# Michael W. Conway (pipeman, steamer "Chicago") -- CONDENSED (reported-speech) summary of testimony before the Board of Police and Fire Commissioners, Chicago, Nov. 1871
# Source: Sheahan & Upton, The Great Conflagration: Chicago (1871), Appendix 'The Origin of the Fire', pp. 419-439 (testimony 'thus far (Nov. 27) taken').
# Internet Archive item greatconflagrati0000shea, OCR lines 16879-17048 of greatconflagrati0000shea_djvu.txt (https://archive.org/download/greatconflagrati0000shea/greatconflagrati0000shea_djvu.txt). Uncorrected OCR. Fetched 2026-09-14T06:03Z; written 2026-09-14T06:36:06Z.
# STATUS: extract/summary in reported speech (not verbatim transcript), with a few direct quotations.

Michael W. Conway, the pipeman of the steamer
“ Chicago,” testified that he worked on the Saturday
night fire until half-past 4 o’clock on Sunday after¬
noon, and his eyes being full of cinders and his


430 THE GREAT CONFLAGRATION - CHICAGO:

physical condition such as to render him unfit for
duty, he went home and retired to rest. About 1 1
o’clock his wife awoke him, and said she was afraid
they would be burned out. He went over to the
engine house, and saw the steamer in front of the
building. The fire was then near the corner of
Harrison and Jefferson streets. The Chica°-o’s

O

house is on Jefferson street, near Van Buren. Some
one told him the fire was on the south side, but he
did not believe it, as he thought it was the reflection
from the west side fire. The engine was short of
hose, so he took the cart and went down Hesplaines
street to see if he could find any that had been left
behind by the engines. He found two or three
lengths, and went back to the house. The engine
was not working. The company had had a full reel
— 600 feet — of hose on Sunday afternoon, but it had
been lost. The Titsworth was at that time drawing
water from a plug on Jefferson, south of Van Buren
street. He did not know where the Chicago had
been. He asked the foreman what he intended to
do with the engine, and he replied that he was
“ played out,” and he (Conway) could take charge
of her. He told the foreman it was “all right,” and
that he would go on the south side. There was no
one present to give him directions. He started and
attempted to cross Madison street bridge, but could
not. He crossed Randolph street bridge and went
east. He saw one engine at Wells and Madison
streets, another at La Salle and Madison streets, and
another at Clark and Madison streets, and when he


APPENDIX


433


reached the corner of Clark and Washington streets
he concluded that a line was being formed on Madi¬
son street to cut off the fire, and, as there was no
engine on Franklin street, he thought he would get
a plug there. While passing the court house, he
noticed a fire on the roof, and asked the engineer if
he thought water could be thrown up there. The
reply was “Yes,” and he was about to attach the
suction to a plug, when he noticed several men
come out of the cupola with buckets and brooms.
As the fire was very small, he thought they could
manage it, and he continued on his way to Franklin
street. He took a hydrant on Franklin street, near
Washington, and led south into an alley near Bar¬
ber’s building. He had then about five hundred
feet of hose, having procured a lead from the fire-
escape hose, and worked two streams. He remained
at work there until Marshal Williams ordered him
to pick up and go to Schuttler’s building. Fie led
up Randolph street, and threw water on the build-
ip o-s on the south side of the street. The flames
came from the basements of the stores, while there
was no sign of fire in any other part of the build¬
ings. Once while going from the engine to the
pipemen he saw a woman with a “duster” on her
head looking out of a fourth story window. He
threw up a stone or piece of wood to attract her
attention, and told her if she did not leave the build-
ino- at once she would be burned up. She had
hardly got into the street before the flames burst

out of the basement windows. The fire came from

25


434 THE GREAT CONFLAGRATION — CHICAGO!

the east down Randolph street. The light of the
fire in the cellars was a strange one. It looked as
if whiskey or alcohol was burning. He heard a
great many loud reports during the night, but
thought they were caused by falling walls. He did
not know of any buildings being blown up that
night. The only marshal he saw until Tuesday
afternoon was Williams. He went from Schuttler’s
to the corner of Randolph and Market streets, and
remained there until the rear walls of the Wash¬
ington house fell in, and the shanties on the north¬
east and southeast corners were burned down. He
saw the Metropolitan Hall burned, and did not
think it remained standing a minute after the fire
took hold of it. The dome in the Briggs House
caught fire. While the engine was working at
Franklin and Randolph streets, he took a walk
down to South Water street, and sawr the Wil¬
liams at work on the corner of Fifth avenue and
that street. The air was oppressively warm and full
of sparks, and there was a perfect gale. His eyes
were in a wretched condition. While working on
Barber’s building the window frames of the upper
floor caught fire, and, after he had kicked open the
door, two policemen went up and subdued the
flames. He was familiar with many of the build¬
ings that were burned. Their roofs were generally
of felt, saturated with tar and covered with pebbles.
The cornices were generally of wood. Now and
then there- was a tin roof. Tin made the best roof
if people did not walk on it. After he left the foot


APPENDIX.


435


of Randolph street he went across the bridge and to
the foot of Washington street. There he saw the
Richard’s engine throwing water on the iron
works. They hadn’t enough hose, so he let them
have two or three lengths, by order of the chief
marshal. The buildings were not on fire, but were
beinsr cooled off. He afterwards went to the foot
of Franklin street, on the north side. This was
about daylight on Monday morning. He went first
to Ohio and Wells streets, but as he could obtain no
water he went to the river. The Coventry was
there when he arrived, and the Winnebago came
up soon after. He threw water on the east elevator,
and the pipemen of the other engines paid attention
to the Galena depot, by order of Marshal AVilliams.
The fire at that time was east of Wells street, and
as far north as he could see. He was not at work
on the south side over four or five hours, and did
not fail to obtain plenty of water while there. The
fire went diagonally from the river east, and then
eat its way west. He kept a look-out to the west,
so as to prevent being cut off. In case of an emer¬
gency he intended to run the engine into La Salle
street tunnel. He did not see a member of the Fire
Department drunk, but saw several citizens with
firemen’s hats on who were. The citizens got the
hats from the hose carts. In a hot fire, such as
that, a slouch hat was preferable to a fire hat, as the
eyes and face could be shielded from the heat. A
man stole his fire hat, and a policeman shoved the
thief into the river, and the hat sunk. [Marshal


436 THE GREAT CONFLAGRATION — CHICAGO I

Williams stated that he took fire hats from two citi¬
zens who were drunk.] While Conway was at the
Chicago’s house, he saw no liquor. A citizen
who was there was intoxicated, but he did not re¬
main long at the house. No extra hats were carried
on the hose carts. He did not know of any money
being paid to firemen for special services.