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Twenty-four-year-old Alma E.
Gustavson (sometimes spelled Gustafson) (b. 1879) taught at
the John L. Marsh elementary school. She lived at
10333 Avenue N in Chicago.
The photo above left was published in newspapers in
the days immediately after the fire. The photo above
right was supplied to School Journal magazine with a
group of portraits of Chicago teachers who were
Iroquois fire victims. I'm not sure it's the same
young woman. The girl on the left seems to
have a
fuller face than that of the woman on the right.
Alma's body was identified by a man of unknown
relationship named Oscar Wolff.
A 1960s
newspaper story about the Bradwell school reported
that Carrie and
Maria Fair were the first two teachers at the
school when it opened in 1889, with
Irene Fort the principal. All three were
Iroquois Theater fire victims. |
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Thirty-seven year old Carrie A.
Sayre (b. 1866) also taught elementary school, at
the Myra Bradwell School in Windsor Park. She lived
at 7646 Bond Ave. in Chicago with the George and
Helen Brandenburg family.
Carrie
was engaged to be married to James Murphy of 6240
Madison, who found and identified her body at
Jordan's Funeral Home.
Born in
Port Austin, Michigan,
Carrie was the daughter of William and Rachel
Laidlaw Sayre. Of her five siblings, in 1903
two sisters survived – May Sayre Boyden of Chicago and Mrs. Ingalls in
Norristown, PA.
Carrie's
funeral was held in the second-floor auditorium at the Bethel Congregational Church
on 77th street in Windsor Park with services
conducted by reverend Jesse Holmes. During the
funeral a fire broke out at a home a half block
away. When the smell of smoke reached the
church and an estimated five hundred guests heard
the clang of responding fire trucks, they reportedly
became fearful and some rose to leave the services.
The newspaper story made every effort to portray the
scene as an instance of silly, panicked women.
One
newspaper reported that Carrie was in the
Fort,
Taylors and Swartz party but news stories about
that party did not
mention Alma Gustavson. |
