St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1888-06-07
GIN THUNDER, LIGHTNING AND
IN RAM

The "O1dest Inhabitant'' S1enced-The
Enete West Observation-Disclosures Un-
rOOfed.-Trees Uprooted.-W Wind, Rain,
and Hail do Serious Damage.-A ST.
Johnsbury Hen Calmly Sits Through
| 1t All.
A cyclone visited this village yester-
day afternoon, no ordinary thunder
shower but genuine cyclone that un-
rooted buildings, uprooted trees,
smashed windows and performed all
the ordinary antics which are every
day occurrences in the effete West.
This affair was caused by the meeting
of two heavily charged clouds, one
from the west and the other from the
east, directly over the village at about
4:30 o'clock in the afternoon. 1t had
been very pleasant all day, but the
sitting atmosphere and darkening skies
at'4 o'clock betokened something out
of the ordinary. At 4:3O it was so dark
that the gas was lighted in some places
and shortly after the cyclone put in it's
appearance. The wind first rose,
blowing perfect hurricane from the
west, accompanied with sharp light
ming, severe thunder and a heavy rain
and hail storm. In another instant
the wind seemed to blow with equal
force from the east. The sturdiest
trees bowed before the gale, while the
rattling of the hail stones on the wind
Ows, the flying leaves, the breaking
limbs and overturning trees, and the
transformation of the streets into mini
! ature rivers, made things remarkably
| lively while the storm was at it's hight,
which, fortunately, was only for about
ten minutes, though it rained severely
for half an hour or so. Before the first
five minutes of the blow had passed
the "oldest inhabitant" succumbed and
crawled into the cellar for safety, and
all admitted when it was over that St.
JOhnsbury had never witnessed any
thing like it. Unlike its Western sis
ter, this cyclone warned the people of
its approach and nearly everybody had
sought shelter, so no serious casual
ties to persons are reported. Great
quantities of hail stones fell, many
stones being half an inch and some
nearly if not quite three fourths of an
inch in diameter by actual measure
ment.
| The Damage Done.
The damage done by the storm was
largely confined to this village and was
more serious on and below Railroad
street than on the Plain. Carrick
Bros. Granite Co., were among the
greatest sufferers. About 80 feet of
the roof on their new building but just
completed and occupied was carried off
from the north side in a twinkling and
converted into kindlings, the water
pouring down through and damaging
the stock and machinery of Jones &
Shields, cabinet makers. The granite
sheds of the company over 100 feet
long, in which a dozen or more men
were working, collapsed, the men bare
ly escaping from under the falling
roof. Some old buildings in the rear
of the granite works were also caved
in, while in the railroad yards near by
100 feet of the railroad wood sheds al
so collapsed.
Substantial buildings suffered as
we'll. The tin roofing over more than
half of Wards brick block ON the cor
ner of Railroad street and Eastern
avenue, was rolled up by the wind like
a scroll and carried to the rear of
Drouin's block, number of rods away,
accompanied by a chimney. Glass in
the front of the building was broken
by the hail stones, and the damage by
water will be considerable. The clock
sign in front of Spencer's jewelry store
| on Railroad street, was torn from its
fasteniDgs and thrown against and
broke one of the large lights of plate
glass in his store.
Shop Demolished and Horse Killed.
Richards blacksmith shop near the
Portland street crossing was converted
into heap of ruins, killing and bury
| ing horse that was in the stable be-
low. Search was made among the
ruins for Jim Gleason, who was sup
posed to be in the building, but he
turned up safely later on.
Quantities of sand washed down
from "sand hill" and piled on the
tracks at the Paddock village crossing
to the depth of two feet or more, hold
ing three trains from the North for an
hour or more as effectually as any of
last winters snow drifts. A walk
down Railroad street showed uproot-
ed trees and broken limbs in every
yard, and Pearl street looked as though
the hurricane had spent its fury in that
particular section. On Main street
and on all the streets on the Plain the
damage was not so serious though in
nearly every yard there were broken
limbs and uprOOted trees.
| Minor Casualties.
The court house flag was the first
thing to go.-The transom over the en-
trance to the Y. NJ. C.. A. rooms was
blown down and shattered.-A falling
tree across the track at 'the dump
crushed the cab of the gravel train en-
gine.-The partly erected frame of S.
A. Nelson's new house at the head OF
Main street was leveled.-A blowed-in
window in the Lake road telegraph of
flee struck Train Dispatcher COrriveau
who was II feet away and cut his
hand.-A. III. Buzzell, of the firm OF
Bnzzell 81 Shaw, was on a hill with his
ice cart in Summerville the cart was
completely wrecked and Mr.. Buzzell
and one horse hurt.-Ste bbins' new
bone mill in course of construction at
Summerville was unroOfed.-The roof
of Deans stoIe-house at his Summer
vile bone mill was lifted and the
bone mill leveled.-There wasn't tel
egraph wire at this point in working
order after the storm, and this morn
ing the only telegraph line that could