Personal experiences with Our Lady of the Angels School Fire on December 1, 1958

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Personal Experiences with Our Lady of the Angels School Fire

If you have a personal experience, recollection or opinion about the December 1, 1958 Our Lady of the Angels school fire, whether you were present at the fire or not, you can relate it here. Any story or information is welcome as long as it relates to Our Lady of the Angels school fire.

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Posted by:

Charlotte A.

On:

7/30/2004

ID:

191

At OLA on 12/1/58?	Born before or after 12/1/58?	Where Lived on 12/1/58?
No	Before	Albuquerque, New Mexico

When the fire occurred, I was a 4th grader in an Catholic school in Albuquerque. I heard nothing about the fire until I read the account of it in the December 15th(?)issue of LIFE magazine. Actually, in those days, I probably looked at the photos more than read.
When I saw the photo of Susan Smaldone, I told my mother that I wanted to write to her. I knew she was going to be okay, and I wanted to hear from her. Surprisingly, my mom agreed with me. After I wrote the letter, there was the problem of how to address the envelope. We just addressed it to "Susan Smaldone, Our Lady of the Angels School Fire, Chicago, Illinois". I waited and waited and heard nothing, of course. Then, in either late January or early February, a hand-written letter came to me from Chicago. It was from a priest (I don't remember his name), telling me that Susan had died. I just didn't understand that.
As I was reading TO SLEEP WITH THE ANGELS, one of the things that was said about Susan was that she wrote to Santa Claus reminding him that she was in the hospital, and not to forget her. I remember how important Christmas was when I was 9 years old, and when I think of Susan dying on the 23rd, all I can think is, "That really bites." I hope her 1958 Christmas was the best ever, and that she got to meet Santa in person! That's my whimsical thought.
I've thought of her all these years. Whenever I see that photo of Susan taken the day after the fire, I STILL see just a girl my age with soot in her hair. That's all. I never realized then that she was swollen up from the burns, and I don't see that now. I just see a sick little girl whom I had hoped to become friends with.

Posted by:

octavia

On:

7/24/2004

ID:

190

At OLA on 12/1/58?	Born before or after 12/1/58?	Where Lived on 12/1/58?
No	Before	maryland

Even unto this day, the phrase "Our Lady of the Angels" still makes me weep. Despite the fact that I was reared half a continent away, and that the buildings in which the various Catholic schools I attended were either brick or concrete block, I am still inspired with a sense of horror at the monstrous event which destroyed so many young lives that fateful winter day in December of 1958.

I can certainly appreciate the irrationality and stupidity of the nuns who, instead of herding the children outside to safety, forced them to sit at their desks and "say the rosary". (You don't have to be a rocket scientist to be a nun.) In every respect, they were just as culpable for the many deaths and injuries as the boy who apparently set the blaze - for whatever evil and/or deranged purpose that inspired him to do so.

In my own Maryland suburb, the parochial school was crowded beyond the limits of sanity; my half of the 3rd grade room (which was built to accommodate roughly 30 pupils) had an incredible 93 children packed in like sardines (the tallest children, of which I was one, were shoved in the back of the room, and the boys were forced to sit in the cloakroom, sometimes practically enveloped in winter coats.) If another child came into the parish, another desk was pushed into the room, and we were constricted even further. If a child fainted in class (likely due to attenuated oxygen levels), Sister revived the hapless tot with a good, hard smack in the face. And that was only one-half of the class - the other 93 kids were crowded into a room equally inadequate!With the post-war baby boom population of the Catholic schools in the D.C. metropolitan area stretching the facilities beyond all reasonable limits - can you just imagine the horror that would have transpired had my school (which fortunately was concrete block) gone up in flames?

Fortunately (for the mental health of succeeding generations) the Catholic school system is closing up shop in many parts of the country, and today's children are not being subjected to the inadequacies of that regimen. But for those of us old enough to remember: Our Lady of the Angels - the phrase, and the harrowing images in print and on the television - is a tragic memory that will haunt us until the end of our days. God rest the souls of those tragic young victims who did not live to fulfill the promise of their lives.

