The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-07-07

Baxter Springs, July 6.-Baxter Springs
was laid in ruins, five people We're killed
and twenty others badly wounded by q
bursting cyclone that struck the town
about O'Clock last evening.
Dead:
Sallie Webster.
Florence Webster,
Ralph Webster.
H. Hibbs.
Infant child of Thomas Shields.
Scores of men, women and children in
town are more or less injured. some i'd
tally. Those reported are:
Mrs Neal, both collar bones broken
and internal injuries.
James Neal, head wound and internal
injuries.
Roy Webster, right arm and right hip
broken.
Mrs. Martha Smith. nip dislocated and
internal injuries.
Eta Smith, internal injuries.
George A. Oickey, wounds.
a. u. Hancock. serious head wound.
Mrs. Thomas Shields, fatal internal in
juries.
Three members Of a. sharpe's family
were badly nurt.
Two Currents of Wind.
There seems to have been two currents
of wind which struck the town, one from
tIlO UOTIn anu IlC OlNGT from the west,
and they met near the Methodist Episco-
pal church, joined forces and turned east,
doing serious damage TO property before
msetInS, but after coming together the
destruction was complete.
In the track Of the cyclone north, the
passenger station was the first thing
managed. Further on there was much
damage 10 res dence property, shade
trees and everything in its way. To the
west ii struck some residences near the
freight depot. dong serious damage, out
road. twenty-eight freight cars were
thrown from the track and badly dam
aged. the depot 9as moved off the
foundation, wrecked about the roof. and
the goods and other contents badly
flooded.
Heaps OF Rains.
Up TO the point of meeting the other
point the damage TO properly was not
The meeting was the N. E. church. This
was totally destroyed. and il lies in d
heap OF ruins. Ice currents turned
slightly 10 the southeast, doing a good
deal OF damage until il reached a point
Just west of j. NJ. Cooper's large store,
where 1t turned directly east, striking
the store building. cavinG in the west
end and Badly damaging the roof. The
store was flooded and much damage done
to the goods. The next object of the
storms fury was the old blacksmith
shop or the northwest corner Of Military
and River streets. which was completely
swept away. The Christian church WAS
directly in the path, so il lies like a pile
of kirdling wood The Episcopal church
further up the street on the south side
and from there not a residence escaped.
Piled in Heaps.
J. NJ. Cooper had seven houses, incIud.
ing the one il whicn he lived very badly
damaged. Colonel William March. y G.
aanbeck. Mr.. Chiids, Ira Perkins-resi-
dences of all these are in ruins
Three members of the Webster family,
recently from Nebraska, the mother aged
50, daughter aged 20, and son aged 1.
had his leg broken and his shoulder dis
located and Will probably die. NJ. T..
Hibbs, aged 60. died from excitement.
falling dead in one Of the stores on Mill
tary street.
The Occidental hotel. now used as an
opera house, was struck by lightning
barns in the neighnorhood OF the freight
depot were completely wrecked. a con-
servative estimate of the damage places
Il at SiG0 900.
There was little, If any cyclone indi-
cations.
For Miles and Miles.
The damage to property west OF Baxter
cannot be fully determined. 1t is re-
ported that for many miles in the track
of the storm that fences and barns are
blown down and crops damaged.
In the west part of Lyon township the
country seems 10 have had touch of
perhaps the same twister that the little
town of Baxter had. 1t struck the farm
house of Thomas Shields, of Lyon,
Mrs Shields and her two chill
dren were in the barn at the time
the storm struck; one of the children, d
year old baby girl, was killed, the older
child's leg was broken and Mrs. Shields
had her shoulder dislocated and is in
jlred in her back and spine. She will
die One or two other farms in the inn
mediate vicinity of Mr. Shields were
damaged in fences, trees. etc.
Mines DeIuEed.
w. L. Archer was found dead on the
Nolan farm in Sheridan township. He
left McCue yesterday afternoon at t
clock, where he had been on business.
1t is supposed he was drowned while
Forty miners at work in mine No. Il
of the Kansas e Texas Coal company, Al
Weir city, had no knowledge of the storm
until the mine was deluged with the tor
rents of water from above. All had mar
row escapes and every mule in the mine
was drowned.
The rain was the most violent storm
ever known, resembling &. cloudburSt, and
the entire country was flooded. Reports
of further fatalities seem almost GER
tain when the roads open up.