The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1876-03-03
FEARFUL TORNADO.
Great Destruction of Property at
Princeton, Indiana-TOwn Of st.
Charles, MisSOurs, Suffers
SeYerelY.
Special Telegram to the Cincinnati Commercial.

Severely. ,--..--..
Special Telegram to the Cineinnati Commercial.
private letter To the Journal gives the
following details of the. terrible tornado
that struck Princeton, Gibson County, at
Z O'Clock last night. All the telegraph
wires were down. and no dispatches
could be sent or received last night, and
only one wire to St. LoniS working to-
day. The tornado struck the southwest,
part of the town, lasting only one min
ute. II totally or partially 3drstroved
thirty-nine dwellings, unroofed and bad
ly damaged the fine public school build
ing, utterly destroyed new church (the
Covenanters'), uprootrd trees, blew
down fences. carried awav plank side
walks, demolished out houses. i large
number of persons were injured, one or
two supposed fatally. A listle child
was thrown from ita bed into the garden;
another was blown one hundred yards
and found on the railroad track Mrs
Clark had her buck broken, ahl not ex-
pected to recover. JAS. Taylor was in
jured internally, and is not likely to
live Mrs. Blackerd, thigh broken; Miss
Kindle, aged eighteen, both legs broken;
the family of Mr.. Jennings all more or
less injured. Horses were killed or bad
4 IT. r
damage done through the country. but
we have not the particulars An extra
freight train just leaving Princeton was
struck by the tornado. The roof of one
car was blown completely away and
never found. 4 freight car was blown
off switch across the main track. One
or two houses after being blown down
took FIRE and were consumed. The ma
ny narrow escapes were miraculous
The damage is estimated at $4,000
Later advices from Princeton show
that between two and three hundred
buildings were more or less damaged,
and about forty completely demolished.
The damage in the country is very great.
The total damage in the town is estimat-
I'd at S15O,O0O, and in the country at
S15O,OOO.
In Henderson County, Kentucky, the
tornado was terrific, blowing down
houses, killing stock, &c. The house Of
J. B. Lester, seven miles from Hender-
son, was blown down and set on FIRE and
the inmat were with difficulty rescued
from the flames. Lester and two of his
children were badly burned. DIR. Wat
sons main residence was entirely blown
away, leaving one room, somewhat de
tached, and in which the family was as
sembled at the time. James Hicks
large and substantial residence, still
further on, was torn to pieces, and the
family, who escaped at the first Fremont
ton OF danger, were blown some distance
and one of his children, torn from his
grasp by the force Of the wind. was car
ried two hundred yards and dashed to
the ground with snch force as to crush it
to a jelly, breaking literally every bone
in its body All the others are injured, -,
Hicks very severely, and one child los
ing an eye. Other disasters have occur
red.
HAMMOND, Ill, February 28.-A
heavy thunder and wind storm passed
here at o'clock last evening. blowing
down one house and moving several
from their foundations. A house was
also blown over at Laplace, ten miles
west of here. No lives were lost, but sew
eral persons narrowly eso aped.
ST. LOUIS, February 28.-A terrible
wind storm, amounting almost to a tor
nado, struck the northern part Of ST.
Charles, Missouri, yesterday afternoon,
and passing down Main and Second
streets, demolished or badly injured
twenty or more buildings.
A letter from St. Charles to the Globe
Democrat gives the following descrip-
tion of the storm there yesterday: at
was first discovered abont three miles
southwest of the city, and came in the
general direction of the river 1t APP
peared to be about two hundred yards
wide, four to FIVE hundred high, II yell
low vertical column, whirling and roll
ling with frightfrl velocity an dapparent-
ly bounding from place to place. The de-
b. Is it caused is not found to have been
carried in any particular direction, but
is scattered all about. Buildings entire
ly unscathed stand adjoining those ut
terly wrecked; and upon Main street
with but few exceptions, where a house
upon one side of the street felt the force
of the storm, another directly opposite
escaped showing the whirl of the storm
to have been very narrow, and that its
motion was vibratory. Its duration was
not more than FIVE minntes, passing in
that time through the city from end to
end. The noise was terrific. and the
popular description is that it resemhled
l multitude of railroad trains passing al
full speed over long inclnsed bridge =
The farm house of Rufus Robbins, six
niles north of the town, was demolished
Mr.. Robbins, his wife and three children
md gentleman. lady and child, visit.
ing. all being severely injured-two ot
he children dangerously. The tornado
struck the railroad bridge. bnt without
iniuring it, after which il descended tc
the river and lifted great columns of wa.
Ter 10 height of several hundred feet ,
The Carlist War at an End.
European dispatches of the 29th nit.
state that Don Carlos and number OF
4 his pr;pc;DaI f,,IIoyar7 have toI,oo ~