Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1858-06-10

Ourtelegraphic dispatches have furnish
ell meagre account of the devastations by
the whirlwind which visited Warren coun-
ty on last Sunday night, and entirely de-
stroyed the hourishing village of Ellison.
As soon as the news of the disaster reach
this city, we dispatched a special reporter
to Ellison, in order to obtain all the par
ticulars possible, but, owing to the running
arrangements of the Chicago, Burlington
and Quincy Railroad. it was impossible to
obtain his report in time for our issue We'd
nesday morning.
Ellison was handsome and pleasantly
situated village, containing some two hun
drcd inhabitants, fourteen miles southwest
from Monmouth, in Warren county. 1t
contained two stores, warehouse, tavern,
and thirty dwellings, besides barns, sheds,
&c. a handsome grove bounded the vii
lage on the west and south, while large
prairie stretched away to the north and
east. The grove to the west is some three
miles in width, and still west of the grove
is South Prairie, about fourteen miles wide.
On Sunday evening, the Both of May,
about 5 o'clock, the residents o: South
Prairie noticed funnel shaped cloud, the
fan or tail about five hundred feet wide,
moving with almost inconceivablc rapid
| ty from west to east and SO near the surface
of the ground that at times it seemed to
strike the earth and rise again. The cloud
was black, accompanied with terrific thun-
der and lightning, hail and rain. Its ex-
treme length was not over six or eight hun
dred feet and its thickness only some fifty,
and those who witnessed its progress as
scrt that at times they could see that the air
was apparently entirely undisturbed and
clear above AMI below it.
This storm -ficnd--we know of no better
name for the devastating cloud-dcstroyed
fourteen houses in South Prairie, killing
and wounding a number of persons. and at
few minutes past o'clock burst with the
fury of a demon upon Ellison, destroying
every building but four, killing seven per-
sons outright and injuring every other in
habitant. 1t then rose and passed on to
the east, striking the earth again within a
distance of three miles, destroying a few
fences, then rose again high in the air and
passed out of sight.
When we arrived at the ruined village a
scene of disaster presented itself which moth
ing we can write will exaggerate. Boards,
timbers and debris of every description
were scattered in all directions about the
site occupied by the town. and over the
prairie to the east for a distance of two
miles.
The first building struck was the two
story frame store of Mr.. Joseph Knowles
This was lifted from its foundation, whirled
around two or three times in the cloud, ant
carried across the street, where it burst in
to small fragments, and its contents wcr'
torn to shreds and so scattered that not ever
yard of goods has been found.
The next house destroyed was DIR. Yo
hos, large frame structure. 1t was carried
to the opposite side of the street, lifted higl
into the air and shattered into a thousant
pieces.
In this manner twenty three dwellings
two stores and the warehouse were utterl,
destroyed and so rapidly was this don,
that no time was permitted the terror strick
en- inhabitants to escape from their homes
So thoroughly complete was the destruc
I tion that not vestige of the houses or thci
contents remain, save scattered boards an,
timbers and here and there fragment of
6 garment or a broken piece of furniture
One of the residents, whom we saw search
, ing for his scattered goods, informed II
: that he had been unableto recognize among
s the ruins anything he had owned. An
s other stated that he was quite certain tina
! nothing of his had escaped total destruc
n ton.
) During the passage of the cloud the wa
5 ter fell in sheets and the thunder and light
! ming was terrific. But four buildings ar
U left standing in the town. and two of these
although out of the immediate track of tn
storm, are SO shattered as to be untenable
AS soon as possible the farmers III th
a ncighborhood were apprised of the disas
r ter, and hurried to the rescue Of the wound
f e,l, many of whom were found beneath tn
ruins or hurled beyond them to the opel
, road.
THE KILLED AND WOUNDED.
Mary Ann McWill;ams killed outright
Thomas McWilliams, brother of the above
and his sister, badly injured, and not ex
, pected to live. Mrs. McWilliams, moth
, er Of the above badly injured, but vii
> probably recover. Joshua Sheets who liy
ed with the family, badly injured.
Richard McWiliams, considerably in
y jurcd. His family. escaped with sligh
. bruises. Tram Cook, hired man, seriously
D injured.
William Z. Thompson and infant child
killed outright. His wife was found in th'
wreck of the house SO badly wounded tha
she died in short time after. In one arm
she held her infant, the top Of its skull sew
cred from the head and hanging over it
!, face, and its bowels torn out.
Miss Jane. Sherwood. scheol teacher
, and boarder in Mr.. Thoinpson's house, hst
large silver ruh through her thigh. ye
size assisted for some time in providing TO
the safety of others before she knew tina
she was injured herself. She will recover
Mrs. Ostrom, mother-in- law of Mr.
Thompson, had one arm and her shouldc
blade broken. .s e..a
Jacob Smith had one arm broken in twt
places. His wife and child were also seri
I ously injured.
Lindley Kelshaw escaped with slight in
juries, but his mother is so seriously hur
! that she viii not recover, and his sister an,