Iron County register., 1883-05-24
THE DEADLY CYCLONE.

THE DEADLY CYCLONE.
wyando otte County, Kansas, and Kan
sas City. NO.. Receive a Sunda ay
Visit from the Monster.
Sunday the 18th about four O'Clock,
the people of Kansas City and Wyandotte
watched with almost breathless anxiety
the gathering of angry clouds in the west,
sn1 as the thunder mnttered it's deep rum
hings and thescloudk Ahickened n dark
ness, it became evident to the thousands of
anxious watchers that storm Of more tYfan
ordinary violence was rushing eastward,
possibly bringing death and devastation in
its COURSE About half.past five the dread
full funnel-shApedclbud was seen to form
southwest of the City of Wyandotte and
bound along fn a Pnortheasterly di-
rection. This struck the residence of Mr..
David Reed, who lives two miles west of
Wyandotte, had his house completely de-
molished. His wife, Mrs. Maria Reed, was
instantly killed The family were all in
the front room, and seeing the storm ap-
preaching set about closing the doors and
windows. Mrs. Reed stepped outside to
close the door of the hennery. While stoop-
ing to fasten the door the roof of the dwell
ing house was blown off and struck her
upon the back of the neck, breaking it. Mr..
Reed was closing a window when the walls
of the house were blown in, and he was
fearfully cut about the head and neck.
Annie Reed, the ten-year old daughter,
seized the baby and ran down into the cell
lar. She was caught by falling joist and
pinned to the floor badly hurt. The baby
dropped to the floor and escaped uninjured.
A., - 40 ,lav,< Lof
Clarence Smith was blown down. Mrs.
Smith received several injuries about the
body. At II. L. Kerr's the roof was blown
off the house, but thewalls remained stand
ing.s Mr.. Kerr had the finest orchard in
County of hieh scarcely a tree
was left standing. The Stewart Precinct
school house, a one-story brick structure,
was literally blown in pieces, scarcely one
brick being left upon another. Mr.. Stew
arts elegant conservatory and hot beds
were destroyed. The roof of Theodore
Holly's brick residence was blown off and
thrown 80 into the. public road,
distance of 200 feet. His barn was
blown down and orchard uprooted.
The residence of Iohn Schmidt; German
farmer was turned over. All the family,
of ten persons, were in the house
at the time, and escaped by crawling
through the windows after it had been
overturned. Other houses in the track of
the storm were more or less injured. At
this point the. storm seemed to take the
form of a water-spout, and whirled in a
circle of about 800 feet in diameter. An
eyewitness AYERS that he saw forest tree
torn up by the roots and carried high in
the air, being whirled around the circle Of
the cxddnn tk@ q feaN N1er,anei- ;fna1ly de-
posted over 100 feet from where it was up
roeted All athrouzh - thu gysimber
trees We're stripped q ~shsf bark and
twisted in every conceivable man
ner. The cyclone finally crossed the
Missouri River into Clay County, Mo-, The
damage to propartyin Wyandotte County
is estimated at over 100000.
Soon after this another funnel-shaped
cloud formed in South Wyapdotte, crossed
he Kansas Rvef and str1ek .Kanses City
Mo. The approach of this was the signal
lorN fight toYceaaH By thu reople of the
southern portion of the city Pie cyclone
crossed the bottoms unroofng the Stock
Exchange building and commenced its de-
struction on the bluffs by demolish-
Ing the uncompleted residence of Mr.. J. C.
Horton. 1t then swept along through the
Fourth ward, the houses of Rey. A. D. Ma
iefra; Al Glenn, Upton ~EbyyD.IS Ir-
win, E. J. Frey and Keefer's grocery store,
being demolished and ruined. Thence east
ward until Main street and Fourteenth was
reached did the whirling cyclone continue
It's zig-zag path, blowing down small
houses, unroofng larger ones, uprooting
5rees, turning over sidewalks and blow
ng fences and buildings about like straws.
Continuing its course through the city the
houses of Mr.. John Hengle, DIR. Crow and
others were destroyed. The new German
Church, but recently complet-
ID at a cost of 900, was totally ruined.
IS were all houses on Fourteenth street
facing the park from Oak to Locust. The
cyclone jumped from block to block, de-
'troying buildings in it's course. Buildings
we're destroyed on the north side of
Thirteenth street from Cherry to
The damage ON Twelfth street
,ast was equally great. The destroyer
inally passed out of the city in north
direction. The number of
houses destroyed and injured was
at over two hundred. :, The
Killed in Kansas City were Willie Siebin,
! boy twelve years of age, who
vas at Il theS circus grounds, by the
of circus wagon, and
Joseph Burns. The injured were James
orummond. probably fatally; H. LIE. :
,recht, seriously !; Mrs. Thomas j. Dye,
child of Mrs. jackson, ia
ally; Arthur Whitney, boy, seriously;
md Mrs. Trainor, Mrs. Lorie, Mrs. Gym
ha Davis and Frank Jenkins. The damage
o property in Kansas City was estimated
It not less than $25O,OOO. !