Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1904-08-26

L
tween Wabasha and Sibley streets, dis
lance of FIVE blocks. were damaged.
Roofs were blown off, plate glass Win
dows shattered, and huge signs sent
scurrylng through the air.
Scramble in Theater.
At the time of the storm there were
about 100 persons in the Tivoh theater.
All bat five of the spectators succeeded in
escaping to cover, either in the stone
dressing room at the rear of the stage or
in the barroom at the front of the the
alter. All who sought shelter here were
saved, as little damage was done to the
building in these places. Five men, how
ever, huddled in a corner of the beer
garden. When the storm struck the
place they We're covered with the debris.
1t was here that the men were killed by
flying timbers.
Theresa Kemp, one of the actresses,
was just going TO dance upon the stage
when the storm struck the beer garden.
A rafter from the roof struck her on the
left shoulder. Her left arm was broken
moved from it.
Robert HaSSette. waiter at the III
voli, was covered by falling scenery. He
was rescued in semi-conscious condi-
ton, but he was not seriously hurt.
John johnson. the piano player at the
Tivoi. who was waiting to give the cue
to Miss Kemp, was cut and bruised by
the flying splinters, and remained uncon-
scious for some time.
Wardrobes Swept Into River.
Across the street the Empire presented
little better front than the Tivoli. The
storm struck its porch, which runs along
the river side. and a portion of it was
carried over the roof of the building and
landed on Third street. Nearly all the
scenery in the theaters was blown into
the audience room, and the wardrobes of
the actresses in the basement below were
swept by the wind into the river.
Anton Weinholzer places his loss at
about $4,000. which is direct, because the
insurance does not hold. The manager
of the Tivoli places his loss at $500.
There was none hurt in the Empire.
The Minnesota club. at the corner of
Fourth and Cedar streets, was damaged,
while The Globe office building, ten
story building. just across the street, es-
capped with but little injury, only few
panes of glass being broken.
Pioneer Press Building Riddled.
The Pioneer Press building, n thirteen
story lick and steel structure at the
corner of Fourth and Robert streets, was
riddled by the wind and flying debris.
Nearly every window on the south. side
was SDdItefeu, part OI the COlulCt WAS
damaged, and a huge skylight above the
court was dashed to pieces, the glass
falling like hail in the corridors beneath.
There was stampede among the print
ers at work in the composing room on
the twelfth floor, many of them being
cut by flying pieces of glass.
The Western Union telegraph Offices
on the eleventh floor of the building was
flooded by the sheets of rain that CAME
through the broken windows, and the
operating force was compelled to make a
hasty exit. The general manager of the
Pioneer Press company states that, be-
yond the broken glass, the building was
unchanged.
Wholesale Houses Suffer.
The wholesale houses on Fourth street
for two blocks below Robert suffered ex-
tensiye damage. The wholesale dry
goods house of Finch, Young & Neon
vile was unroofed and the windows
blown ill., The stock was considerably
damaged by water, the loss from this
cause being estimated at $4,000.
G.. Sommers Il Co, wholesale notions,
suffered loss to their stock of about 10
per cent. and the building also was dam
aged Lindeke, Warner & Sons, Lam
piers Skinner Company, and Scheffer Il
Rossum, wholesale firms, also suffered
considerably. The Davidson building, at
the corner of Fourth and Jackson, was
unroofed, the entire roof being picked up
and blown ON top of an adjoining build
ing. A stock of furs stored in the David
son building suffered damage.
The storm then swept across Smith S
park. leveling all of the shade trees, and
struck the fve-story brick building of
Moves Bros. & Cutler, wholesale drug
gists, blowing off the roof and carrying
away part of the upper story. Nicol,
Dean 4 Gregg, the Goodyear Rubber
company, Clement, Granger g. Co., Og
den, Merrill & Greer, and G. GotZian Il
Co, wholesale houses facing ON the park
were all damaged.
Much Damage in Seven Blocks.
On East Seventh street, between Wa
couta and kitson streets, distance of
seven blocks, much damage was done
The Habighorst building, at Seventh and
Wacouta, occupied by the Economy De-
partment store. was unroOfed and the
stocks damaged. The tve-stOry brick
building occupied by the Schurmeier
Wagon company, ON Rosabel street, near
Seventh, was badly damaged, the entire
top story being blown away. The Union
livery stable. brick structure in the
same vicinity, was wrecked, about half
OF the building being down.
Along the north side of East Seventh
street every building was damaged, some
being nothing more than heaps of debris
Most of them. however, were small brick
or frame buildings. and. while the az
gregate damage there will be heavy, the
individual losses were comparatively
small.
School Buildings Damaged.
The Washington school building at Lo-
Gust and Eighth streets suffered cOnsiG-
cradle damage. almost the entire top por
tion being blown away. st. Mary's Ro-
man Catholic church on Ninth and John
streets, was unroofed, but the school
building across the street escaped with
only minor damage. st. Sigfrid's Epis-
copal church on Eighth street, frame
structure. was leveled to the ground.
The storm at this point seems to have
lifted slightly. and for several squares
the damage done to residence property
was of minor character only. The tor
nado dropped again at Lafayette park,
corner of Tenth and Lafayette avenue,
and all of the elm and other shade trees
in this beauty spot were uprooted or
twisted off.
Roundhouse Collapses.
From Lafayette park the tornado
swept up Lafayette avenue to Papne ave
nue.. the principal business street OF East
st. Paul. wrecking many business struc-
lures and unroofng and otherwise damag-
Minneapolis, St. Paul and Omaha rail-
road roundhouse ut East St. Paul col
lapsed, injuring one man and doing Sc
rlous damage to a number Of locomotives
Several freight cars in the yards were
picked up and tossed about by the fierce
gale and their contents strewed in all di-
rections.