The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1884-02-22
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THE CYCLONES PATH
Terrible Facts Gathered Where
the Tornado Passed.
of Ruin.
Thousands Of Homes Laid Waste,
Hundreds of Persons Killed. and
Millions of Property De-
s:royed--A WOfui story

near the Mexican gulf, and then passed north.
Then it struck the city of Columbus. The
storm then divided, one branch running
up the Alabama side of the valley until it
was DETECTED by the Red mountains, in
which Birmingham is located. Then it
took an eastern course and passed
through Leeds, Lodima. and Oxmoor
into Georgia, where it passed. through Cave
Springs, Rome, and Barlow county into Can
ton and out of the state along the foothills
of the Blue ridge. Fourteen persons perished
at Lodima, six at Leeds, eight at Cave
Springs, and ten along the line from Rome
to Canton. Near Canton terrible accident
happened. The crowded county school was
dismissed in order to allow the pupils
to reach home. About thirty of them
took refuge in a building which was
overturned by the storm and ten Of
them mangled to death The other
branch of the storm went eastward from Co
lumbus through Talbot, Crawford, Bibb,
jasper, Hancock, Baldwin and Columbia,
fintdng exit through Edgelield, S. c. In
Baldwin, the Hon. r. c. Hamlin, candidate
for state treasurer, was killed by flying tim
beIs. Seven other persons were also killed.
An old couple over so, named Mathews, tot
capped. A train on the Macon &
Augusta road was blown off the track,
but no one was hurt. As nearly as
can be gathered, 200 lives were lost in
Georgia alone, 5000 buildings DESTROYED,
and 81, Goo, 900 worth of property demolished
In Columbia county, the plantation of George
Granada was ruined, the houses demolished,
and timber carried of. On the plantation of
H., l. W
Wade, the wife of the overseer, seriously
wounded. The cyclone passed through the
suburbs OF Cave Springs, Ca, killing five
men and severely injuring others. Houses
and everything in its path were demolished,
and the danger was great.
The town of Bra11eys, S. c., was nearly
blown away. The wife of DR.. Ligon was
badly injured. At Ninety six, s. c., house
was wrecked and a child killed. The resi-
dence Of W. H. Slattworth, Edgefeld county,
South Carolina, was blown down, and the
ruins taking fire, little daughter perished.
The dwelling house of J. C. Hankinson and
the store Of ]. S. Boyd, at Jack
SOB, S. c., were blown down and
three negroes killed. The town of
Millen was nearly destroyed At D.
D. Dicliert's plantation, Newberry county,
100 acres of original forest were swept away.
All the plantations were badly damaged.
Several large fires were observed in the
track Of the storm. Chappelfs station was
swept away, not house being left. Eight
loaded cars, standing on the track, were car
ried forty yards and torn to pieces. A man.
! woman, and child are reported killed at An
| derson.
In the lower part of Clarendon county
| South Carolina, James Cabbage and Ben
| Raggett's child were killed. In Darlington
county the dwelling of r. w. Boyd was de-
stroyed and two negroes killed. The dwell
| ing of Mr.. White, near Darlington Court
House, was blown down and himself and
| wife killed. Six persons are known to have
been killed in the county, and fifteen
wounded A serious loss of life and property
| is reported in the vicinity Of Williamsburg
county. The loss of property everywhere IS
very great. Twenty-Five houses s-all in this
Philadelphia settlement in North Carolina
were ieyeled by the cyclone. The bodies Of
three white men and eleven colored have
! been recovered Search is being made for
others believed to have been killed. At
Pioneer Mills, Carrabus county, six houses
were blown down and colored woman
killed. At Woodward's a negro and his wife
were killed. At Winnsboro three negroes
and an aged white lady, Mrs. Ster-
ling, were killed. Mrs Sterling's
son and daughter were blown from
the house into tree. At Polkton the wife
of F. NJ. Gray was killed by the falling of
their house. At Concord two brick houses
were partly demolished At Rockingham
the cyclone struck on the outskirts, destroy
|
pie and wounding many more. Several col
ored people were also killed ON the Pedee
river At Manley and Keyser the cyclone
destroyed everything Near Ellington,
| Harnett county, six persons were killed.
A cyclone swept through the Cahawba
valley in Alabama So far as can now be
learned eight persons were killed and thir-
teen injured, three of whom cannot live.
| These casualties occurred in one community
near the new town Of Leeds, twelve miles
from Birmingham, on the Georgia Pa
cific railroad AL the telegraph wires
to Birmingham, except that from
Leeds were Frustrated. The cy-
clone struck Leeds about 1:30 p. m,
and swept away the section house Of the rail
road, killing jeff Ford, Dan Cloud, and Bert
Keith, negroes and seriously injuring an
aged white couple, named Bass, living near.
Three miles south of Leeds the house of John
Poole was blown away, and son of II, a
daughter of 6, and child of negro tenant
of the place were instantly killed. Poole, his
wife and four children were all very badly
injured. The residences and premises Of DIR.
w. T. Wright, railroad conductor, were
completely demolished. The body of Mrs J.
s. Wright, DR.. Wrght's mother, was found
100 yards from the house, fearfully mangled
and with the skull crushed. Annie, aged
20, Jennie, 16, Thomas, Is, James, II, and
Edward, II, all children of DIR. Wright,
were badly injured-having their arms Or
legs broken. Harriet McCrew, cook for the
Wright family, was killed, half of her head
being taken off. OF twenty. four CARTS two
wagons, and three horses on the place, moth
ing remains but the carcass of one horse. The
house occupied by Mr.. Mclaughlin was
blown away and he was badly hurt. J. p.
Landrul wife and daughter all had legs
broken. The house of man named Kerr
took fire during the storm and was burned.
Mrs. Kerr was fatally injured The railroad
for several hundred yards is thickly strewn
with the debris of the cyclone, delaying
trains
Later Telegrams.
WILMINGTON, n. c., Feb. 22-Adyices
giving further particulars of the cyclone say
the storm came so suddenly that the people
were unable to escape from their houses. The
buildings were blown into fragments The
bodies of the dead were terribly bruised and
cut. The force of the wind was unprecedented
two milistones being moved over 1Ol
feet Chickens and birds were found pickle
clean. The largest trees were uprooted an
the smaller ones stripped of their bark. A
midnight tie sky was of dazzling red hue
The killed and wounded belong almost ez
clusively to the poorer classes, and there wi
| 4 a,,5 dosfitut;op oroon-r s-,,,