The Web of Memory Contents

Table of Contents
	The Eyewitnesses

	Media Event

	Fanning the Flames

	The O'Leary Legend

	Souvenirs

	Commemorating Catastrophe

{ Detailed Table of Contents }

	Special Media
	Pity the Homeless	Passing through the Fire	The City Gets Revenge


Opera House	Field & Leiter	General View	The Courthouse

The subject of The Eyewitnesses chapter is the written accounts, drawings, and paintings by those who experienced the fire first-hand. Media Event examines how the fire was reported in the contemporary press, popular images, and "instant" histories. Fanning the Flames deals with the fiction, poetry, drama, songs, and visual works produced by writers, composers, and artists inspired by Chicago's destruction. The O'Leary Legend examines the most well-known public memory of the fire, while Souvenirs discusses the many things that became special objects of remembrance. Commemorating Catastrophe surveys the ways in which the city of Chicago has remembered the fire in civic ceremonies over the years, and how the Chicago Historical Society has organized fire-related events and exhibitions, including this one.

Select the Essay button to go to the beginning of any of the above chapters. Select Galleries or Library to go directly to either of these two sections. Once in any section, you can readily navigate within it, to other sections in the chapter, and to other chapters.