Great Chicago Fire of sidewalk, 2,000 lampposts, 17,500 buildings, and $222 million in property, which was about a third of the city's valuation in 1871. The value of the property destroyed by the fire is equivalent to $ billion in . Of the 300,000 inhabitants of Chicago in 1871, 100,000 were left homeless, one-third of the population. 120 bodies were recovered, but the death toll may have been as high as 300. The county coroner speculated that an accurate count was impossible, as some victims may have drowned or had been incinerated, leaving no remains. In the days and weeks following the fire,
Great Michigan Fire was burned over by the Thumb Fire, which followed part of the same path of the 1871 fires. In the mid-1830s logging began in Michigan and grew into a significant industry. Michigan was extensively logged for the Eastern white pine, measuring tall and exceeding in diameter, along with the hardwood forests. By 1854, sixteen sawmills were in operation, producing over of lumber. These operations left behind branches, bark and quantities of unused wood. The fires of October 8, 1871, started after a long dry summer. Most areas had had no rain in months, making the dried-up vegetation and logging debris,