Remembrances of the Angels by John Kuenster

The total of the devastation was confined to the second floor of the north wing. The Hamlin Avenue buildings were not involved in the fire, and aside from some minor smoke inhalation problems (no deaths or serious injuries), neither were the first floor of the north wing, the entire south wing, or the annex. The school was one of several buildings associated with the large Roman Catholic parish others included a church, a rectory, which was adjacent to the church, a convent of the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which was across Iowa Street from the school, and two buildings one block east on Hamlin Avenue referred to by the parish as Joseph Hall and Mary Hall respectively, which housed kindergarten and first-grade classes.

Most of the families in the immediate neighborhood were Roman Catholic. The area was also home to several other first, second, and third-generation immigrant groups, including Polish Americans, German Americans, and Slavic Americans. The neighborhood had originally been heavily Irish-American, but gradually developed in the first half of the twentieth century into a largely Italian-American middle-class community. It was located at 909 North Avers Avenue in the Humboldt Park area of Chicago's West Side, on the northeast corner of West Iowa Street and North Avers Avenue (some sources describe the school as 'in Austin'). Our Lady of the Angels was an elementary school consisting of kindergarten through eighth grade. She escaped the fire by jumping out of a window but spend months in hospital healing a broken back.įirefighter Richard Scheidt carrying John Michael Jajkowski, Jr. She was 9 and a student at Our Lady of Angels. I met a survivor who was the case manager at William Penn, the late Charlene Benza Jancik. The fire had an impact fire codes for public buildings especially schools. We did not see them come in or leave as they had separate staircases from us. Most of the survivors that were able to attend school were given the third floor of the elementary school I attended, John Hay at Laramie and Augusta.

I have put in this article what is in Wikipedia which you can read the details. The school was just east of Pulaski and Chicago Avenue. I was about to turn 10 the next day when this fire happened. Remembering the Our Lady of Angels Fire, December 1, 1958Īnyone who was living in Chicago when this disaster happen will never forget it. Date DecemLocation Humboldt Park, Chicago, Illinois Cause Inconclusive Deaths 95

Add your own comment Remembering Our Lady of Angels Fire, December 1, 1958Ī monument to the victims at the Queen of Heaven Cemetery.

Remembrances of the Angels by John Kuenster