Chicago Iriquois Theater Fire 1903
In 1903 an audience of mostly women and children
attended a full house production at the Iriquois Theater.
A lighting fixture in the stage area alit and soon went out of control.
One person in the production died as the rest of the production escaped.
Tragically 602 people died from the conflagration but mostly from the crush of the crowd.
The Iriquois Theater became a vaudeville theater after it was reopened
and all superficial traces of the former theater's fatal past had been removed.
Bad memories led to the failure of the new theater several months later.
The last victim, a young girl, was buried one year after the fire.
There was a survivor's group that lasted for decades until the last attendee died.
There was a small monument near the site which is now a parking lot.
The fire led to the use of the fire curtain in public theaters.
It remains Chicago's worst disaster after the sinking of the General Slocum ferry boat.
Rest In Peace
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