Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1872-09-12
A Terrible Tornado in Massachusetts.
A TORNADO of extraordinary yiolenc


one ofihe NEST terrible agents of dcstruc.
ton that these northern valleys have ever
known. Its influence was not as wide
spread as the desolating reach of an earth
quake, but where its path did lie, it was
fully az destructive. The wind had been
blowing all Friday night, and, towards
morning, rose to a gale, but the few in.
habitaHts VINO were awake at four O'Clock,
thought no more of it than of any other
very strong wind. But about ten minutes
past four, two furious storms, converg.
ing, one from the west and the other from
the South, seem 10 have met over the
meadow of Frederick Mills, in East Long.
meadow, and, with united fury, to have
taken up the course resultant from their
separate directions, to the northeast. No
traces of the tornado are to he found be
low this poip., while from here onward
its path is as plain as if some giant mower
had stalked over the fields, cutting down,
with mighty, remorseless sweeps, every
object that stood in his track
In Mr.. Mills meadow, portion of
which was set out to young and thrifty
apple-trees, the damage was not great
Several fine trees were blown down and
the road fences demolished, but the mon.
strous feet of the Titan did not touch the
earth until the road was crossed and the
top of little hill, by its side, was reach
ed. Here was strong rail fence, but in
an instant not rail was left in its place
A man living near by, who had been
aw .kened by the roaring OF the wind,
and risen to shut the windows, saw the
fence as the cyclone struck II, The rails
were caught up, he AYERS, fifty feet into
the air and tossed about in every direc
ton, as children might toss straws. Two
houses, fifty rods apart, were severely
shaken, but no one was injured. From
here the hurricane swooped down on the
farm owned by F. II. Downing, of this
city, and rented by ID. G. Maynard Ii
seemed to follow the slope of the hill
downward across the Longmeadow and
Indian Orchard road, and as soon as it
reached the level plain at its foot, to
gouge into the very earth itself The
grass is whipped off the turf for = width
of several rods, and in some places
even the turf torn up, and
blown no one knows where. 1t then
struck a field of tobacco, almost ready
for cutting and left not one hill standing
Stalks , 4 inches in diameter were torn
out of the ground, every leaf whipped
off and blown many rods into the
meadow. Beside the tobacco was field
of potatoes. where the dirt was blown oil
the hills, and some of the potatoes them
selves torn out of the soil and rolled many
feet before the wind. Passing over this
field the tornado crossed the road, blow
ing oil the Capstuues of the stone wall
and passing little to the right of Mr.
Mayard's house directly through his gar
den. where it tore up corn by the roots,
leveed fences, broke down trees, and
reaching backward with one hand as it
passed, tore off the shingles on the north
side of the house. Another field of to
bacco was leveled, and the tornado passed
on, breaking off a small apple tree near
the ground on the right side of its path,
and carrying it directly across the face of
the gale, dropping ii fifteen rods off on
the left side in potato field.
1t then went its way, having done Mr.
Maynard probably $4,000 damage, and,
crossing a marshy field, rose over small
hill near the Wilbraham Road, blowing
several large, flat stones out of their beds,
and CARRYING one as far as five rods. A
stone wall at the face of the hill was
blown down for several rods; one large
cap stone, foot and a half wide, two feet
long, and five inches thick, weighing per
haps two hundred and fifty pounds, was
carried twenty-five feet, and dropped in
the top of a large maple which had pre-
viously fallen. Smaller stones were blown
a distance of twenty five rods, and the
ground for half that distance was lit sraIly
covered with stones of all sizes blown
from the wall Nor is this an isolated
case--more than dozen such fences in
the course Of the central tornado we're
leyeled, everything in them above the
ground, and in some cases even below it,
flat stones, round stones, slate stones,
cobble stones, small stones and large
stones being blown out into the fields.
Rails and heavy branches OF trees were
carried fifty rods and driven three feet in.
to the solid ground.
Ii was at tins place that the fury Of the
gale was most terrible In its whole course
not tree or fence was left standing, but
nowhere else does it seem to have so
plowed its way along the ground. A COW
belonging to Warren Ashley, in the next
field, was blown before the wind nobody
knows whence, into an old quarry hole
some ten feet deep, breaking her neck
On the top Of the hill beyond, that is,
northeast, is a tract of timber belong also
to Mr.. Ashley The cyclone passed d-
rectly through this, cutting strip, about
five rods wide at first, and atterward
out 70 fifteen or twenty, as
and clearly as a mower cuts
his swath. The appearance of the forest
is as if a fierce torrent had swept through
it tossing the tQrnup trunks in the ut
most confusion in every possible position.
On the sides of the course the limbs of
the standing trees are dragged into the
vortex and snapped short Oft. From this
hill the storm seemed to leap over to
Markham hill, where it swept another
pathway through magnificent piece of
oak timber Not tree was left standing
in its course Huge pines, three
feet in diameter, fell crashing upon smaller
oaks, splitting their trunks completely to
the ground. In the meadow beyond,
maple, standing alone, more than four
feet through, was wrenChed off at the
ground and fairly twisted to splinters.
AT Deacon Horace Clark's on Stony
Hill WilbIaham, large apple tree, was
torn up by the roots and carried eight
rods over q stone wall without touching
it. and nearly every tree in the garden
was blown down. A part Of the new
barn. 80 by 50 feet, was unroofcd, and
two tobacco sheds completely Frustrated
A barn containing 400 bushels Of grain,
stood between the sheds, and this was
left standing, though unroofed ard other
wise damaged. The sheds on either side
were blown in opposite directions This
fact, together with the general appear
ance of the track Of the gale, seems to
show that il was irregular cyclone, with
a whirling motion from left TO right. The
damage to Deacon Clark's property is es-
timated at 50 800 The hurricane passed
his place at about half-past four, and its
sound was compared to that of heavily.