Historic Chicago Mansion Sustains Fire Damage

Dec. 4, 2023
Firefighters left after the initial incident but returned later for a rekindle.

Rebecca Johnson

Chicago Tribune

(TNS)

No one was injured in a Sunday afternoon fire at the Swift Mansion, a historic house in the Bronzeville neighborhood, according to the Chicago Fire Department.

Firefighters responded earlier in the day to 4500 S. Michigan Ave. after a fire broke out on the mansion’s third floor, Fire Department officials said. They said the fire was extinguished around noon.

At about 2:45 p.m. the fire started again in the roof, officials said. It was extinguished about an hour and a half later, and no injuries were reported

The cause of the fire is under investigation, officials said.

The castlelike mansion with hand-carved oak walls was built in the 1890s for a daughter of Gustavus Swift, founder of the famed meat company. Later, it was a funeral parlor, office quarters for the Chicago Urban League and home to the Inner City Youth & Adult Foundation.

 

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About the Author

Steve Redick

Steve Redick worked as a Chicago Fire Department dispatcher for 35 years. Since the late 1970s, Redick has been a fire photographer, capturing the work done by firefighters in Chicago and surrounding communities. He currently serves on the board of directors of the Chicago Fire Museum, and he is a self-published author and owner of the historical FD website: ksc711.smugmug.com.