Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1901-08-09
WINTER in SUMNER.
Such Was The Case Eighty.Five
Years Ago.
Records Show That The Year 1910
Was Remarkable For
Weather.

There are few persons now living
who recollect the year 1916, but
European and American data re-
present It as having been phenome-
nal IN almost every particular.
In New England the year went
by the name of "eighteen-hundred
and -starve-to-death, and the sum-
mer months are known in history
as "the cold summer of 1916" so
remarkable was the temperature.
The suns rays seemed to be des-
titute of heat, and all nature SEEM
ed clad in sable hue. Men and
women became frightened, and ina
gined that the fire in the sun was
being rapidly extinguished, and
that the world would come to an
end.
Ministers took the phenomena for
the text of their sermons, pseudo
scientific men talked of things they
knew not of, while the fanatics took
advantage of the occasion to form
religious organizations
The winter of 1856 was very
cold in Europe, but comparatively
mild in this country, and did not in
any way indicate the severe wealth
er that soon prevailed.
J Even the aimanacs we're silent
and, although the usual indications
"about now look out for cold wealth
er" or "this is good time for
snow" were entered in the regular
portions of the books devoted to the
winter predictions, those used for
chronicling the pleasanter months
had no such alarm warnings.
January was mild. So much so
that for days the people allowed
their fires to go out, as artificial
heat made the buildings uncomfor-
tably warm. This pleasant weather
was broken by cold snap in Feb
ruary, but this low temperature
passed in a few days and a warmer
condition, similar to the month just
passed, set in.
March '.came in like lion, but
/. went out like a lamb. There was
nothing unusual about the climate
conditions OF this month which diff
fered from those generally found II
this windy season.
April was the advance guard o.
the strange freak in temperature
The early days were warm and
bright, but as the month drew to d
close, the cold increased until il
ended in ice and snow and a very
low temperature.
To those who delighted in balmy
May days and loved to watch
the budding flowers, the May. Of
1916 was a disappointment, True,
buds came, but so did the frost, and
in one night it laid all vegetation a
blackened waste.
Corn was killed and the fields
had to be made ready for another
planting, but the peoples astonish-
ment was complete when they found
ice formed to the thickness of half
an inch in the pools.
June, "the month of roses" was
this year a month of ice and desola-
ton. The ''oldest inhabtant" was
surprised, for never before had the
thermometer sunk so low in the
tube in these ATTITUDES in the last
month of spring.
Frost, ice and snow were COM
mon. Almost every green thing
that had taken the advantage of
a few warm days to develop, was
killed. Fruit of various kinds were
nearly all destroyed.
One day the beautiful snow fell
to the depth of ten inches in Yer
mont, seven inches in Maine, three
inches in Massachusetts and Cen
trail New York.
Matters were beginning to be in
teresting. People were undecided
whether to spend the summer
months in the South, at the sea-
shore or IN the mountains. One day
the latter resorts were desirable
and the next would decide in favor
of the former, but on the whole the
southern cline was preferred.
July was accompanied by ice and
frost and those who celehrafad tha