The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1871-06-21
REMARKABLE TORNADO.
Form buildings molished--BIiracuIous
escape OF Cattle Buried Beneath the
Wreclx--singular Freaks of the wind.

Farm buildings DemoIish HIiracVIous
escape of Cattle Buried Beneath the
Mreck-Singular Freaks of the Wind.
Between and o'clock yesterday morning
some men on the truck farms on the south side
OF tne Christiana, near the mouth of that river
heard singular roaring and rushing noise. and
shortly afterwards saw that whirlwind was
passing across their place. It crossed a tomato
patch, wrenehing and twisting the vines passed
thence into Henry l.. Townsend's wheat field
and appeared to gather strength as it went. for
as 1t passed the wheat field, it snapped off three
panels of fence and then struck q large brick
barn, and passed around it TO a large hay barn,
a building 104 feet long. Here it commenced
the work OF destruction in earnest. 1t tore the
building to pieces and levelled the very founda-
ton walls on which it was built.
IL next struck granary solidly built of heavy
WnlIe oak. The building was too stout to be
torn to pieces, but it lifted it off of its founda-
lions, moving 1t several feet, and then upset
corn crib adjoining it, smashing beneath il a
grain drill and sleigh.
1t also destroyed one or two other small build
ngs, and tore up several large trees by the
roots, and split in two large locust tree stand
ing near the house.
One of the most singular aud fortunate things
about the whole affair is that it passed com
Pletely around the house, without doing it the
slightest damage, or injuring anything within
the home enclosure except the locust tree Just
mentioned.
Some of the performances seem almost like
the fantastic freaks of sportive genie. The
Odck DaID, uTsL bJruck, was not injured other
wise than by tearing off all of Its doors but
one of these doors, large one, which it would
require four men to carry, was carried up into
the air, and whirled about like sheet of paper.
But the most remarkable feature of the whole
affair was that, though twenty cattle were buried
beneath the ruins OF the large hay-barn first
demolished, they all escaped without any serious
injury. In many cases they were pinned closely
to the ground by the debris, but as fast as the
wreck was lifted from them they got out of the
wilderness of confusion around them with whole
skins and sound limbs.
The property was owned by Zadoc Townsend
and occupied by his son, Henry L. Townsend.
The latter, with remarkable good fortune es-
capes all loss but that of the sleigh. Had the
cattle not escaped his loss would have been very
says that as most of the buildings were quite
old, and all would have had to be moved before
long to make way for the extension of city i'm
provemenis in that direction, he only estimates
his loss at $1,000.
In company with Mr.. Townsend Sr., we rode
over the track of the tempest this morning.
We never saw a more complete or thorough
wreck The buildings were so completely torn
up that it seemed that there was scarcely one
piece of timber left fastened to another. The
hurricane spent Its fury there, and seems to
have divided up into severe smaller ones, which
damaged tree here and there and then sub
sided.
On the north side of the Christana, shortly
after the ravages of the hurricane on the south
side, whirlwind suddenly seized two large
willow trees near the lighthouse, tore them up
by the roots and hurled them against the light
house, completely demolishing its porch. We
believe it did no further damage Wilmington
Commercial, yesterday.