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Episodes tagged "fire": 1 through 2 of 2

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  1. The Great Chicago Fire
    date October 8, 1871 to October 10, 1871map COOK, Illinoistags fire, Chicago

    In order for fire to die, there needs to be water, and usually, lots of it. Chicago in 1871 had a serious lack of water and a desperate need for it. It was hot and dry and Chicago was in the midst of a draught; the worst weather for a fire to occur. Early autumn was no different from the previous summer; the hot air still lingered and small fires often started. The draught was so bad that between July...

  2. Chicago Fire
    date October 8, 1871 to October 10, 1871map COOK, Illinoistags destruction, fire, Chicago, Illinois, 1871

      On the evening of October 8 1871, a small bright spark quickly engulfed Chicago’s entire West Division. Elias Colbert an editor for the Chicago Tribune newspaper recounts the progress the fire made while peering through his telescope from the rooftop of the TribuneBuilding. Colbert attempts to gather statistical facts on the losses generated by the great conflagration in his article titled, The...