Catherine O'Leary - The Great Victim of the Great Fire

We’ve all heard the story of Mrs. O’Leary and her cow. According to legend, the drunken old woman allowed her cow to kick over a lantern while being milked. Together, they started the Great Chicago Fire, a tragedy that killed hundreds, left 100,000 homeless and destroyed over 17,000 buildings.

What you may not know is that while her own home survived the fire, her perceived culpability ruined her life. She became the face of Chicago’s greatest tragedy, and as a result, was scorned for the rest of her life. The constant insults, taunts and even threats of violence forced the Catherine O’Leary into utter seclusion until her death two decades later.

The great tragedy of the story is that it is nothing more than a myth. Catherine O’Leary (or her cow) had nothing to do with the start of the fire. The myth was created out of whole cloth by a popular, but unscrupulous reporter named Micheal Ahern. In an article published by his paper shortly after the fire, he falsely claimed he interviewed her, at which time she told him about the cow kicking over the lantern.

The burning question (pun intended) is why did Ahern make up the story. Most likely it is as simple as then, like now, fake news sells. At the time, it was a compelling story – people liked it. A drunk, old widow and her cow added a charming twist to an otherwise horrific event. That Catherine O’Leary was not old, (only 40) married, sober, and in bed at the time of the fire were but inconvenient details. It’s also possible Selling newspapers often trumped truth in the 19th century, but Ahern’s motivation in blaming O’Leary may well have been more than just economic.

Happily, Catherine was officially found innocent of any involvement in the fire by the special commission convened to investigate the blaze. In fact, Ahern eventually came forward and admitted he made the story up. One would expect the poor woman to be exonerated, but her proven innocence had no effect on the public’s belief in the myth. The legend, and the resulting animosity towards O’Leary continued unabated – Why?

The great tragedy of the big lie and its enduring presence in folklore has ugly roots. Xenophobia and prejudice were rampant in the 1870s. At the center of the hatred and mistrust were the poor Irish immigrants. Written off as drunkards, immoral and lazy, O’Leary was the perfect scapegoat for the fire and Ahern knew it. The story stuck because the public wanted it to be true. Unscrupulous media personalities, politicians and marketers all know a simple truth, if they tell a lie that their audience likes, and repeat it often enough, it will become gospel.