Posted by:

Martha Dolciamore

On:

7/6/2004

ID:

189

At OLA on 12/1/58?	Born before or after 12/1/58?	Where Lived on 12/1/58?
No	Before	Huntington Station, New York

I was in the third grade at St. Hugh's School on Long Island. My father always brought the N.Y.Daily News home from work and I always read the paper. When I saw the story and photos on this fire, I was very upset. My classroom was located in the basement of an old building with other classrooms. There were only two exits. One was a flight of stairs at one end that could only accommodate a single file of students and there was one skinny door at the top. The other exit was at the other end of the building.But between my classroom and that exit were about five other classes, mostly second and third graders. I kept thinking that if a fire happened I would not be able to get out, like the kids at Our Lady of the Angels. I remember the Dominican Sisters who taught us had us say a rosary for them. But I continued to be upset by having nightmares almost nightly. My mother did not want me to see the paper anymore. But I felt I personally identified with the school because it was a Catholic school like mine. The class picture showed that the uniforms at OLA were similar to the uniform I wore. And my class was just as overpopulated. I can count over 50 students in one of my class pictures! Also, the windows in the basement classrooms, were situated high over our heads.My mother says today that it was a real fire trap and wonders why the fire department allowed St.Hugh's to put so many children in a dangerous building. It is the one news story that has stayed with me all these years. God bless the students and Sisters who died and those who survived. Heaven holds the ones we love.

Posted by:

First Grader

On:

7/3/2004

ID:

188

At OLA on 12/1/58?	Born before or after 12/1/58?	Where Lived on 12/1/58?
No	Before	Melrose Park, IL

I was 6 years old in the first grade at the Sacred Heart Catholic grammar school in Melrose Park, IL, about 12 miles west of downtown Chicago, at the time of the Our Lady of the Angels fire. While the fire was in progress we were still in class and the nuns upon hearing the tragic news led us in prayer for the victims. Although I was very young and at age 6 without a full comprehension of death I vividly recall how upset the nuns were.

I was not aware of the existence of OLA school before the fire, and knew none of the victims, but I always felt for them because I felt connected with them as part of the same school system. We all wore uniforms then and if you look at Catholic school classroom photos from any such school in the Chicago area at the time they were almost always interchangeable. My school's classrooms, like those at OLA, were also hopelessly and unhealthily overcrowded with at times 50 or more kids to an undersized room. Today various board of health laws would probably forbid such crowding.

The Catholic education was a schoolastically good one, but I eventually felt its faith based belief system, which is belief without evidence, was of no value. By age 16 or so I became agnostic and have remained so until my present age of 51. It is curious how many people with backgrounds similar to mine either vigorously embraced the Catholic faith, or thoroughly rejected it. There are some in the middle ground catergory, but not many. At least that is my personal experience.

Posted by:

Richard Widenski

On:

6/30/2004

ID:

187

At OLA on 12/1/58?	Born before or after 12/1/58?	Where Lived on 12/1/58?
No	Before	Milwaukee, Wisconsin

I had just turned 9 years old and was attending the third grade at St. Stanislaus Catholic grade school in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on December 1, 1958. The one thing that I have always remembered was how upset and saddened my parents were at the dinner table that night. I was too young to really comprehend the tragedy but I was old enough to notice my parent's sorrow and distress. I think, for them, the fire hit very close to home as my two brothers and I were attending a Catholic grade school that was also taught by nuns (School Sisters of Notre Dame). My mother is still living and whenever I talk to her about that evening, she always tells me of how she tried to imagine what the parents were going through that night.

Posted by:

Finessa

On:

6/23/2004

ID:

186

At OLA on 12/1/58?	Born before or after 12/1/58?	Where Lived on 12/1/58?
No	Before	Bridgeport

(Entry removed - please confine messages and discussions to the Message Board)

Posted by:

Rosemarie (Saska) Hollingsworth

On:

6/21/2004

ID:

185

Enrolled on 12/1/58?	Present on 12/1/58?	Injured?	Age	Grade	Classroom	Teacher
Yes	Yes	No	8	3	107	Don't Remember

I remember it as a sunny winter day. I don’t remember it being particularly cold. It was probably around 40 or 50 by mid-afternoon. I felt so happy that morning because my Mom let me use her pretty scarf. It was white with a pink flower print. I just loved that scarf and felt so grown up that mom let me use it.

