City Hotel

Historical marker location:

123 South Main Street, Waterloo, Illinois

( Marker is on South Main Street just north of West 3rd Street, on the left when traveling north.)

Marker installed: 2018

121 South Main. Waterloo, Monroe Co. Ill., Laid Out in 1818.

The Great Chicago Fire of 1871 was one of the most devastating fires in U.S. history. The fire destroyed much of the city, including over 17,000 buildings and left more than 100,000 people homeless. The fire started in a barn owned by Patrick and Catherine O'Leary, but the cause of the fire is still debated to this day.