The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1883-05-31
FIRE AND STORM.
Lynchburg, Va, Visited by Dis
astrous onfiagration---Half
Million Already Gone.
Additional Particulars OF the Latest
Cyclone Cloud Burst ON the
Little Miami.

LYNcHBuRa, Va, May 3O-The most dis
astrous fire that ever visited this city
broke out at 10 o'clock this morn
ing ana is now raging furiodsly. Five
hundred thousand dollars worth of
property has already been destroyed,
including the Daily Virginian building and
fixtures and the Commercial Bank; the large
hardware establishment of Jones, Watts
Bros. d Co.; the large tobacco mandatory
of Flood & Peters, and other business houses.
Several residences are also destroyed. A
strong wind is blowing, and the fire depart
ment Is unable to cope with the flames.
kilograms have been sent to Richmond for
assistance.
AT MONTGOMERY. PA.
WILLIAMSBURG, Pa, May Goa fire at
Montgomery this morning burned the saw
mill of John johnson, with ninety tons of
bark; the store and dwelling of j. L. Derr,
the saddle-shop of Edward Felsburg, and the
oe-shop of j. e. Lloyd. Losses unascer-
tanned
WIND AND WATER,
CINCINNATI May 30.-Reports still are
scoming of the storm Monday night Up the
Little Miami valley something like a cloud
burst occurred, driving people off the first
floors, with flood.
At Freeport the bridge across the Miami
was torn from its piers and wrecked, and
Stubs Touring mill was unroofed
In Shelby, Decatur and bartholomew
counties, Indiana. the destruction of
barns, fences, timber and growing crops is al
most unreasonable, yet not single person
was hurt.
In Butler county, Ohio, a family near
WeStcheSter was badly injured by falling
walls, great number of barns were I'M
rooted, and two or three dwellings demol-
ished
report high wind, extraordinary rain, hail,
and lightning.
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind, May 30.-News of the
very destructive tornado which passed over
the counties of Clay, Owen, Johnson and
Shelby on Monday evening was not received
sooner on account of the smaller towns, which
suffered most, having no telegraph communi-
cation. At Clay City, a town in the south
western part of Clay county, the bank build
ing of Thompson, Jett & Mittse was unroofed,
and Burgers wareroom destroyed, beside
other smaller buildings. The storm passed
over part of the town and destroyed John
Crafts farm house, denolishing it and kill
ing five inmates, Mrs. Craft and child, Mrs.
Williamson and child, and young man by
name of Pfster, who stopped to take refuge.
A heavy rain and hail accompanied the
wind at Patricksburg, Owen county. The
path of the cyclone was mile wide Great
havoc was made in the town Two mills
were destroyed, besides dozen houses, and
large Touring mill was unroofed- Coats s.
Smaltz's store badly wrecked, and the
proprietors badly injured. The house of DR.
Richards and DR.. Storm and the Christian
church were all damaged greatly.
The Flat Rock valley, in Shelby county,
suffered from high winds, destroying timber
orchards p4r1anS fences and hnIIGaG
rendering many roads impossible.
The property loss is many thousand of dol
lars.
In Shelby county the damage to orchards,
gardens, timber, and crops was very great.
The storm struck at Flat Rock
station and swept on to Nor
ristown, where not building escaped
damage. There it turned to the eastward to
Geneva and on into Decatur county. The
storm covered territory some four miles
wide, and was accompanied by hail, many of
the stones being very large Acres of valua
BILE timber were ilown down, fine orchards
apTooted, barns blown down, and some
struck by lightning and burned. Fences,
gardens, crops aud houses were wrecked by
the storm, and the roads INSTRUCTED by fall
ing timber
The tornado seems to have struck johnson
county at about the same time as the village
of Kansas, six miles southeast of Edinburg,
where it destroyed the brick Christian church
Jarrett Demings bara was wrecked and
Frank Deming and Daniel Lane were fatally
injured in the ruins, both dying as soon as
taken out
Two boys named Bucllner, out hunting
each had a leg broken by falling timber The
storm passed on to Decatur county two
miles north of Greensburg, where the large
brick farm house of A. j. Draper was partly
unroofed and chimneys torn off
Trees in that vicinity were twisted off and
carried great distances. In the town the
Greensburg manufacturing company's build
ing was partly unroofed and the west brick
wall blown in. Small ut-buildings and
fences were tumbled over, shade and fruit
trees broken to pieces, and the slight injuries
were caused to many barns and residences.
At Adams, five miles west, the Baptist
church lost one-third of its roof, and was
heavily damaged by the rain.
The large farm barn of Aubury Shafer of |
jackson township, was burned by lightning
At about the same time another section of
the storm was raging with great fury in the
southern part of Clay and Owen counties |
1t struck near Clay City near Neills mills |
where a bridge across Eel river was blown |
down Several men had taken refuge from |
the storm in the bridge, and of these Joseph |
Seeley and a man named Kay were killed |
instantly.
Salisbury Parker had his right hand |
crushed and John Moody received body and |
face wounds.