The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1847-06-18
From tre Prorlh Fre.s June 16.
The IInii sio, ~ sud "a. 49,.

On Saturday evening last, our city
was visited by one of the most ire.
mendous hail storms, we presume,
that the American continent eve,
witnessed. 1t certainly exceled
any thing of the kind in the history
OF this country-and all pers ms with
whom we have Converspd since the
storm, admit that they at least have
never read of or witnessed such a
raining down of ice before.
About hall-past three o'clock, a
cloud with nothing very ex'raordina-
ry in its appearance, was visible to-
wards the northwest, and betoken.
ed rain. A light wind was blowing.
and soon the rain began TO fail, but
in few seconds it was followed BY
hail stones of the ordinary size, and
it seemed that every successive ball
or lump that came to the earth was
larger than the one that preceded it..
Thick and fast it fell, until the
ground in many places was covered
over with balls of ice three and six
inches deep and on it hailed, the
Jumps growing larger and larger, and
falling in such vast quantities that
many OF our citizens became alarm
ed, not knowing what this awful dis
pensation of Providence was coinr
to terminate in. The wind changed
several times during the storm, and
the greatest destruction of property
that took place was when it blew
from the south west. The storm
ragged with the utmost violence for
about fifteen or twenty minutes, and
was immediately followed by n smart
rain which came very nigh flline the
cellars on Main street with water.
AftcY The rain had subsidized, we
picked rp a number Of hail stones
tat weighed from hpo end n hair.
oa0ce anti some gentlemen
gathered balls tina. weighed more
tan t.,.s' an shape, many Of them
were nearly round, and theirs re.
senbled fragments Of ice that had
become united into one lump. and
from ico h three and n
hdY mcheS an di0meier. There
were many fell much larger than
those picked up. but We're dashed to
pieces on the ground by The fall.
Forty-cight hours afterwards, hail
stones could be picked up in the
uncovered cellars as large as hull
ed walnut.
There is scarcely house in The
city but what was more or less dam
aged by the falling of these massive
Jumps Of hail, The Buildings on
Main and Water streets, we think
the most. There are MANY
houses on those streets in which
here was not one whole pane Of
glass left in their windows. In the
where we have our Office.
here are hceniY-hrec uind0Ds,
containing IN all 2I3 panes Of glass, :
ind out Of this number, there are ;
mt 80 whole paneS of glass left
Not only was the glass broken, but ,
n many instances the sqsh were :
'roken in such manner as to rem ,
Ter them useless. The roof of MANY {
'fthe houses suffered much from the {
'ail stones battering upon and liter i
lily breaking into pieces the slim !
lies, and seriously damaging the
.ornice and spouting. Every gar !
len in the city and suburbs that the t
torn visited, is entirely cut to pie ,
'es-thc tops and leaves of the veg |
tables and shrubbcry having been |
orn from the main stems, and the ,
cots "run into the ground' a l;,tlc {
hrthcr than they "bargaincd for, c
The fruit we fear is much injured e
IN