On the evening of October 8, 1871 the worst recorded forest fire in North American history raged through Northeastern Wisconsin and Upper Michigan, destroying millions of dollars worth of property and timberland, and taking between 1,200 and 2,400 lives.

The great Midwestern city of Chicago also happened to endure a terrible fire that same fateful night, and for whatever reasons — an irresistibly charming legend about a cow and a lantern among them — the Chicago Fire became part of the national consciousness while the Peshtigo tragedy gradually slipped into obscurity

What caused the great fires that plagued the Upper Midwest in 1871?

Weather: prolonged and widespread drought and high temperatures, capped off by a cyclonic storm in early October

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