Our school belonged to the church. The main building of the school was a newer building. The other school building was the old church that had been converted to classrooms. The 2 buildings were connected in back by a hallway. In front, the old school still had a look of a church. There was a large 2 story iron gate that connected the church building to the newer school building. This created a large courtyard area between the school building and old church building that was closed off by the gate. Larry and I walked to school that morning like we always did. We lived 8 blocks from school. It usually took us about 15 or 20 minutes. The school day went like it always did. It was a Monday and we were getting ready for a full week of school. It was Dec 1, 1958 and we were also excited because Thanksgiving was over and we were looking forward to the upcoming Christmas Holidays. The day had gone like any other school day. In fact, I seem to remember that we had just finished our last lesson for the day. Our teacher was having us put our things away and we were ready to go row by row to get our coats and be dismissed from school. I was in the old church building on the first floor. Our classroom was next to the courtyard that was blocked by the iron gate. Larry’s classroom was in the new school building on the second floor. Larry was in the 6th grade and I was in 3rd grade. Anyway, I remember sitting at my desk and then the fire alarm went off. We all thought that it was a drill. We filed out just like we had done in our fire drills. We went out the classroom door, out the front door, across the street, to the corner, then turned around and faced the school. Now the realization came in. This wasn’t a drill. There was smoke coming out of the second floor of the old church building. There were fire engines and firemen coming. There were kids screaming from the second floor and there were firemen who couldn’t get through the iron gate. We just stood in our places on the corner. Finally, our teacher had us go across the street back to where the new school was, then down to the next street where the church was. As we passed the new school, smoke was coming out of windows and firemen were having children come down ladders to the street. All the children that escaped were taken to the church. They led us in prayer for everyone still in the school. We were then told to go home. I didn’t know where Larry was, but we found each other and started walking home on that winter day without our coats. About halfway home, a stranger stopped us asking us why we were walking around outside without our coats. We just stated that “Our school is on fire”. Larry and I got home and our Mom was about to yell at us for not wearing our coats until we told here about the school. Mom and Larry needed to go somewhere so I stayed home with my younger sister, Mary. I didn’t realize that the school fire had reached the news, but the phone started ringing. I didn’t know who the man was. But a frantic voice was at the other end asking if we were okay (Larry and me). I later learned that the voice belonged to my father. He was in the car when the news went on the radio that Our Lady of the Angels was on fire. He was in the middle of traffic and started speeding so that he could get to a phone. He told us that he got stopped by the police, but when he explained, the police officer let him go. The phone was ringing all night as friends and relatives heard the news and called to make sure that we were all right. School was cancelled for a week. Then we started to go to school half days. That first day back we were given school bags that we were told was donated to us by children in Arizona. I have often thought about the kindness from strangers across our country. I didn’t understand then how it was possible for so many to hear about our school fire. We would gather in the church chapel. We would line up by class and then get on a school bus and travel to another Catholic school. This school would dismiss their students at lunch time and we would have class in the afternoon. This happened until the Christmas break.

When classes started up in January, we didn’t go back to our previous class. We were now divided up based on where we lived and new classes were formed. Three public schools were being used. We used the third floor of the public school where Larry and I went. This happened for a year and a half. In the meantime, a new school was being built. I was in the fifth grade when we went back to the new school. Larry was in the eighth grade. We were excited to get to the new school. This one, we were told was built to be fireproof. As the years have gone by, I have always tried to stress to people the importance of our fire drills at work. Oddly enough, a little over 10 years ago, I was involved in another fire. This one was in our home. Our smoke detector sounded at about 12:30am. As my family evacuated from our home and the police and fire trucks arrived, I did think of that December day. This time it was the message of having home smoke detectors that went out to family and friends. When people found out that it was the smoke detector that saved us, they stated that they needed to get one or that they needed to make sure that the one they had was working. I think the school fire has always been with me. I sing in our choir and in preparing for Easter Vigil this year, we were singing the song “Let the Fire Fall” during the confirmation. I understand the symbolism is for the Holy Spirit. However, I had an extremely difficult time with this song because I do know what physically “letting the fire fall” can really do. Someone at work once stated that they thought when trauma happens to a child that the trauma is something that they block out and don’t remember. I told her that that wasn’t true. The vision of the fire remains with me. I don’t think that I will ever forget the sight in the courtyard; children screaming from windows and that closed iron gate. I don’t think I will ever forget the black smoke. Over the years, I’ve married (at Our Lady of the Angels). I’ve moved to another city and state. I’ve had children and grandchildren. Always though, OLA will remain a part of me.

Posted by:

AURA

On:

6/5/2004

ID:

184

At OLA on 12/1/58?	Born before or after 12/1/58?	Where Lived on 12/1/58?
No	Before	South Side Chicago

We live in the OLA old neighborhood on Avers 1/2 block from the school. We feel that a priest should have performed some type of religious ceremony, because the neighorhood is still being haunted! One particular spirit haunts by family's home. she was approximately 11 years old. While I am a noted medium, still I find the host of departed spirits unhappy and ofcourse it is understood! So many lives were lost carelessly!
While I cannot dispute their haunting the location and surrounding neighborhood trying to fix what went wrong.
While we here on earth still pray for them and have them all in our hearts even today in the year 2004!
I feel a movie should be made about this tragedy, although I don't have means to fund it. But I suggested it to the
Catholic school board many years ago and they said they would let people film the area and the school ofcourse with a nice fat donation!. People need to know and see what happened and how it caused intelligent changes in fire safey in all the public and private institutions in the city of Chicago!

