Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1890-04-01
POOR LOUISVILLE.
A Path of Ruin Four Squares
Wide and Two Miles Long.
A Hundred Killed and as Many More
Wounded.
THE roRNApo's AWFUL .oaK.

At 1926 o'clock a cyclone ofunusual
violence crossed the city from south
west to northeast, leaving death and
destruction in its path.
The list Of killed and wounded
amounts into hundreds. The loss Of
property amounts into milliens.
All the evening storm had been
gathering and the lightning and
thunder were ominous. At 8 O'Clock
it began to rain and the storm grad
ually increased in intensity. The rain
changed to hail and peopls kept
within doors. The signal service in
the aftereoon predicted a cyclone, but
no one thought it would strike Louis
vile. At 1875 the disaster came up.
The heavens were black as ink.
There was deep, threatening roar
as the cyclone struck the southern
portion of the city.
Then the buildings crushed like
eggshells and a broad swathe OF de-
struction was the result.
The path of the tornado was from
Seventeenth and Maple northeasterly
across the city past Seventh and
Broadway, Sixteenth and Chestnut,
Twelfth and Jefferson, and thence to
the union depot at the foot of Seventh
street.
The worst ruin was wrought among
the large and substantial structures
on Market and Main streets, and it
seems as if the demon of the storm
did it's worst just when about to leave
us.
The whole thing was over in a min
ute and half.
People living outside the track of
the storm were unaware that anything
unusula had happened, and where the
cyclone swept there was utter de-
struction, ruin and death.
Great buildings tumbled like toy
houses. Churches, factories and
warehouses went down like card
boards.
People fed in terror from death in
their ruined homes.
There were agonizing screams for
help.
Surgeons were hastily summoned.
Half dozen fires broke out in as
many different parts of the city.
Meantime the cyclone departed as
quickly as it came. The gray day
light of the morning revealed scene
of desolation that is sickening to be-
hold.
Main street from Seventh to
Twelfth is ruin. So is Market street
for the corresponding distance. JEFF.
ferson from Thirteenth, Walnut from
Thirteenth to Fifteenth, Chestnut
from Thirteenth to Seventeenth,
Broadway in the neighborhood of
Eighteenth and Nineteenth are filed
with debris and destruction.
In the course of the storm lay the
prided tobacco market of the city,
and to-day the warehouses almost to
the las. ones are in ruins. They in
clude: Kentucky, Pickett's, Ninth
street, Falls City, Phoenix, Greenover,
Louisville, Enterprise, Central and
Planters.
The destruction of the Louisville
and Ninth-street warehouses could not
possibly have been more complete.
Thousands of hogsheads of tobacco
lay in a mass of brick and mortar,
some in view, others buried from
sight beneath the debris. The Louis
vile Hotel, between Sixth and Seventh
was unroofed and otherwise wrecked,
while the building west occupied as
a cigar store upon first floor and
sleeping rooms on the second and
third floors, was RACED entirely to the
ground, not single brick remaining
in place. In the destruction of this
house nine lives were lost, principal
ly of persons who occupied sleeping
rooms there. Five of them were
young girls employed at the hotel
next door.
THE RESULT SUMMED UP YESTERDAY.
The greatest loss of life was at the
Falls City Hall where about no peo-
pie were assembled, some in Lodges
and others at a dance. Perhaps half
of these were killed and most of the
others injured. Nine persons were
killed in Virgil Wright's building,
crushed by a wall of the Louisville
Hotel. The latest estimate is that
the total dead will not reach ITO. OF
these l03 bodies have been recovered.
The property loss will be 100000.
There was only $500 of insurance
against tornadoes, $1,000 ON plate
plate glass windows, and 100000 of
life and accident policies.
AT OTHER PLACES.
In West Louisville, Daviess county,
Tom Logan aged 8, was killed and
ID others hurt, two fatally.
In Henderson county 81 lives were
lost and many persons injured.
In Webster county 6 or 8 were kill
ed and 40 wounded.
At Salem, Ky, Is lives are report
ed lost and SO people hurt.
Gallatin. Tenn also oa,,o,h+ n Lo,J