The Great Fire Scorch Marks Still Visible on St. James Cathedral's Bell Tower

The Great Chicago Fire of 1871 destroyed roughly 3.3 square miles of the city in two days. Most physical evidence of the fire was erased by the rapid rebuilding that followed. But if you stand in front of St. James Episcopal Cathedral at 65 E Huron Street and look up at the bell tower, you can still see the black charring left by the fire — more than 150 years later. The stone tower, blackened and cracked by the intense heat, was left partially unrepaired as a deliberate memorial. The rest of the church was rebuilt and expanded in the years following the fire, but the scarred tower was preserved intact. St. James is one of the few structures in Chicago where physical evidence of the 1871 fire remains visible to the public. It sits just two blocks from the Water Tower, the other famous fire survivor.