Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1904-08-25
TEN PERSONS DEAD
IN ST.PAUL STORM
Property Loss Will Probably Reach
a Million.
MINNEAPOLIS ALSO SUFFERED
Terrific Wind That Swept the Twin
Cities Left Chaos, Ruin and
Death Behfnd-StOrms.
at Other Points.

st. Paul, Mimi, Aug. 22.-Death to
ten persons and destruction to proper
ty both private and public, estimated
in round numbers at 81, 00O, 900, rode on
a screeching gale which tore down the
valley Of the Mississippi at about nine
o'clock Saturday night from a point
somewhere near the confluence of the
Minnesota and Mississippi rivers near
Fort Smelling. At about that point the
fury Of the elements seemingly divided,
and, with a roar, descended on the
Twin Cities and the environs.
The Dead.
Lorin F. Hokanson, $50 Brunson street,
killed at Tivoli theater, body removed to
city morgue.
George Kwenton, carpenter, 37S Toronto
avenue, killed at Tivoli theater, BODY re-
Unknown child, Killed by falling wall Of
domitory at House of Good Sheperd.
Three unknown dead at st. Louis PaPK,
q suburb of Minneapolis.
-Four unknown dead at Waconia, a small
station 20 miles west of Minneapolis.
Beginning at a point below Fort
Smelling, there is the first known evil
dence that the storm struck with dam
agin effect. 1t came from the south
west and bowling in its fury, uprooted
trees and demolished buildings in its
pathway towards st. Paul. 1t tore up
two spans Of the high bridge COM
pletely. There the bridge connected
with high bluffs at West st. Paul, and
1t Is 1870 feet above the river. This
mass Of steel was carried to the flats
below, where flying steel girders n
heavy planks fell on several small
frame houses of the fiat jewellers and
crushed them. None of the occupants
of these houses was hurt, they having
seen the storm coming and taken
refuge in the caves in the hillside.
The storm tore along the fats, up
roofing trees on Harriet island, and
with a deafening oar and the hiss and
splash of falling sheets of rain, it
struck this city at Wabasha street
bridge. Here were located at the
bridge entrance on opposite sides of
Wabasha street the Tivoli concert hall
and Empire theater, both of which
were fairly crowded with men, watch
ing the performance. Both buildings
stood on the edge of the bluff over
looking the river, with sides Of the
buildings open, and were wrecked. The
full force of the tornado struck the
buildings. The buildings began to
sway and rock, and the audience be-
came panic stricken, Men and boys
rushed over each other for the exits.
The lights went out, and the sheet
lightning flashes, one following anoth-
er with gunfire rapidity, Illuminated a
scene of pandemonium, which was in
tensified by the crash of glass and the
tearing Of timbers as the frame struc-
ture gave way before the tornado.
Sections of the roof were blown
through the air and landed east in
| Third street, q block distant.
Underneath the debris Of the Tivoli
were found, when the storm had
passed, the mangled bodies Of Lorin f.
Hokanson, n of the employees in the
concert, and George Kewnton, n of
the audience.
On the storm rushed to the north
east over the wholesale district, and
every building facing the south from
Wabasha street, four blocks east on
Third street, had scarcely a whole
pane of glass in any window 4
Tin roofs on several buildings were
rolled in bundles and deposited in the
street, flying plate glass, mixed with
the rain, battered everything which
stood before it, and horses and car
riages were swept along the streets,
which, in an Incredibly short space of
time, we're filled with water.
Wires were down, and part of the
city was in darkness. The high build
ings reached skyward above the small
er ones on East Third street were
shaken to their foundations. The
fine large plate, glass windows were
blown out.
In the path of the wind stood the
long freight warehouse of the Chicago,
Milwaukee & st. Paul railway, and a
section of this building, about 400 feet
long, was cut out of the middle, and
the small section of the end, about so
feet, left standing at the extreme east
side.
On East Fifth, Sixth and Seventh
streets, the conditions were practically
the same, except that on East Sew
enth, more damage was done to roofs
and glass.
AT the East Seventh stations of the
Northern Pacific and Northwestern
railways ten poles loaded with wires
were blown down in a tangled mass.