Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1871-04-26
4 FURIOUS, DESTRUCTIVE STORM IN
SWEETWATER VALLEY,
Churches, Mills. Houses and Barns
Torn in Shreds.
Freaks and Incidents of the storm.
THE STORM GATHERING

We have received from L. NJ. Pickle, one
OF the victims, graphic detailed ac-
count of one of the most destructive. ter
rifle and wonderful hurricanes that has
ever visited any section of East Tennessee,
Between the hours of nine and ten
O'Clock ON wednesday night, (the 10Th
| inst, while the thrifty farmers and their
contented neighbors along the valley of
| Fork Creek, in Monroe county, were
| peacefully sleeping in their well built
! houses, most fearful storm was gathering
to suddenly sweep over them, leaving ut
ter ruin and desolation to mark its path.
a heavy dark grey cloud swept by "a cold
wind, travelling from the west, met an
other, larger, more rapid i'm its movements
ana charged with greater fury, moving
| rom the southeast, at point in the mar
! row, rich, highly cultivated valley of Fork
| Greek, about five miles from Swectwater
The two storms, riding the heavens, ac-
companied with roll after roll aud peal
! upon peal of terrific thunder their path-
way, wildly illuminated with the most
| brilliant and dazzling chain of lightning
| met ut full speed Just over the farm of Mr.
Henry McCroskey
Passing neither to the right nor TO the
| left, but firmly bent on the terrible work
the two furies here linked in fearful en-
brace their awful power, and turning aside
| from their original course, swept with
! their combined fury northeast, following
! III all its bends the little creek above
named, and for eight miles carrying the
most perfect humiliation and destruction
along both its banks, where lived some of
the most energetic, wealthy, and successful
farmers in the beautiful Sweetwater Valley
LIST AND DETAILS OF DAMAGES.
! Henry McCroskey, over whose place the
! storm started on its career of destruction
was the first victim, though he did not suf-
n- mi mol ~ ,th ns 4 1nr, L..
shed and barn were unroofed. A fine new
! threshing machine, worth 500, under the
hay shed was badly injured, the separator
torn off and the axle Of the wagon broken.
| His house being Just outside the path of
the storm was not touched.
j. VI. BURTON, ESQ.
! Was the next victim in the track of DESC
lation and suffered largely. His house was
! q large, substantial frame building, two
\ stories high. The-wind strIttts die gable
| end of il, under the roof, tearing Il off from
the joists and carrying away,the entiresup-
| per story. The family were all asleep. but
of course terrified and soon aroused by the
terrible racket, which Squire Burton com
pares TO the firing of ten thousand cannon.
! The large chimney was wrenched Off and
the foundation stone, very large and firm
| ly cemented, torn from its bed and driven
out six inches. The whole family We're
uninjured, but their escape was perfect
miracle. Two Of the boys found them
selves landed some distance from the
house, their clothes riding on the whirl-
wind, but a brilliant flash of Lightning
lighted up the surroundings enough so
that they caught some clothing droDped
near them. y large corn crib near the
house was torn to atoms and corn scat
tered far and wide. No two logs of his out
buildings were left as laid down in build
ing. y fence on posts two feet deep was
swept away and not trace left. A valua-
bic horse was badly injured and COW kill
ed outright Mr.. Burton was q Justice of
the Peace and all the books and papers of
his office were scattered far and wide.
MIR. - MOsIER,
The next sufferer in order, had a double
log house framed, which was torn down to
the fourth log. \ mill, two stories high,
not used lately, was blown Off to the rock
foundation. A fence rail was blown
against a horse, striking him endwise
in the breast and so far driven
in as to seriously endanger its life. The
horse was living at last accounts. All of
Mr. Mosier's fences were blown away but
none Of his family injured.
LEWIS JOHNSON.
Was the next sufferer. His was "A large
brick house which looked after the storm,
as our informant says, as though id had |
been shelled by battery of artillery. A
large wheat garner and barn were entirely |
demolished, and all his fences blown away. !
Out Of n thrifty young orchard of eight |
hundred apple trees not one was left.
Next in the path of the terrible storm |
was,
MRS. JOHN SIMPSON.
Who was the pOsessor of a cOmmodious |
two story house, which was torn off above |
the first story and blown to pieces. The
wing of the house was torn away In her
fright and while running about i'm her
bare feet, she tramped upon sharp nail
and received Il very bad injury. Her barn
and fences were all blown away. On the
same farm with Mrs. Simpson was a COM
Portable frame house, filled in with brick
and plastered-occupied by VIM ThOmp-
son, which was blown down to the first
story.
MR.. JOHN PRATER,
Living near Mr.. Burton, in a one story
frame house suffered very much. His
house was carried off down TO the floor.
some of the heavy timbers fell on his wife
and daughter and severely injured both of
them. They lost everything in their
house, and beds and bedding were found
muddy and wet, half mile off. His
double barn blown down. A bureau, after
the storm was over, was found three-quar-
-ers of mile or near MILE and part of a
reaper and mower that was kept in the
upper part OF his building was carried fully |
three quarters of mile from the house.
Mr.. Prater lost nearly everything he had.
The
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