The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1892-06-03
DEVASTATING STORM.
Terrible Work of a Tornado IN
Southern Kansas.
wellington, Harper and Argonia In Ruins
Many Lives Lost-Scores Fatally In
Jured-The Damage Immense-List
of Some Of the Victims


warning from the signal service, and
when it had passed on its fearful way il
left at least ten dead and scores OF
wounded and 100000 damage in its
trail in this city alone, while st the
towns of Harper and Argonia almost se
great disaster is reported, and in all
the surrounding country there is every
reason to believe that there is death
and ruin.
1t was just o'clock when the storm
descended from the west upon this city.
1t came in a manner that no two can
agree in describing. Some say Ii was
in the shape of twister, while others
say it did not have the characteristic
funnel shape of the tornado, while 9TH
ers say that it simply descended in the
shape of a storm cloud and then sud-
denly lifted, sucking everything be-
meath il with it, and then as suddenly
dropping it.
The loss to property alone In this city
will be $500. 900 dollars. as nearly all OF
the large stocks of goods in the stores
were destroyed by the cloudburst,
which followed the tornado after it had
taken all the roofs away. 1t is safe to
say that $50 buildings are complete
wrecks, while $50 more are partially
wrecked.
All the casualties are not yet known,
but the following list of the killed is as
accurate as it can now b. made: James
HASTE. unmarried: killed in barber
chair in the Phillips house while being
shaved. Frank Campbell, married;
killed in the Phillips house. James
Mayor, a piano tuner of Kansas City;
killed in his room in the Phillips house
while reading his Bible. Mrs. Sasher,
recently married: crushed and burned
to death. The shock has affected the
mind of her husband. Miss Strand,
Mrs Sashcr's sister; crushed and
burned to death. Henry Adamson, a
laborer; pierced by heavy fragment of
plate glass James Weaver, occupation
unknown; crushed beneath the walls
Ida Jones. a waiter; crushed to death
beneath u falling wall. Hart Epson,
still missing.
Fatally wounCed: Charles Adsmson,
unmarried; Mrs. Capt. Mahan, badly
crushed: Mrs T. J. Hanna. crushed;
Mrs. Murphy, skull fractured; Charles
Stoner, Santa Fe conductor; Maggie
King. young daughter of the late l. y.
King, wounded: Ed Forsythe, a printer,
bones fractured and internal injuries;
Silvs Forsythe. a printer, skull frac-
tured; Walter Forsythe. a printer, in
ternal injuries; child of e1-Sheriff
Thrall, internal injuries; Mrs Robert
Willard, internal injuries; James Law
renee. republican candidate for attor-
ney general, arm and leg broken; Lieut.
William French, Salvation army; Cadet
Sammons, Salvation army; Matte
Hodges, Guy Colby, Dick Weaver, Carrie
Mitchell and E. ]. Forsythe.
Between forty and fifty more are in
jured. but none seriously.
A ball was in progress at the Phillips
house when the storm burst The
dancers were given little opportunity
to escape from the topping structure.
As the building began swayIng tho peo-
pie in the crowded ball room made a
frantic rush for the door. The stair
ways and halls were at once filed by
the crazed men and women, who tore
at each other in their mad rush for the
open air. With the crash of the walls
about and over them there arose a great
cry of misery. As the timbers crushed
down upon the struggling people their
cries were throttled by the weight of
the mass of timbers above them
A large portion of the city was COM
pletely devastated and the entire COM
munity, consisting of between 5000 and
5000 people, were thrown into a state
of CONSERVATION. The wind finally sub
sided, and in 4 brief time every avail
able man in the city was engaged in the
work of rescue, conducted under the
leadership of George Whitley, president
of the council, aud order was soon
brought out of chaos
LATER PARTICULARS
HUTCHINSON, Kan, May 30.-At 1850
o'clock Friday night terrible tornado
burst upon Harper. A cloud from the
east and one from the west seemed TO
meet directly over the city, accompanied
by a deluge of rain and hail
Nearly all the business houses of the
city were either totally destroyed or
badly twisted Both the Santa Fe and
Atchison &c Southern depots were en-
tirely blown away.
Patterson's hotel was blown down
and the opera house and roller mill de-
stroyed.
viii Stevenson had his neck broken
and up to date seven deaths are reported
and many badly injured
All communication was cut off for
twelve miles and wires are down yet,
messages being sent FROM Cleveland,
twelve miles north.
Cars were blown from the track and
railroads torI up.
The track of storm WAS from q mile
to a mile and half wide
At Rago, nineteen miles north OF
Harper, there was damaging water
spout The lightning was terrific and
struck many objects