Allison & Doak
St. Michael & The Chicago Fire
On October 8, 1871, the fabled O’Leary house and barn on the city’s south side burst into flames. Fanned by gusty winds, the fire fanned north. Priests, brothers and nuns, and parishioners packed the church’s treasures into oxcarts and fled.
Soon afterward, flames tore into all the parish buildings, leveling them. The upper section of the bell tower burned and began to crumble. The huge bells hurtled from their tower and melted into a mass of bronze. Only the walls of the church remained standing.
The task of rebuilding began within a week. On October 12, 1873, the rebuilt St. Michael’s church was consecrated and rededicated, one of the first Chicago churches to rise from the fire’s ashes.
It was not until 1876, however, that the new bells arrived. These are the melodious bells that Oldtowners hear today as they sound on the quarter, half, and hour. It is often said that “you know that you are in Old Town when you hear the bells in St. Michael.”
For all the days along the way