30 May photographic survey of paul gerhardt jr.’s robert j. quinn fire academy, built on the site where the great chicago fire of 1871 started
the robert j. quinn fire academy is the active training facility for the chicago fire department, located at 558 w. dekoven street. it famously sits on the exact spot where the great chicago fire of 1871 began.
site history:
the origin: the fire academy was built in 1961 on the site of patrick and catherine o’leary’s barn, where the legendary 1871 blaze allegedly started.
the address: interestingly, 558 w. dekoven street is the only building in chicago with an active address on this street. the rest of dekoven street was lost to street reorganizations and urban renewal projects.
memorials: inside the facility and on the grounds, you can find a memorial emblem and a sculpture marking the historic origin of the fire.
chicago’s de koven street has only one address. the chicago fire academy, located at 558 w. de koven st., is a sharp-looking, mid-century modern building, wrapped in part by bright orange brick. it was once the home of a cow who was — for more than a century — blamed for starting the great chicago fire of 1871.
crain’s chicago business reporter dennis rodkin talks about the chicago fire academy building, its history, and its uncertain future.
the o’learys and their infamous cow
the chicago fire academy building opened in 1961, but the site’s notoriety extends back to oct. 8, 1871, when patrick and catherine o’leary’s cow was mistakenly believed to have started the fire that swept across more than 3 square miles of chicago, destroying 18,000 buildings, killing some 300 people, and leaving 100,000 homeless.
the cow and mrs. o’leary were officially exonerated by the chicago city council 20 years ago, and there are several theories now about how the fire started. a drunken neighbor might have been in the o’leary’s barn and started the fire accidentally. or, as it’s more commonly believed, a summerlong drought and a very hot october evening might have ignited several brush fires. but the romantic story of the o’leary cow took hold.
from fire site to fire academy
after the fire in october 1871, the o’learys moved to 51st and halsted streets. the city of chicago bought the site on de koven street in 1928 for $36,000 and planned to build a memorial.
in 1954, the city transferred the building to a land clearance agency that was acquiring property to build an expressway, which now crosses two blocks west of the fire academy. after the expressway was constructed, the unused land transferred back to the city. in the late 1950s, a plan to build a new fire academy on the o’leary site was proposed.
city architect paul gerhardt jr. designed the fire academy. he took over the post from his father, also named paul, and held it for 38 years. he designed public buildings all over the city, including fire stations on 42nd street and south green street; police stations in jefferson park, the west loop, and lincoln square; a branch library on belmont avenue in lakeview; and the original administration building for midway airport.
