Crawford avalanche., 1886-09-09
the shook jorhed overv potato out onto the sur.

/
body OF Farmer Kann was found looked like a
J Vermont hillside thick was 1t strewn with
rocks and pieces of brick. A stone weighing not
field at just such height that it left narrow
black furrow in the short grass. Away
to to-. the 20 other S,ro side Of the neid al al,
course OF this huge stone stood small tree
The tree was cut off six inches from the ground,
and through the picket fence close by big,
round hole showed where the stone had glanced
of on its course trail OF torn and uprooted
cabbages led TO the spot where the terrible mis-
| sile had ut last stopped. IL was almost buried
in the loose soil OF The cabbage field quarter OF
| q mile from its starting point
| FEEAKs OF THE EXPLOSION.
| Tho freaks Of the explosion were wonderful
| as they were unexplainable. John Gugls house
| was torn TO pieces and set on fire, while only
| 100 feet away the house occupied by Justice
Tearney had one side cleared off as neatly as
though carpenters had worked at 1t a week.
A horse In Justice Tearney's barn, a little way
back OF the house, was torn and cut by shower
| of stones which came through the board siding
as though it had been cardboard. Another
horse, close beside the wounded animal, did not
John Jung, a Holander, lived in u little
ffo 4esrneSi dn t6e 1oter SIDE Of zrchee
road. He was sitting near n window looking
out mt the rain, when he suddenly heard a
crash and whole pane of glass was driven
into his feet. His wife was knocked down
and his two sons and Il daughter tossed
to the other side OF the room. Almost
quarter OF minute after the affrighted family
heard terrible crash over their heads, follow
ed by another still louder which shook the little
cottage from top to bottom; Jung ami his
! family threw themselves to the floor and gave
| themselves up for lost AS no more shocks came
the grown.np son arose and helped his father to
| chair Then he climbed up n ladder leading
| to the attic and found two holes in the roof big
| enough to let n mans body through. There
| We're also two immense stones in the attic. They
had been part OF the foundation OF tho powder
| magazine tve minutes before, and had been
| shot out of the big clay mortar with such force
| that they cut through the roof as clean as n
! cannon-ball could have done.
| MANY MIRACULOUS ESCAPES
| There We're many miraculous escapes and
mark or scratch the worse for his adventure.
| is sure he travelled fifty feet through the air
He was walking down Archer road about
| a quarter of q mile from the Iafiin- Rand
| magazine when he heard a terrible roar
| The sidewalk raised up with him. and then
he felt himself sailing through the air
| Stones and rocks whstled by him. and the next
| thing he knew was half an hour after when he
| came to his senses in pile of hay. He had
been blown into haystaek fully 100 feet from
where he stood He crawled out, and not find
| ing any bones broken, although he felt a little
stiff and sore. went over to the hole where the
magazine had stood. When he saw the effects
of the explosion he was lost in amazement
BE jabers, it's wonder wasn't blown over
the moon," he calculated.
BLOWN OUT OF AN ENGINE CAB
Frank Minshaw a fireman on the Chicago a.
Grand Trunk Railroad, was in the cab of his
engine 300 yards away when the thunderstorm
approached He saw an arrow of blue flame
strike the tin roof Of the powder house In
stantly the blue flame spread over the metal
covering, and a moment later he was blown
from the cab across adjoining rail-
road track. The crash OF the thunder
swelled into deep-toned, dull report the
ground vibrated as from an earthauake
and the concusson from the air deafened him
When he had gathered up his scattered senses
and looked toward the powder house he saw
stones, tinbers, and flying missiles in the air,
and the earth thrown up in a cloud OF dust.
The crash OF glass in the round-house and re-
pair shops near by followed the first report. A
ma aa1 nttfrl.t tla
roof of the round house, the top and side OF a
box car and into the ground. Another stone
nearly as large was hurled through the repair
shop half u mile away.
DAMAGES AT A DISTANCE.
