Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1897-06-20


Twentv-frst Street Unroofed, but
Fortunately No One Was Hurt
The Cathedral Steeple Struck by
Lightning, and a Tree Hit on
Twenty-second Streat--One Man
Seriously Shocked.
The excessively warm weather OF
Yesterday eliminated, about two o CLOCK
IN very severe wind and electric
storm. Fortunately, the disturbance
lasted but a few minutes, but II WAS
violent enough TO suit most tastes.
The main storm was prefaced by not
narticuIarly heavy clouds, and no ap-
nreciable movement of the barometer.
.Iust before two O'Clock a few drops Oh
rain fell, and then ceased. just aller
the City Hall clock announced the hour
there was heavy dash OF rain, accom-
panied by two vivid flashes ofllghtnlng
and cracking thunder. The first OF
these flashes shattered a tree on
Twenty-second street, east or ChapIlne'
The second struck the steeple Oh 81
Joseph's Cathedral about one hundred
and forty feet from the street level and
about ten or fifteen feet above the brick
work. knocking off the slate IN TWO
places, the uppermost spot rather small,
and the lower covering probably nVe
or six feet by eight or nine. The dow
was a heavy one, and the conclusion or
the air in the immediate vicinity knock
ed down showers of SCOT in several
houses close to the church, on Eon and
Fourteenth streets, this adding TO the
alarm of many persons. The same
flash also got into some of the electric
wires of the city, and all the electric
clocks gave forth rafting noise. Inc
current thus carried into Donahoos
jewelry store, opposite the postotilce,
seriously shocked an employe, who was
working at a bench, Immediately under
the clock.
In the upper and lower portions of
the city the storm was not accompan-
led by any wind worth mentioning, but
in the Fifth ward, along the line Of
Twenty first street, between Water and
Chapline streets, they had very good
imitation of a tornado, and the damage
done will amount 10 probably two
thousand dollars.
A streak Of wind, probably not over
fifty or seyenty-five feet wide, came out
of the narrow valley back of West
Wheeling, crossed over the State Fair
grounds and the river, and struck the
south half Of the four story building
of the Nail City Stamping Company,
which fronts to the west on Water
street, south of Twenty-irst. The
is virtually a double house, the south
half having been erected some little
time before the north half, is entirely
composed of glass windows, save mar
row pillars of brick between the win
dow openings, and narrow timbers at
the lines OF the floors The wind
struck the upper row of windows in
the south half of the building and blew
them in, clear and clean, leaving not
vistage of either glass or sash. The
wind hit the building at sharp angle,
from the southwest, and passing under
the roof after blowing in the windows,
raised the roof of the north building
from the walls, utterly wreckiGg it, and
throwing most of the debris off the
building at the northeast corner TO the
ground, falling into alley =. and the adj
jacent back yards. And the strange
feature of it was, that although this
roof, with its heavy supporting timbers
was entirely wrecked, the west windows
in the north half of the building, which
ran within a foot of the roof line, and
;,h md
not have a broken pane, and stood as
perfect after the roof disappeared as
before, with the sole exception that one
sash was left a little out of plumb at
the top. The south window in the
north half was less than two yards from
the north window in the south half OF
the building, which was blown in, and
the line of demarkation in this respect
was so clearly cut az 10 attract the at
tention of everyone. The roof on the
south half Of the building was unin-
! jured. 1t being Saturday afternoon,
there were few employees in the build
ing, and none of them were hurt al
though all were badly frightened. a
mass of the factory roof, in bulk as
| large as a loaded hay wagon, fell right
at the back door of Letter Carrier Man
| ton, who lives at the corner of alley A
| and Twenty-first streets. Mr.. Man
tons little boy had been at the back
door playing with some kittens, but
went into the house just before the roof
fell
Leaving the factory building the
! storm next struck the row of buildings
J JoIOpcrinor 70 Tho minor. bnirc Of Tobp
| F. Winters, fronting on Main street at
! the southwest corner of Twenty-frst
and extending back along the south
side of Twenty-frst street to alley a.
! The roofs were torn off these build
! ings, with the exception of the Main
street front, and the Twenty-frst street
walls were badly damaged, bricks be-
ing showered down into the street by
! hundreds. The two buildings next the
/ alley are occupied by Dimmack, as a
junk shop, while family lives in the
upper portion OF the Main street build
ing, the lower floor Of which is vacant
Here everybody was naturally badly
frightened, but no one was hurt. Frag-
ments of the Lantern Company build
ing lodged on the roofs of the buildings
fronting Of Twenty-frst street, and the
whole presented quite a scene of wreck
after the storm, hundreds of people be-
ing attracted TO the scene during the
| afternoon
Proceeding on up Twenty-first street
across Main the storm lost much of its
force, but still had enough power to
snap off a tree on the north side OF