Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1899-05-04
DEATH LIST LARGE
AWFUL WORK OF WIND IN THE
SOUTHWEST.
MANY BODIES RECOVERED
Town of Kirksville Has About 40
Killed and 100 Injured-Damage to
Property ,000-Some Miraculous
Escapes Of the Wind
Deaths Elsewhere.

Kirksyille, Mo-, April 29.-As a re-
suit of the tornado Thursday night
half of the residences and other build
ings are demolised, 200 families are
homeless ano more than 80 dead bodies
and 10 injured persons have been re-
covered from the ruins. More than
a dozen of the injured will die. Many
are still missing. 1t may be days be-
fore the total number of victims is
known. When the TORNADO struck the
city most of the residents were at
supper A path one mile long and 600
feet wide was cut through the residence
section. Buildings were demolished or
twisted apart and scattered to the four
winds. A conservative estimate places
the amount Of damage at $200.000
The wind played many pranks and
there were some miraculous escapes.
J. T. Coonfield's house was picked up
and carried across a slough and
dumped against hill, the building not
being completely wrecked and the fam
lily escaping unframed. Houses on
both sides of the residence of w. M.
Hull were blown into splinters. but
his house was only twisted off it's
foundation, leaving it intact. The
house was used as a hospital after the
storm. The $4,000 residence of Mrs
Mary Hershey was wrecked. People
in that portion of the town not touched
by the storm were panic stricken at
first, but soon recovered their wits
and calls for help were sent to the SUI
rounding towns. Hundreds Of persons
visited the stricken district Friday and
large numbers Of sight-seers came
/ from the neighboring towns. The Of
ficers would not allow anyone without
authority to go through the ruined
district. A complete list of the VIC
Tins is impossible for the time being
All business has been suspended, the
| only stores open for business being
those dealing in drugs. Several dead
were found il spots which would
have been the center of a house had
the building not been blown to splin-
tiers. This was the case with Mrs.
! Pensholt, who suffered a terrible
! death. Her headless body with her
arms clasping her lifeless baby was
/ discovered on the floor of the house
which was left as a raised platform in
an open field. The head was severed
as if it was done with a knife and
was 20 feet distant. Two children had
| been lying in a cot in one of the de-
stroyed homes. The house was car
ried block and half and set down
on the ground. Neither of the child
rem was hurt. The railroad track for
distance Of half mile is a mass OF
debris. There are 1000 homeless per-
sons in Kirksville at present.
The death list: Mrs. Cal. Little;
Mrs Henry Ellington; Mrs. A. R
Bowman; Theodore Brigham, ex-mer-
chant; Miss Lena Brown, of Moberly;
child of Rev. Albert Burr; Seth Feath.
er, Syears old; Mrs. w. W. Green; A
J. Glasse and wife; J. A. Glasse ant
wife; DR.. w. B. Howells, osteopath;
B. Larkin, retired merchant: three
children of Henry Lowe; Mrs. Joh1
Mahaffey, ST.; Mrs. John T. Mahaffey
child of J. T. Mahaffey; F. NJ McClay
wife, mother and niece: J. T. Miller
, Miss Ora Milan. Woodland, Mo-; Mr.
anu Mrs. Jean Pensholt: H
X. Sherburne; Samuel Weaver. ex
: contractor; Miss Diana Whaley; Dr.
Wheeler; Mrs. Joe Wood
The severely injured are: Mis-