Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1886-05-21
IN -FOUR STATES.
Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and Virginia
Visited by a Storm Of Wind,
Rain and Hail.
twenty-five People Killed at XenIa,
Ohic--The Destruction Of
Properly Immense.
Hundreds OF People Bom eisss--wIrs aud
nniirond Communication Cut
off--Aid Solicited.

CiScINNATi, ONO, May 10 THE city Of
Xenias Green cou W, In this state, Is re-
ported inaccessible by railroads from any
direction because oi washouts by the
storm last night Archer creek, which
flows from the east under culvert near
the depot, has damned the culverh with
drift and formed great reservoir which
broke the railway embankment, swept
through the town, carrying houses away
and causing loss Of life; besides sweep
Ing away six hundred feet OF railway
track At lo.40 a IN there Is sin no
telegrophlc communication with Xenia or
Dayton, but from railroad officials It Is
asccrtained that twenty persons are re-.
ported killed and large number injured
The wind blew down trees and telegraph
poles until there are no communl-
cations with Cincinnati Whatever
Only the merest outlines Of the great
disaster at Xenia are obiaInable. From
these II appears that tho rainfall last
night was the heaviest ever known In
that part Of the state. ~ was a length.
ened cloud.burst, beginning at y O'Clock
and continuing till after 10.
shawnee river which runs through a
portion VI the town, with colleges Quilt
on it's bank, rose 70 an unprecedented
height swept away fifty to one hundred
buildings, and the Inmates suddenly
found themselves helpless In an angry
food
How many lives were lost Is not yet
known, hut at 1880 o'clock the rescuiug
party had recovered twenty-iour bodies.
IL was estimated that number more
won ytt be found The storm Is de-
ecrhcd as the most disastrous ever
known. On the Little Miami railroad
the nearest approach any train could
make TO the city was three miles. The
bridges were all washed away and ia
places the track also, Trees were blown
down, fences destroyed aud crops ruined.
THE scRNE Ar XESIA,
&rNIA, MAY "a The principal stream
flowing through Xenia IL Archer creek,
which II generally small stream with 10
destructive powers The creek flows
through a culvert under the Panhandle
railway depot Lust night a frighiful
storm ragged from O'Clock until after 49,
The stream became so greatly swollen ON
account Of the heavy rains TIL
the culvcrt was taxed 10 lts utmost to
give the water passage way. When drift
F.
swollen stream II was cnught ut the oul-
vert until u perfect dam was formed.
The citlzsns pefcelying danger worked
earnestly 20 dlrlodg1 the tlmbora and
drift-wood, which kept increasing, but
the force az the current wedged them Ia
50 tight that their forts were futile. The
water backed up, soon overtlowed the
banks, and ere long formed an extensive
reservoir. The people all over the city
began 10 grow alarmed, bus before any
definite action WAS taken the water broke
Its cmbankment and rushed through the
town, tearing down trees and washing
away houses More than one hundred
houses were swept away. Many resi-
Gencca were swept down the current with
their inmates Tho house OF Aaron H, rgu-
son thus washed away contained nine
persons OF his own family and three Of
John Burtchu's, who tled there for safety.
GENERAL RESUME.
CINCINNATI, ONO, MAY l8,--The storm
last evening whirh did eneh fearful work
at Aenia WAS far reaching. 1t Is heard Of
In Illinois, through Indiana aud Ohio, and
at Winchester, Va Here there has been
uansnal electrical disturbances for the
past three nights. On Monday night
there vas almost uninterrupted lightning
from II y. m. 90 a, M Tuesday evening
n similar condition existed, accompanied |
by heavy rain and hall. Last night there
was another electrical storm with wind |
heavy rain and hail, The Xenla storm
was much moro furious. The ooun- |
ties Of Montgomery, Clark, Butler.
Warren and Greene, lie adjacent
the Ohio and form an elevated plateau
In these counties are the towns Of Day
ton, Springfield, Hamilton, Lebanon and
Nenia In the eastern county 81 Indi.
ana, adjoining this district, rs Corners
Vile. AT these places the rain OF last
night was Of the heaviest volume ever
known, AT Dayton 1t measured a. inches
In about three hours, Xenia was
so situated as TO meet with the worst re-
suits. Maumee river traverses that por
ton 81 the city adjacent to the Little
Miami railroad, which lies lower than tho
main portion Of the city. The railway
enbankment rises above the general
level, and the stream flows through II
Ia q large oulyrrt Last nights
rainfall was too much for the capacity OF
tho culvert. The waters rose and swept
away the embankment, and with great
force rushed on tho cottages located In
the low banks, aud without warning bore
them from their foundations.
At Springfield the food WAS OF
nearly the same volume, but the
drainage was better. East High
street bridge was undermined aud lisa
mass OF rufus. In the eastern and south
eastern portions OF the city many families
We're driven from their houses by the
encfoaching food. Dozens OF bridges
over streams were washed away. The
LOSSES cannot be estimated tonight, but
will be tomorrow. They are exceedingly
heavy.
at Lebanon Ohio, the Methodist Epis-
copal church. the Lebanon house, a grlst
mill, warehouse aud several residences
were unroofsd, Shade trees were ruined
Nearly every railroad across the state
was crippled. Some Will require several
days 10 repair.
nAYToE Is0LArEp.
DAYTON, Onto, May lS,--nayton lis
Isolated. There are no trains IN or out
The telegraph and telephone wires are
all down. A storm OF wind, rain ana
hail as big as hens eggs struck Dayton
and vicinity at O'Clock last evening.
The small streams became rushing tor-
rents, and the Miami = mighty hood,
rising nine feet Ia three hours, inun-
dating fifty acres OF houses In tho Fourth
wart Of Dayton, drowning horses aud
cows, and terrifying the citizens where
the streets turned iuto the river beds.
The merchandise ID the cellars was
fuptH The sgidgcs M all directions
weru swept away Farm bnlldings and
dwelling were demolished. All kinds OF
crops were totally rained Tho destruc-
tion by the cyclone IL In a track east
from the Big Aflaui TO the Little Miami
and GAINESVILLE. Zionvllle brick Reform
church, four niles south Of Dayton, lisa