Posted by:

Trudy

On:

6/1/2004

ID:

183

At OLA on 12/1/58?	Born before or after 12/1/58?	Where Lived on 12/1/58?
No	Before	The suburbs of Chicago

This tragedy had a deep affect on my life and thoughts. My mother was a school nurse in District 84, my dad worked for the Navy. We were very fire safety conscious at home. As a child myself in 1958 I identified with the children who attended OLA school even though I was miles away in the suburbs.

The event made me cry then, and it does even today. I just finished emailing a public information officer for our local fire department with whom I have had several such exchanges why I was so concerned about fire safety practices and challenges with communication presented by local news coverage. I live in an area of the country which is subject to wildfires and other hazards. I do what I can to prepare and eliminate risk. I mentioned this fire to him because it was a pivotal event in my life as a child.

I decided to see if there was any information on the fire and found this site. Tears are streaming down my face as I type. The children and the Nuns who became angels that day are in my prayers. In the past, their memory helped motivate me through nursing school and gave me heightened awareness about prevention. There is more, but words don't work for these thoughts. Their souls are woven into the tapestry of my life. I will never forget them.

Posted by:

Joyce Peneschi

On:

6/1/2004

ID:

182

Enrolled on 12/1/58?	Present on 12/1/58?	Injured?	Age	Grade	Classroom	Teacher
Yes	Yes	No	10	4	107	Mrs. Kizor (substitute)

My experience of the School fire actually started about a month or so before the School fire for me.

It began with having bad dream's, they were nightmares for me. On this piticular night I dreamt that one of my girlfriend's from School died, (but I cannot mention her name because she was one of them who did die in the fire ) In that dream (I dont know how she died ) but I could see her Mother was very sad. That dream up set me so much that I woke up out of a sound sleep. My Mother who was still up asked me what I was doing awake ? I started crying and telling my Mother about my dream, my Mother did her best to try to console me, and calm me down to go back to sleep.

A few night's later I had another dream, this time it was another girlfriend that died, ( and I wont mention her name either) again I woke up crying, and told my Mother about my dream. Again Mom did her best to console me and calm me down enough to go back to sleep.

A week later I had another one of those dreams, of another girlfriend from School dying, and I woke up again from my sleep crying, and panic stricken, I was really up set !!! Again I told my Mother, and she tried to console me. She said to me that maybe God is telling you to be extra nice to these girls, and not to take their friendship for granite. So I thought about it for awhile, and that made sence to me, so I decided that I would make it a special point to spend as much time as I could playing with these girl's. With one of them, I spent all afternoon after School riding our bicycles, we had so much fun, untill my bicycle tire went flat. I was late getting home, my Mother was mad at me because I was late. I tried to explain to her that, That is what I had to do, in case my friend dies.

On another outing with a girlfriend we went roller skating all over the neighborhood, and had a great time. Again I was late getting home. And again trying to explain this to my Mother.

And another one of my girlfriends, I just stayed at her house playing with Doll's. Again I was late getting home, after 6 PM My Mother was really mad at me. I just couldnt seem to make my Mother understand what I had to do.

My Mother must have thought that I was crazy or something ? but she never made any comment about that.

Meanwhile my Grandmother tell's my Mother about the strange dream she had, a big building was on fire, Children were trapped and screaming, and there was alot of black smoke.

When the fire happened I was devistated to learn that these girlfriends, did die. I felt good in one way because I was able to spend some special time with each one of them.

I was grief stricken over their death, because I felt that maybe I could have done something to prevent it from happening because after all, I did dream about them dying. I could have warned them that something was going to happen, but I didnt know what was going to happen ? I did suffer alot of guilt about this, for many year's.

My Grandmother did not know her dream was the School on fire, untill after the fire.

Years later I learned that it was ESP that I had, and I really was not going crazy, and there was nothing that I could have done to prevent what had happened.

But today I can say that I am satisfied that I did get to spend some extra special time with my little girlfriends before God took them away from us. Even if I did get in trouble with my Mother for being late, it was worth it. Now My Mother understands what I was doing....... And she too is in Heaven with all our little Angels.

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