The Great Chicago Fire

The Great Chicago Fire — page 3 — The Early Settlers The first settler came to Chicago in the 1780s A trader named Jean Baptiste Point du Sable made his home at the mouth of the Chicago River By 1833 about 200 people lived in Chicago Within a few years it had become a busy city of 4,000 people After that Chicago just kept growing This picture shows Chicago in 1833 when it was little more than a village by the river Chicago is called the Windy City Strong winds blow from Lake Michigan and whip through the city streets The wind would cause a fire to spread quickly 6

The Great Chicago Fire — page 4 — CHICAGOLAND The Center of It All By the 1850s Chicago was booming Located in Illinois near the middle of the United States the city was a busy trade and transportation center Trains and ships from around the country met in Chicago They brought factory goods from the East and crops from the West booming doing well and growing fast 7

The Great Chicago Fire — page 5 — Lumber Capital In the late 1800s Chicago was the lumber capital of the world The city was located near the thick forests of the Upper Great Lakes Chicagoans cut down trees and shipped the wood across the country They also used lumber to grow their own city Using wood allowed Chicagoans to build quickly and cheaply But wood catches fire and burns easily There was a building boom in Chicago in the 1850s and 1860s In 1871 more than two-thirds of Chicago’s buildings were made of wood Houses barns factories offices and stores were all wooden Wood was used to build miles of streets and sidewalks and wooden lampposts lit the city 8

The Great Chicago Fire — page 6 — CHICAGOLAND Boom Town By 1871 about 300,000 people lived in Chicago It was one of the largest cities in the United States There were more than 1,100 factories there Department stores sold goods of all kinds Chicago’s booming businesses created high hopes for the future It seemed that nothing could slow the progress of this growing city Before the fire Chicago was a big busy city Chicagoans people who live in Chicago 9

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