Custer chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, Black Hills, D.T. [S.D.]) 1880-1890, 1886-05-22
A School Building Filled With
Children Torn to Atoms.
The Court House Crushed Like an
Egg Shell,
Other Buildings In the Track OF the
Storm Demolished.
Sad Scenes Of Suffering and SoY-
row.

KANSAS CITY, May 1l.-About 10 80 O'Clock
this morning ominous storm clouds began
gathering over the city. They first appeared
In the northeast, and surging westward across
the city turned suddenly about in their course
and, descending rapidly, broke upon the city
In a terrific burst of wind and rain that swep,
all lighter objects before them. The darkness.
was almost like night and the people fed te
the nearest shelter and awaited with blanched
faces the fury Of the tempest. The clouds
seemed to grsze the roofs of the highest build
ings and poured out their torrents in apparent
ly solid masses for q time. The storm struck
the city In full force about II 30, and ragged
for half an hour. The streets were running
rivers OF water, carrying boxes. signs and
other similar freight, blown from buildings or
swept up by the food. number OF vehicles
we're overturned, and In numerous instances
drivers abandoned horses to their fates and
sought refuge In stores and houses. some
hail accompanied the storm, but the fall was
not great, 9th r the loss 70 property
wou!d have been enormous from water coming
In through broken windows. As 1t was, win
lows In quite a large number Of buildings
were blown In and goods and furniture water
soaked.
The Lathrop school building occupied a
prominent cite at the corner OF Eighth and
Man streets. 1t consisted of a main building,
20 which a wing had been added. The build
ing was s~urmounted by q tower, which for
some time had been considered unsafe. 1t had
been twice condemned, once within a few
weeks, but no action had been taken in the
mater. This morning the building was
crowded with children, and many OF them
went nearly frantic with grief over the ap
palling darkness and stiffness which preceded
the the tempest. The wind swept midway
across Broadway from the west, and seemed
70 concentrate its force Ia O descent upon the
tower, which yielded with q crash, and tear
ing down the heavy bell, plunged through the
intervening floors to tie basement. The main
building Is a mass OF ruins within the shattered
walls, which stll stard. The wing was COM
parative'y uniDiured, and the scholars in 1t
we're not hurt. In the main building, how
ever, the effect was awful. The falling floors
precipitsted the terrified children to the base
ment, where masses OF bricks and boards
crushed them to the ground and
buried them from view. Persons near,
hearing the crash, made their way as
best they could against the beating storm to
the scene. The gale quickly subsidized and the
work OF r~escuing WAS undertaken by eager
hands. Osing to the prevailing excitement at
frst the work was not very effective, but the
Dire department and police soon arrived and
organized search WAS commenced. The dead
aud wounded were taken out as quickly ss
possible and carried TO the natorium adjoining,
which was turned into an hospital. Here the
parents and friends OF the little ONES soon
gathered, each searching for his or her own,
and uttering heartrending cries ss they recog-
n'zcd In the manned and bleeding forms those
whom they loved. Among the frat taken GU,
several were dead and one or two mangled be.
yond recognition, their clothing torn and their
bodies covered with dust and mortar, the
deathlike pallor OF the skin sho wing in painful
contrast against the CRIME and blood-stains.
Many heroic scenes were enacted during the
rescue, and the wounded children. some of
them, seemed 70 have greater control than
their elders. One little girl. half buried In
debris, over whom the rescuers were busy,
begged them to leave her and help q boy be-
s!ds her because, she said, be WIS only 5 years
old. The scenes In the nstorium as the little
ones were brought in and laid upon impro-
vIsed cots, the dead placed together upon one
side, were pitiful beyond expression. Adozen
dead were taken out during the day, and their
bodies seut TO the houses Of borrowipg fami-
lies. Several Of the children belonged to
prominent families In the city.
At No. ITO West Third street stood 4 three
story brick building In the middle Of the block,
the third door Of which was used ss an overall
factory, conducted by Hass Bros, first and
second floor by the Graham Paper company.
In the factory were about twenty-n Eve en-
out they started for the cellar. The building
fell with = crash, being RACED entirely TO the
earth. and most Of the frightened girls were
caught In the ruins. -Four have been taken
out dead. number Of others are
wounded and some arc still mlss-
ing. A force OF laborers are busy tonight
bv 6lckeYing lantern lights overture
ing confused masses OF bricks and timbers.
The county court house stands at Second and
Main streets, On . hill, exposed to the winds
from the north and west. The building was
erected nearly twenty years ago for hotel pur-
poser, hut when completed was purchased by
| the county for s20,tUO and converted into q
court house. The building has always been
considered rather unsatisfactory, and the roof
has frequently suffered Injury from high
winds. The storm struck the northwest cor
ner to-day, blowing In the roof and major por-
lions Of the wall OF the third and fourth
stories. The south wall ut the east end wss
blown into the street aud Deputy Sheriff
Dougherty was caught and killed.
All the others succeeded In getting out Of
the building alive. The jsil Ia located 10 the
basement Of the building, and that
portion escaped injury. The prison
ers were intensely alarmed. but