clark and La
Sale streets.
The following prominent business
houses are in ashes Field, Letter 4
Co., J. V. Farwell's block, and all the
magnificent blocks in that locality
The Lake Side Publishing Company
new building. on Clark street, Ter
race Row, on Michigan avenue, and
adjacent residences,
FarweIl Hall burned at about four
o'clock this morning.
The great brownies on the North
Side are gone. In fact, as stated
above, the entire South and North
sides from Harrison street northward'
| ~, with a few isolated buildings left
/ staudig in some remarkable manner
are in hopeless ruins.
All the prominent hotels of the city
are in ruins-the Pacific, sherman
fremont, Briggs, Palmer, Biglow
Metropolitan, Matteson, besides doz
ems OF other smaller caravanseriec
scattered ever the East side from the
river TO the lake, and from Van Blu
rem to Water street. The destruction
OF property is most terrible, and the
scenes TO be witnessed in the streets
uro heart ren ding. Business of course
is entirely suspended, and every thing
on wheels which can be made avail
able for purposes Of moving are press
ed into service for getting goods out
Of the reach of the devouring ele
ments. Wabash and Michigan ave