Which source would best a historian understand how the great chicago fire affected families?
1. a biography of a chicago family displaced by the fire
2. a letter from a grandmother in new york to her family in chicago
3. a newspaper editorial about families who were displaced
4. an oral history dictated by an adolescent who fled the fire

The correct answer is Option 3) A newspaper editorial about families who were displaced.

The Great Chicago Fire was a huge fire that burned through the city of Chicago between 8th to the 10th of October 1871.

It is often described as the worst fire to ever hit the United States.

By the end of the 10th of October, the fire killed nearly 300 people, left more than a 100,000 people homless and destroyed large parts of the city.

A newspaper editorial about the displacement of families and their plight was widely circulated all over the nation and even today, it serves as the best source of information for historians.