Weekly graphic. [volume] (Kirksville, Adair Co., Missouri) 1880-1949, 1883-07-20
THURSDAYS TORNADO.
A Graphic Description by an Eye
witness.
(Irapldc Correspondence.)

and wrecked the towns trenton, Iatlt,
Lindley and Humphreys In Trenton
two churches. were totally wrecked.
the railroad workshops unroofed, both
depots partially unrooted and large
majority of the business houses dam
aged, several Of them having the en-
tire fronts blown in. In Gault a
church was nearly destroyed, one
business house destroyed and several
dwellings wrecked. Several persons
were badly hurt. In and around
Humphries the storm was terrific, sew
eral houses were partly unroofed, and
others twisted. The Christian church,
an elegant new structure upon which
$500 had just been expended was re-
duced to shapeless mass of splinter
ed rubbish.
The store of Berg & Bloch was
crushed to atoms. In it at the time it
was demolished were seven persons:
all of whom escaped with slight bruises,
except ]. c. Henry furniture dealer,
who did business adjoining. He was
knocked down, his face and head badly
cut, several of his ribs broken, and mis-
body and limbs were covered with
terrible bruises. Mr.. McKnabb and his
wife. and boy named Eavard Eman-
uel, were in the store when it collapsed
and had no time escape, but they were
crushed down among a lot CT barrels of
salt. a mattras fell on top protecting
them from the falling timbers. Your cor
respondent was the first person on the
ground and with others who soon arriv-
ed, assisted them to escape from their
narrow prison house. The wreck of
the store presented a most deplorable
appearance. Coffee, sugar, calico,
silk, clothing. trunks hats, boots. and
every article found in a stock ofgenera1
merchandise was crushed into an in
distingulshable mass. and upon top of
this was shattered glass, plastering,
lath, beams, and broken show cases
and counters.
Mr.. Robt Clark who lives about two
miles from town had his house un-
rooted and his jaw was badly crushed
by flying fragment. Mr. Germans
house, two miles west of town was bad
ly wrecked being pushed over to one
side. The Baptist church was badly
twisted and moved four inches from its
place. Falling timber crippled valu'
able horse so that it will probably have
to be killed.
The door of the Touring mill was
blow open, and Mr.. Stringer the miller
who weighs at least 200 pounds, was
blown clear across the mill carrying
with HIM two bushel sack of meal
which he had just filled for customer.
In his involuntary flight he was carried
against the carriers or elevators which
convey the wheat alott, and tore two of
them down. The mill was running
and 1t was with great difficulty that
Mr.. Stringer made his way to the bell
cord and stopped the engine. A re-
markable freak of the storm was the
melting of a breast-pin which was in a
glass on stand in Mr.. E. M. Sana-
ford's house. The sto.m was not a
cyclone 4; it had no circular motion, but
swept In. its path as straight as an
arrow.
The incidents of the storm were
many and curious.
A house belonging to Mr.. Stringer
was lifted from the blocks on which it
stood and dropped upon them withsuch
force as to crush the posts up through
The floor. A portion of the roof of the
depot was torn off aud strewn along
he railroad track for a hundred yards.
In Lindley, a little town about three
niles north of Gault, the damage was
equally as great. One store was struck
~ lightning and burned up, another
blown down and several others
lnroofed and otherwise damaged.
Several persons were more or less
injured wherever the storm struck.
A passenger train was blown off the
rack two miles south of Browning and
everal persons hurt, two of them
everely. Mrs. Tally, who lived near
'1ilan. died the next molning. At
,ornu little town seyen miles cas-. of
'renton a house was blown down,
truck by lightning aud destoyed.
The destruction in the country
round the towns above named was
reat, and news of fresh disasters was
irving hourly.
MIR. Johnson's property four miles
orth of Gault was wrecked; as was
$50 Mr.. Brasfeld's two miles outh of
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