1856, January 16th, A Two-Story Brick Dwelling, Destroyed, Chicago.

The alarm of fire this morning at about 3 o'clock was caused by the burning of a brick dwelling on Franklin Street, occupied jointly by the families of Mr. A. Jackson and Mr. C. Summerfield. The two-story building was destroyed, but the greater part of the furniture was saved.

This photo is a visual aid.

A clerk of Mr. Summerfield, who was sleeping upstairs, saved himself by throwing his bed out of the window and jumping out upon it. A woman and child upstairs also made a narrow escape and nearly suffocated to death by the smoke. One of the firemen was considerably injured by the falling of a ladder upon which he was stationed.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Springfield, Illinois, Town Square Conflagration of May 15, 1855.

From the May 16, 1855, Chicago Tribune:

The sun this morning rose upon a scene in Springfield, the like of which has never before been witnessed here. More than half the block of stores on the west side of the square, commencing from the north, was in ruins, and the goods and furniture not destroyed, were scattered about mainly on the state house square, presenting further evidence of the melancholy catastrophe. This great destruction was, without question, the work of an incendiary. 

North side of Springfield town square, Washington Street, c.1855.

West side of Springfield town square, 5th Street, c.1855.

The fire was kindled among some boxes near one of the buildings, and such was the dry state of all the material about that the buildings immediately caught fire, which was not arrested until nine stores and one or two other buildings of less consequence were consumed.

sidebar

The Public Square in Springfield is bound by Adams, Washington, Fifth and Sixth Streets. It was created on paper in December of 1823.

The following is a list of the sufferers: ($1.00 in 1855 = $35.00 in 2023)

• Clark & Henkle, a clothing store, was insured for $5,000 ($175,000 in 2023) in Northwestern and $1,000 in Mohawk Valley. Loss estimated at $6,000. House owned by Johnson & Bradford, insured for $1,500.

• Thayer & Co., dry goods merchants, stock of goods valued at $17,000, insured for $8,000—saved goods to the amount of $10,000 or $12,000 in the wrong order.

• Canedy & Johnson, druggists, insured on stock and fixtures $6,500, on house $2,500. Loss estimated at $9,000. P.C.Canedy's dwelling was saved by the most persevering efforts; back buildings with the house on the west torn down. House and furniture, which are considerably damaged, were insured.

• R.H. Reach's clothing store insured $5,000. Loss of about $2,000.

• Irwin & Davis, dry goods merchants, insured on goods $5,000, no insurance on the house. Loss estimated at $6,000.

• A. Freeman & Co., dry goods and grocery merchants, no insurance either on house or goods. Loss estimated at $8,000.

• Spear & Brothers, dry goods merchants, insured $3,000 on goods, no insurance on the house. Loss of about $4,000.

• Dr. Harper's office, Brimm's law office, and a barber's shop, over Freeman's books, papers, etc., mostly saved; Loss estimated at $200.

• Springfield Coffee House, owned by William H. Camp, had no insurance. Loss of about $2,000.

• Bradford & Johnson's Book Store, bindery etc., the house owned by N.W. Edwards; insurance for $700. Inventory insured for $3,500; loss of about $1,800.

• Clark's Exchange Bank, which was fireproof, arrested the fire on the south, but for which, the whole block on the west side of the square would have been laid in ashes.

• As it went west, the fire's progress was arrested at Mr. Canedy's dwelling house. S.B. Fisher's store, on the north side of the square, while the fire was raging, was discovered to be on fire in the second story. It was soon extinguished, doing but minor damage.

The present is a very appropriate occasion to draw the attention of our city authorities to the necessity of providing more efficient means than they have yet done for the extinguishment of fires.

— Springfield (Ill.) Journal

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Chicago Finally has a Fire Alarm Bell; City Ordinance Passed July 1855.

In February 1855, a deep-toned bell was installed in the new Courthouse.

The July 1855 ordinance passed, dividing the City into six fire districts. An alarm-sounding code was initiated:

Mr. Holden, from the Committee on Fire and Water, made a report in regard to a system of Fire Alarms. The South, West and North Divisions are numbered 1, 2, and 3. The city is divided into 6 districts.

