Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1882-04-29
Terrible Tornadoes.
,.,, the Philadelphia Times.

e" ,he horror of the accounts already pup
,,,had The stornl-lashed distrlct pre-
u.s. a scene Of devastation and distress
sIn like of which has never before been
,Ioyn. Your correspondent passed over
N,ortion of the storm-track to-day and
"dp,hered from eyewitness full particu-
- Of the gale and its destructive work.
II.burst suddenly on the community about
a,.o o'clock in the afternoon and Travelled
NH almost incredible velocity in a
,nrtheasterly direction. The village of
Evansville is situated sixteen miles north
dfTniontown, on the Southwest Railroad
and is in sight of the cyclone track.
people living in this village had good
view of the gale as it swept swiftly by on
the outskirts. An idea of its velocity may
he rSined by the account of Mrs. McCleI-
Ian.
WHAT MRS. MCCLELLAN SAW.
She saw it approaching several hundred
Yards distant and started with her family
70 run from the kitchen into The ceiiar,
hut before she could get through the door
Il had swept by and all was over. IL
,sissed her house bv twenty feet ana de-
stroved the Disciples Church which
80 nasr bv. To show how clearly de-
all we're lis limits it may be stated that
one side of a locust tree In her yard was
striDned of its branches to the trunk,
,rhiIa the other side was left unharmed.
Other persons who saw the gale approach
inc made similar attempts 10 got into cell
IaTs. but so rapid was its progress that III
every case it was on them and over before
they could flee. Mrs, Miller and her
three grown-up children started TO 60
from the dining room into the kitchen,
Re
zion and overturned.
TIE ADVENTURE OF THE MILLER FAMILY.
The family were all knocked senseless
amid the falling ruins. Mrs. Miller was
the first TO regain consciousness, but how
long she lay she knows not. She then
Gathered her bruised and bleeding child
Rem together and fled from what was once
her home, but now shapeless mass OF
r,Iins. thankful, as she said with fearful
eyes. 10 get away with even the life of
herself and her children. The freaks of
the cyclone were of the most incredible
chayacter. 1t moved in general north
casterlv direction, but with many Zigzags
and oscillations. Sometimes the greatest
violence would be nearest the ground, as
was seen in sN eeping the bottom rails oil
board fences and leaving the upper rails
undisulrbed, and as seen especially in the
fate of John BundOrffs house. The low
or story OF his building was swept out
from under the superstructure, the latter
being affected only by crumbling into
the cellar when the base was thus re-
moved from under it. An idea of the
terrific force that accompanied it may be
imagined from the fact that some Of the
long and heavy stills or ground logs in the
foundation of Mr.. BuudOrh's house were
lifted into the air, carried several hun
dred wards and driven -four feet cndwayS
into the brow of hill where they stuck
out lcver-likc until dug ont to-day, aud
from The circumstance that brickbat
Was carried from the Disciples Church
for Two hundred yards and deeply lmbcd-
ted il, the side OF Mr.. Loyns' frame dwell
ling. The bricl, did not split and shatter
the weather boarding, but entered ii so
rs TO make clean-cUt aperture, rs if
hurled from 4 catapuit.
GATHERING FORCE As IT WENT.
As the cyclone travelled on it seemed to
gather force, filing the air with flying
rails, rubbish, timber and all sorts OF
missilS. One Of these weapons pierced
MIR. BundOrif through the back and he
probably cannot recover. When the tor
naGo reached the Blue Ridge Mountains
il seemed 10 especially reinforce itself for
the ascent aud for its last deadly work.
After destroying the house of Joseph
Glassbnrn and crippling and manning his
wife and five children, it passed to the
most dreadful scene in all this chapter of
sckenlng details, in the sad fate of John
Wingrove's family. Mr.. Wingrove was
three hundred yards distant ftom the
house, driving home with a wagon load
ii, ctr IL n
leaped from the wagon, leaving the
horses to their fate, and started for his
house and family. lie was overpowered,
but finally reach ed the spot where but a
moment before had been his home and
happy family.
JOHN wINGRovE's MISFORTUNE.
In looking about for his lost ones he
found his wife first, lying dead fifty yards
from where the house stood, with her
babe, eleven months old, claspcd tightly
to her bosom. She had eucircled her
Youngest boz II as if in deaths last embrace,
and though she had been hurled so far,
the violence that tookaway her own life
had spent its angry force on her and left
the babe unframed. But the stricken bus
bands grief was not yet complete. Turn
ing about he beheld his -four other child
rem, ranging up to IA years in age, scatter
cd around and trying frantically to eX-
tinguiSh the flames that were consuming
their clothes and persons. The children
contended that Tie fire burst upon them
from the cloud above. Two of these child
rem have since died of their injuries,
making three deaths in this Inflated fam
lily.
WHERE DID THE CYCLONE GO TO?
The storm passed on over the mountain
leveling houses, barns, fences and timber,
but how Ear it went before spending itself
has not yet been learned. Tie appearance
Of the cyclone was that of a dark and fun
nel-shaped cloud, little end-down, with a
req bright light cleaning above it. 1t was
not more than two hundred yards wide
and travelled with velocity of about n
mile a minute. When it passed away it
was succeeded by calm, clear sky and
the most intense sunlight. The loss to
the sufferers cannot well be estimated in
dollars and cents, bnt it would reach far
towards 100000 oven in ordinary prop