12 Jan tagged relic or “souvenir” recovered from the great chicago fire’s “burnt district” in 1871

earlier this afternoon i received a small package containing a historically important relic or “souvenir”: a pile of melted or fused threaded screws found in the “burnt district” shortly after the great chicago fire was extinguished in 1871. the screws were likely housed in a box found in a hardware store, house or some other commercial building downtown. according to an informational tag containing comments hand-written in fountain pen, the unique artifact is identified as “melted screws chicago fire, oct. 8th & 9th, 1871.” the backside reads “picked up by j.h. gay in the burnt-district.”

the chicago history museum has a nice exhibition devoted to remnants or relics collected from the aftermath of the fire. when i photographed some of these artifacts displayed in cases, i was entranced at all these melted pieces that were recovered and kept as keepsakes.

at some point, i hope to shoot these remarkable specimens in a better setting, but knowing the chicago history museum, that’s highly unlikely.

in fact, some people looking to earn a fast buck took advantage of this horrific calamity by setting up makeshift stands to sell artifacts as souvenirs to chicagoans and tourists alike. 

after visiting the museum i wanted something similar that i could add to my “great chicago fire collection”.  at this point, my collection only consists of stereoview cards of the wreckage, a bronze medallion fabricated from the metal used to cast the city hall’s large bell that was badly damaged during the fire, a certificate from the chicago public board of works announcing the sale of the court house bell, and perhaps most important of all, a largely intact cast zinc figural gutter spout (likely from a prominent residence) found in the burnt district. 

this latest acquisition (i.e., fused box of screws) will be a nice addition to the collection, especially since it was actually in the fire, discovered in the burnt district and includes the name of the individual who found it. i’m sure there is so much more out there, but surprisingly, despite having my “feelers” out there, this type of fire “artifact” is hard to come by. with the number of excavations i’ve been involved in for the up and coming “unearthing chicago,” i have yet to find any artifacts of any kind that were in the fire. 

note: research into the chain of ownership currently underway.