On October 8, 1871, legend has it that a cow kicked over a lantern in a barn belonging to Patrick and Catherine O’Leary located at 137 DeKoven Street on the southwest side of Chicago.

Dry weather and an endless supply of wooden buildings provided the ideal fuel as the ensuing fire—whose true cause is still a mystery—spread throughout the Windy City. Over the course of two days, the conflagration turned thousands of buildings into ash and rubble, killed 300 people and led to an estimated $200 million in damages.