"Mrs. O'Leary's Cow" is also called "Old Mother Leary". This song is a parody of the old minstrel song "There'll Be a Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight".

The story behind the song: Mrs. Catherine O'Leary lived in Chicago, Illinois at the time of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. It was alleged that a fire started in her barn on the evening of October 8, 1871 and then spread to the whole city. It turns out that Michael Ahern, a Chicago Daily Tribune reporter, made up the tale to have a colorful story to tell in his newspaper.

In 1997, the Chicago City Council passed a resolution exonerating Mrs. O'Leary and her cow!

Notes

Here's a longer version of Mrs. O'Leary's Cow (Old Mother Leary)…

Five nights ago,
When we were all in bed,
Old Mrs. Leary left the lantern in the shed
And when the cow kicked it over,
She winked her eye and said
It'll be a hot time, in the old town, tonight!
FIRE, FIRE, FIRE!

Four nights ago,
When we were all in bed,
Old Mrs. Leary left the lantern in the shed
And when the cow kicked it over,
She winked her eye and said
It'll be a hot time, in the old town, tonight!
FIRE, FIRE, FIRE!

Three nights ago,
When we were all in bed,
Old Mrs. Leary left the lantern in the shed
And when the cow kicked it over,
She winked her eye and said
It'll be a hot time, in the old town, tonight!
FIRE, FIRE, FIRE!

Two nights ago,
When we were all in bed,
Old Mrs. Leary left the lantern in the shed
And when the cow kicked it over,
She winked her eye and said
It'll be a hot time, in the old town, tonight!
FIRE, FIRE, FIRE!

One night ago,
When we were all in bed,
Old Mrs. Leary left the lantern in the shed
And when the cow kicked it over,
She winked her eye and said
It'll be a hot time, in the old town, tonight!
FIRE, FIRE, FIRE!

*****

Lillian from the West Coast, wrote, "I just have a little note for one of the songs on your site, it's about the song Old Mother Leary. The way I learned it in elementary school was:

Late last night when we were all in bed,
Old mother leary left the lantern in the shed,
And when the cow kicked it over, she winked her eye and said,
It's gonna be a hot one in the old town tonight.

FIRE FIRE FIRE
WATER WATER WATER
SAVE MY CHILD SAVE MY CHILD
JUMP LADY JUMP!

I just wanted to let your site know.

Thanks,
Lillian Danielle Cholick"

Thanks and Acknowledgements

The 1st illustration was a lithograph done by LVH Crosby in 1871 shortly after the Great Chicago Fire. The 2nd and 3rd photo and illustration are from "Chicago" by William H. Johnson (1933). Thanks to Lillian Danielle Cholick for sharing the version she knows!

Thanks so much!