The Leavenworth weekly times., 1879-06-05
NEWS OFTHE DAY,
Completed LIST OF tie Killsd in the
Northwestern Cyclone.
Great Destiiuiion an 'nl Many FAM
lies Who are Homeless.
Appeals fer Aid Made to Ali the
the Neishboring Cities.


gives tie following additional particulars of
the terrible cyclone last Friday evening:
Yesterday Saturday. morning, at 1880,
a special train lett Atchison, carrying few
gentlemen connected with the Central
Branch and rs spresentatives OF the Atchison
Champion and PItriot, bound for the scene
OF the terrible cyclone OF Friday evening a
meagre account Of which mad been received
by telegraph.
At Centrs!ia the traces Of a hesvy rain
storm were visible. The ground was
flooded. During brief sop at Centralia
for dinner, il was learned that shortly after
four o'clock on Friday storm came up
and a funnel shaped cloud seemed to
descend aud strike the earth about three
quarters OF q mile northeast of the town,
and Iasslng on IN that course, destroyed
barns and sheds On the places owned by
Me.srs. Chippenger and Slater. Large
trees were torn down, but little general
damage has be5n reported As vet.
At FrankfJrt the damsses reported bv
telegraph were visible, bit il was found
| that the to%n was outside Of the main
! track OF the storm. At FrAnkfor, the train
| was boarded by DR.. Clutter, who was on his
| way to Irving TO oifer his services, and
| from him was received the frat connected
account OF the storm He said that about
| five o'clock p. N. the cyclone, apparent v
coming from the sOuthweSt, and having
| track about one mile in width, swept
through the county, on a line between the
towns of Irving and i attic. The storm,
in all its phase lasted possibly two hours.
| Il was ia;ensely dark, and the force of the
| wind was perfectly resistless. When a
| house was struck 1t was utterly demolished
| The people can give no intelligible account
| further than that there was a crash, and
then everything flew into the air
As s1on As possible, in company with
DR.. Garland, of Frankfort, he started on
To render assistance. DR.. Coffin, Of
| Frankfort, also attended TO some cases.
| From DR.. c u.ter's memoranda We learned
that the greatest destruction was in a
neigh borhood beginning ab ut two and one
| half miles northeast of Frankfort, and eX-
F! tending perhaps five and half miles in
| that distance. Every house was torn to
atoms and everything movable hurled into
space. Sadde7t of all, the following casu-
alIies occurred, ard more probably be re-
ported: james Downs ard wife, killed
John Howe, sou Of Joshua Howe a boy of
thirteen, killed; DR.. Groves, killed ard
Mrs. Groves leg b.oksn..; MIR. Morsefil's
child severely injured Mrs. Nanhall, bad
| ly injured, supposed to be mortally; John
| Vaughn, son OF Chss. Vaughn, severely in
| jured Mrs. 4. Fox, right arm broken in
three places Benz. Fox, ron of A. 5. Fox,
severely injured; Henry johnson, NOR.
tally wounded; Mrs. Henry johnson
killed; Mr.. Bolton, leg brosen; Joshus
Howe, badly injured james Vaughn, bad
| ly injured; Henry Ceaser, painfully in,
| jured; Robt. Laughlin, badly injured
Miles Kelley and family, more or less in
jured.
In all cases the houses we're torn to frag.
ments- The boy, John Howe, was found
ira peach orchard a long distance from
the house. Mrs. Vaughn was thrown into
a sree but csc lped with sprained ankle
The solid stone walls Of John Fox, houst
we're moved in a mas thirty feet. In many
cases where there was no loss of life oil
limb, the families were LETT without shelter
or clothing. Among the sufferers are Mr.
Youett, Mr.. Mortifibe, SIm rroaper, Jos
q ,rbut. H. T. Fitch, William Furly, EN-
ma J. Wager, A. 5. Fox, Stephen Osborn
Mr.. Dividsrn n, and his large new house de
stroyed, Mr.. McKannon, Mrs. Trooper
John Osbornson, Robert Osbornson, jr.
house unrooied, ". B. Caywood, Harvey
| and others.
