THE people

Minnie H Schaffner

BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION

STATUS:
Victim
DATE OF BIRTH:
April 17, 1869
City of Birth:
, , , 
DATE OF DEATH:
December 30, 1903
City of Death:
, , , 
GENDER:
F
OTHER KNOWN NAMES:
MAIDEN NAME:
Schaffner
ETHNICITY:
KNOWN ADDRESS:
578 45th Place, 
 Chicago, 
 IL, 
RELATED TO:

Moses and Fannie (Joseph) Schaffner, parents

AT THE TIME OF the fire

AGE:
34
MARITAL STATUS:
Single
ROLE:
Audience Member
ORGANIZATIONAL AFFILIATION:
Forrestville School
ORGANIZATIONAL ROLE:
Teacher

other information

CEMETERY:
Rosehill Cemetery and Mausoleum, Chicago, IL
MORGUE:
IDENTIFIED BY:
OTHER NOTES:

Minnie had been a teacher for several years at the Forestville School when she perished in the Chicago fire at the Iroquois theater. She went to the matinee with two friends, one of whom perished also.

Minnie lived with her family at 578 45th Place in Chicago. She was the oldest child of Moses (1830–1888) and Fannie (Joseph) Schaffner (1841–1927), both from Germany, who married in NYC in 1867 after they came to America.  Moses passed away 15 years before Minnie's death so it was fortunate for Fannie that she had children to help her through the loss of her oldest daughter.  Minnie and her siblings were born in Ohio, except Morris who was born after the family moved to Chicago.

CITATION:

McCurdy, D. B. (1904). Lest We Forget: Chicago's Awful Theater Horror. Chicago: Memorial Publishing Company, accessed https://www.gutenberg.org/files/39280/39280-h/39280-h.htm, p 350
Everett, M. (1904). The Great Chicago Theater Disaster. Chicago: Publishers Union of America, p 358
Chicago Tribune (Chicago, Illinois) Sat, May 20, 1905 Page 4
Find A Grave https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/87769900/minnie_h-schaffner

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: Karl Sup, Iroquois Theatre Fire Historical Society, Judy Cooke

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