Mower County transcript., 1903-10-07
MINNESOTA TORN ADO
sEvEN PERSONS MEET DEATH
AND FIFTY ARE INJURED
r. AT ST. CHARLES.

r At ST. CHARLES.
Storm Destroys About One Hundred
Houses and Causes Property Dam
age. to the Extent Of $500, 600 sew
erai Wisconsin Towns Are Also Wis
tied, Five People Being Killed Near
Sheridan. .s5, .&@5 I. IEs sI.s*s5s 81
ST. Charles, MINI, Oct. 5.--Seven
persons were killed, fifty seriously
hurt and about hundred houses de-
stroyed at this place by tornado
which struck here at 1880 Saturday
afternoon. The business section of
the town and one-third of the resi-
dence district was razed to the ground
and damage done to the extent OF
$300,000.> ,4% NJ. ">.s ~
st. Charles is town Of about 1900
tnhabitants, situated twenty-six miles
west of Winona, the county seat.
A special train bearing doctors,
nurses and supplies for the immediate
wants of the sufferers left Wi1ona as
soon as the news of the extent of the
tosnado was A>ceived there.
st. Charles was crowded with farm
ers in the afternoon, who had come
into the village to do their weekly
trading. -
The day was extremely sultry and
will
crowded, During the morning slight
showers had fallen, and it was evident
to all that some sort of an atmospheric
disturbance was due.
Clouds Began to Gather.
The probability of an approaching
storm was the general topic until
shortly after 2 o'clock, when a dark
mass of clouds was noticed in the
southwest. Shortly afterward similar
conditions were seen to prevail in the
northwest, and the inhabitants spent
ten or fifteen minutes watching their
approach.
Before the seriousness of the situa-
tion was realized, the clouds were al
most over the city, Then began a
mad scramble in search Of places of
safety. The crowd on the main street
surged hither and thither as each in
dividual started for some select spot.
Those who could find cellars took
refuge in them, but many, believing
that the storm would not be at all
serious, merely entered the larger
buildings.
The two clouds met with a deafen-
ing detonation directly over the vii
lage, and before the report of the col
lsion had died away the air was
filled with missiles flying in every di-
rection. Substantial frame houses col
lapsed into kindling wood in an in
stant and stone and brick structures
were torn from their foundations.
Maddened Horses Increased Chaos.
Tin roofs were ripped off and rolled
through the streets like newspapers,
while sections of sidewalk were dash
ed against the buildings that remained
standing.
The street was filled with the teams
Of farmers hitched in front of the diff
ferent stores, and the i maddened
horses added to the chaos which was
precipitated. Farmers trying to save
their stock were run down and
tsampled over as the maddened beasts
broke loose from their hitching places.
The tornado lasted but few mo-
ments, but during that time seven
lives were crushed out, and there is
no accurate list of the injured at hand
The dead are as follows: John
Ebben, William Ebben, Edward Muir
ply, William Vest, Dixon, ILL.,; George
lessen, W. o. Crittenden, Dover; ia
cob Holm.
The work of repairing the damage
done by the cyclone was actively CON-
menced Sunday and considerable prog
ress was made along this line.
BY prompt measures all actual suf-
fering has been relieved. There is
very general determination on the part
of St. Charles residents to rebuild and
re-establsh the city on even a finer
foundation than it had before the cy-
clone.