• One tap, followed by nine more taps, calls the firemen to district № 1.
• Three taps, followed by nine other taps, calls them to district № 3.
• Six taps, followed by nine other taps, calls them to district № 6.
• Six strokes of the bell calls out that part of the fire department which is located in the district in which the fire breaks out, thus:
• One tap followed by six others, Division № 1 to District № 1.
• 2-6, calls Division № 1 to District № 2.
• 3-6, calls Division № 2 to District № 3.
• 4-6, calls Division № 2 to District № 4.
• 5-6, calls Division № 3 to District № 5.
• 6-6, calls Division № 3 to District № 6.
• The Courthouse bell is also to designate the hours of 7, 12, 1, 6, and 9 o'clock by two taps an indefinite number of times.
• The report was laid on the table and ordered to be printed.

A watchman was continually on duty in the tower. Besides ringing the bell, the watchman was responsible for handing out flags by day and lanterns by night, used to direct firefighters to the fire scene. There was no gas in those days, so torch boys ran ahead of the engine to light the way. When an alarm was rung at night, citizens were responsible for placing lighted candles in their windows, lighting the way for the firefighters.

The "Long John" steam fire engine tested in February 1858 was met with hostility from the volunteer firemen. The volunteers could sense this was the beginning of their extinction. The steam engine "Long John" was put into service on May 1, 1858, at the corner of Adams and Franklin Street. 

This Daguerreotype photograph was taken on July 4, 1855. The third floor and dome were not added to the Courthouse until 1858. The basement was above ground.

Firefighters of the volunteer hose companies and two paid members, the engineer and assistant engineer, manned the "Long John." The death knell of the volunteer fire department was rung on August 2, 1858, when the city council passed the ordinance organizing the paid City of Chicago Fire Department. The first completely paid company was Engine Company № 3, located at 225 South Michigan Boulevard. This company was one of fifteen engines and three hook and ladder companies acquired from the volunteer department. 

Courthouse in 1858.

ADDITIONAL ARTICLES:

Fires in Chicago & The Great Chicago Fire.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

1855, April 30th, A Saloon Fire at Washington and Market Streets, Chicago was Destroyed.

At half-past one o'clock on Monday morning, a fire broke out in a saloon occupied by Andrew H. Young at the corner of Washington and Market Streets, being part of a house owned by Michael Casey, and kept as a boarding house by Mr. Young. 

This illustration is a visual aid.

The fire spread with great rapidity, and the building, with most of its contents, was destroyed. Most of the boarders escaped in their night clothes, and few of them saved anything more than they could lay their hands on in an instant. We have been informed that the house was partly insured, but we understand that Mr. Young's loss in furniture, etc., will not be less than $1,000 ($35,000 today), with no insurance.

The usual promptitude in sounding a fire alarm characterized this fire. Had there been a lookout on the Court House steeple, the fire would have been seen when it first broke out. An alarm could have been struck directing the firemen to proceed westward from the Court House, which would, in a very few minutes, have assembled the entire force of the department and saved at least half the destruction that followed. As it was, the fire rages for nearly half an hour before the city alarm bell sounded, and then it gave forth such an "uncertain sound" that if the blaze of the conflagration had not lit up the sky, the firemen would not have known in what direction to run.

We have spoken so often of the imperative necessity of immediate attention to the subject of fire alarms that we are tired of it. We presume that nothing will be done until some of our most valuable blocks of buildings are laid in ruins, and then we shall have a fire alarm.

ADDITIONAL READING: The Chicago Lager Beer Riot of 1855.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

1855, April 23rd, A Two-Story Dwelling Fire Opposite the Lighthouse, Chicago.

At half past eight o'clock in the morning, a fire broke out in the two-story frame dwelling, on River Street (Wabash Avenue today), opposite the Lighthouse, owned by H. Fuller, Esq., and occupied by Mrs. Jenkins. 

The First Lighthouse was built in 1832. The Lake House Hotel is on the Right.

The damage was confined to the roof, and the loss was estimated at about $500 ($17,600 today). There was no insurance. The fire originated from a defect in the stove pipe.

sidebar

The first lighthouse at the mouth of the Chicago River was built in 1832, but it fell over when it reached a height of fifty feet. It was rebuilt at River Street (Wabash Avenue). A pier and a new lighthouse became operational in 1859. The pier was extended, and a new lighthouse was built in 1869. A fog bell/horn was added in 1881. Another new lighthouse on the pier was operational in 1885.

A Pier and a New Lighthouse Was Built In 1859. Picture Date Unknown.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.