Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1896-10-03

Jacksonville Fla, October Cedar
KEYS is a place Of desolaJ.on and death.
Forty-eight hours ago it was thriving
Gown of 1 500 inhabitants To-day many
OF the people are corpses, scores Of 9TH
eys ar injured. and there are but a few
houses left standing. Twenty cOrpsea
have been removed, but few have been
identified, so muLlated were they by
tle fa.l.ng umbers. Many o. the cOrpses
were dug our Of the mud, in which they
were buried by the tidal wave that
swept over Che town Tuesday morning.
The town Is situated at the mouth Of
the 5 vance river, on a number OF small
KEYS. c0nnece ed by a number OF bridges.
IL had no protection. and went TO pieces
when the West India hurricane, with a
velocity Of so miles an hour, came roar
ing from the gulf. The storm struck
the place about $3.50 Tuesday morning
and continued for several hours. Though
warning had bsen given, nothing lndi-
Gated q blow of unusual severity. Up
10 eleven o'clock the nigh, was calm and
quiet AT that hour moderate breeze
spraug up from the eastward, increasing
gradually until a 30-mile wind was blow
About { %. m. 10 blew q tornado and sud-
denly changed 70 the southwest bring
ing IN a deluge of water. the tide rising
TWO at higher than the memorable gale
OF 1894. which was at the time said to
be the worst storm on record.
AT o'clock an immense tidal wave
came .n from the south. carrying de-
strucu0n with H. Boats, wharyes ana
small houses were hurled upon the shore
and breaking incO fragments, covered
the streets with wreckage and rendered
them almOsg impossible. While the Tor
rents Of water was rushing through eV-
erv omen space. il would take the strong
sst man off his feet. II was this tidal
wave -ha. caused Jh5 principal loss OF
Tfe Many houses were swept from
eLe.r foundation and the inmates
drowned.
of the 20 bodies recovered Il are
whites and s cOlOred OF the whites SIX
belonged 10 the Whitson family, lour
children and a young lady visitor. Inc
other four white victims are men. ana
have no, yet been identified. or the
eight negroes only one, Peter Noodson'
has b.en identified.
The loss Of life at Cedar Keys proper
is as nothing in comparison wNh me
eumber of spongers and fishermen VINO
V-are drowned. The Mary Eliza came
in This morning dismasted. She reports
that on Monday night nearly 100 yes
s-ls we're anchored on the sponge par D.
low Cedar KEYS. and all OF them out
sborr twenty we're lost. These boats
csrr.e5 from four 10 ten men each, ana
-be loss OF life was great. Elght corp gS,
have already been washed ashore us
steamer Rosaia was sunk and elgh' Oh
her crew were drowned.
The handsome Methodist Episcopal
Church south. the Cedar Keys hlsn
school building. the Christian ChurCu
bnd three colored churches, the 9e"auee
Ice factory. WO,Ts cedar mill anu I,le
F7-'a Pencil COmpany's mlu' also 'nS
r9-ya rrmber mill OF V. J. Herlong ana
mo blaming mill Of George w. Myer q
sons and scores of private residences
re-a wrecked by the wind and waves
some of the handscuest and apparently
,-,~er Substantial buildings are damageI
beyond repair. -.
Reliable news OF the storm from the
western part OF Levy and A,achua coun-
res have lust reached Jacksonviile:: No'
les than 200 families are lett destitute
an their houses. fences and crops are
totally destroyed. and what they had
gathered was blown away with the
buildings
The difficulty in recovering the dead
al Cedar KEYS arises from the fact thal
the town was built on several small
ksvs. The bridges connecting these
kevs were swept away and the on.N
communication Is by means OF boats, OF
which there are but few left. Then,
+o9. mos. Of the victims were buried
deep IN the mud and many Of the bod
les win probably never be recovered.
B-vc1d The bar there are a score OF
T.s.s visible jus. above the water and
each top indicates the burial place OF a
sponging schooner and its crew. It Is
possible that many OF the vessels were
blown out into the gull and rode out
the hurricane. but the Mary's Eliza S
captain thinks by far the greatest num-
Der are beneath the water with their
crews lie says that there was not one