Salvage Corps

October is Fire Prevention Month in commemoration of the Great Chicago Fire that began on October 8, 1871, when Mrs. O’Leary’s cow, according to legend, kicked over a lantern that started a fire in the straw strewn about the barn that quickly consumed the structure. The blaze spread to other buildings and houses and over the next couple of days the conflagration nearly razed the entire city of Chicago. Insurance losses were staggering, a few paid claims in full but many companies failed or p