IIhs lsihi3fSSka ye6g pehsfees Wis 1dl45@lS
averted. The windows on the south side of the
building were badly demolished, and glass and
pieces OF the sashes were hurled fifteen or
twenty feet into the rooms and broken on the
opposite walls. The door castings on the lower
story were splntered into kindling wood and
the locks broken. The plastering on the
ceiling Of tho main hall was all loosen
end of the hall to the other, distance OF
200 feet An iron door in the attic which weigh
ed 200 pounds, was broken from its hinges and
hurled half way across the room. large joist
four inches thick was broken squarely in two
In the laundry and kitchen much damage was
done The carpenter shop and many of the out
the building and grounds are fully $1,000
Col. FELTON, was lying on the sofa in front OF a
window when the shock occurred The window
was broken by the concussion and the Colonel
was completely buried beneath pile Of broken
glass and kindling wood He escaped injury
but was badly stunned by the shock.
Mrs. Armour, the matron, was prostrated, and
for time was considered in a critical condition
She revived later in the day, and last night was
considered out of danger.
The prisoners were greatly frightened The
ignorant among them imagined that the end of
the world had come, while the more INTELLIGENT
ones thought they were about to be swallo wed
bylan earthquake. They were soon quieted, with
Continue to shake for davis
to come.
SIMULTANEOUS SHOCKS THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
Ihe southwest portion Of the city seems to
have received the brunt OF the shock although
damage is reported far north as Evanston
The windows on the west side OF McCormick's
reaper factory were nearly all broken The
same is true Of those ON the south side Of w. w,
kimball's piano factory and the building occu-
pied by the Chicago Malleable Iron Works both
of which situated in that neighborhood
The water in the river near McCormicks factory
was greatly agtated by the disturbance, and
lashed over the banks for many feet on either
sides. water pipe burst in front of the NAL
leable Iron Works and flooded the street before
1t could be repaired.
Many builings in the vicinity OF the Twelftb
street police police station were damaged At
the Jesuit Church. Mt the corner of Blue Island
avenue ana Iwelfth street, a regular panic oc-
Cured over two Thousand people, mostly
women, were crowded in the basement at the
time. Some one yelled fire at the moment of
the explosion, and instantly there was n ruah |
for the door The weak were knocked down |
and ruthlessly trampled upon, while many OF |
the stronger ones jumped through the windows |
and escaped. An alarm was turned in and the /
fire department responded to the call No one |
was seriously injured.
PEOPLE SCARED OUT OF THEIR WITS.
The business portion Of the city did not es-
cape. The shock put out the gas in the Grand |
Pacific Hotel, and caused lively scene among |
the guests. Many Of them rushed down stairs |
minus shoes and stockings, while others clad
in scant raiment, huddled in the halls and cor
ridors. No serious injury done to the
building. Two windows in the east corner of
the Board OF Trade were demolished Three
windows on the north and east side OF the Gov
eminent building were also broken, and a large
plate-glass in Spiegels furniture at the corner
OF State and Jackson streets was DESTROYED
On the West Side considerable damage was
done TO dwelling houses. In many places on
Ashland avenue and Washington boulevard
chandeliers were knocked down and dishes
were smashed in the closets. In one house on
Morgan street not a chandelier was left hanging
BILLIARD BALLS HURLED FROM THE TABLE
rather amusing incident occurred az the
Union House. number of young men were
enjoying game Of billiards. One young fellow
had succeeded in placing the balls to suit him
and was leaning over the table preparing TO
shoot, when the shock came and every ball was
hurled from the table, much to the chapin OF
the player and the amusement of the lookers-on.
A block OF stone of about one hundred and
nifty pounds went through the wall OF the
Grand Trunk Roundhouse, about mile north,
and another dropped through the roof smash
ing in the cab OF an engine
FATAL CONCLUSIONS.
negro woman living at the corner OF Leavitt
and Htnman streets was so badly frightened
that she went into convulsions and is not ex-
driver on the Blue Island avenue line was
standing in the front door of the car barns
When the shock came he was thrown backward
onto the floor and stunned. When he came TO he
was suffering from convulsions. He was report
ed better last night
Joseph Fester Of 1Io Brown street, was walk.