Hey everyone!
Today I found a very interesting key hanging from our
rafters!
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| Key donated by Mr. and Mrs. Edward C. Band of Chicago, IL |
This old skeleton key joined our collection in July of 1939
and has been with us ever since. While
it may look ordinary at first glance, a closer look at the tag explains that
this key was brought from Germany to America and survived the Great Chicago Fire
of 1871, which if you ask me, is a quite feat considering the Great Chicago
Fire was one of the worst fires in American history to have happened yet.
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| The Great Chicago Fire |
Burning from October 8th to 10th, the
Great Chicago Fire’s origin is surrounded in mystery. There are many theories
about how the fire started, including the famous legend that Patrick and
Catherine O’Leary’s cow knocked over a lantern which started the blaze, a
legend that is often accepted as fact, despite denial from Catherine O’Leary
and no actual proof. No one is really certain of how the fire started, but weeks
without rain and damaged firefighting equipment are a recipe for disaster in a
rapidly growing and people packed city. Eventually a rain storm aided the
firefighters in putting out the fire on the 10th, but over 300 people
had been killed and $200 million in damages had been sustained to the city by
the time it was extinguished. This tragedy did have a positive side to it
though, as it made builders more conscious of fire proofing buildings and the
mass construction required to rebuild the city boosted the Chicago economy
enough and drew in so many people, that only New York City rivaled it.
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| An artist's depiction of Mrs. O'Leary and her famous cow |
In case you felt bad for the O’Leary’s, don’t worry!
Catherine and her cow were exonerated by the city in 1997 and the Chicago Fire
Department now uses the old O’Leary property to conduct fire safety training.
Come check out this key and many more in our key collection;
each of them has an amazing story waiting for you to discover!
Written by:
Victoria, Museum Curator
Source:
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