Our Lady of the Angels School fire building as in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. However, its interior was made almost entirely of combustible wooden materials—stairs, walls, floors, doors, roof, and cellulose fiber ceiling tiles. Moreover, the floors had been coated many times with both flammable varnish and petroleum-based waxes. There were only two (unmarked) fire alarm switches in the entire school, and they were both in the south wing. There were four fire extinguishers in the north wing, each mounted off the floor, out of reach for many adults and virtually all of the children. The single fire escape was near one end of the
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,