But the saddest remains to be told. A,
The train approached Irving, the signs o
the tempest became more apparent, in The
shape of trees twisted off like weeds by ths
force Of the wind, and as the train stopPed
at the depot the passengers looked out on
scene OF de,olation, intensified by the
dreary wind and falling rains.
Scattered over the prairie were shapeles'
heaps, that had once been houses. In most
cases no portion of the wall was standing
They were not only crndown, but scattered
over the plain. The tower of the Presby
terian church still stood, however, amid q
hesp of stone and mcrtar-s monument oi
ruin. Near by another pile marked the
site OF the school house Once tasteful
residences were mere piles of splintered
boards. Near the depot were the ruins o
Tilton's elevator, and seversl wrecked cars
loaded with grain and lumber, blown Of
the track ard turned completely over
Two car wheels were seen many rods from
tie track.
In company with DR.. Clutter your re-
porter called on DR.. II. II. Tenny, TO whom
and to Mr.. ID. NJ. Taylor, late the principal
of the Irving schools, now homeless, he is
indebted for many courtesies. From these
gentlemen he obtained what may be called
an outline sketch of the storm.
Friday, May 30.h, opened a fine dsy
[ Until O'Clock nothing was observed in the
sky. A festival was to be given by the la,
dies, at the Presbyterian church, and the
people were preparing for an evening Of
enjoyment. At about haIf-past five dark
cloud. funnel shaped and in rapid motion
was seen in the southwestern horizon. /,
seemed to divide, and the two portions rose
in the air, AID the blue sky could be seen
below them. The sky grew darker; a few
minutes later hail fell, AID was followed by
rain and po~erful wind. 1t first struck
the house OF 4 Bohemian named Newark
, living three miles southwest. The house
was crushed, and Mrs. Newark killed. The
next victims were Mrs. George Martin and
child, two miles from town. The house Of
| Mr.. Buckmaster came next. The father
wss badly hurt, snd Mrs. BIckmaster and
four young children were killed. John
Gallops' houst wss struck, and several OF
the family injured. but not seriously.
Crossing the railroad track, Capt. Arm
strong's house and barn were taken. The
family were in the cellar and escaped. Mrs.
Jno. Thompson's family were equally for
tunate. Mr.. and Mrs. Lee Hunt escaped
with some inj1ries. W. J. William able
Was destroyed.
| After this there wss a lu!l, s.i the peo-
| pie Lett their houses to assist those who had
been unfortunate. The rain stopped and
the sky partially cleared. After a time,
variously estimated from half an hour to an
hour, the wind came with a roar louder
than an express train, from the West. The
noise was awful. The air was filed with
| living fragments. Joists and heavy timbers
hsw like stubble. Some of the people took
to the fields; others 20 their cellar-. With
the wind came a torrent of rain. The
house of Mr.. Johnston, the station agent,
went down. TIE family were preserved
from serious injury by taking refuge in the
| c-llar. A small clock was blown half a
mile. II stopped at 40 minutes past six
| o'clock. The houses of George Bowdish
and Mr.. Jefiers were demolished, but with
out loss of life or limb. A sadder fate be.
fell the Keeney family. Mr.. Keeney, the
father, his SOD, and his sons wife, we're all
killed. OF the three boys. two OF them are
painfully but not seriously injured. The
second son has leg badly broken in four
places.
| G. 4. W. Walkers house was unroofed.
T~enty-one people in the cellar escaped in
jury. The house of Mr.. James NJ. War
den was ruined. 1t was unoccupied by the
family, but partially furnished. The loss
to Mr.. Warden is not less than forty-6ve
| hundred dollars.
At Mr.. VIM. Bates house there were
more or less hurt. A son of Sydney Bates
wa, fatally injured and q little daughter,
Jesse Bates, is in a critical condition. At