Palestine daily herald. [volume] (Palestine, Tex.) 1902-1949, 1905-05-12
TERRIBLE WIND
VISITS SNYDER
Seventy-Five Persons Killed in
Few Seconds.-Fifty Cars
Were Blown Away.


at this place indicated that between 300
and 400 lives had been lost in the par
tial destruction by a cyclone of Snyder,
Relief trains were sent from a number
of neighboring places. All telegraphic
and telephone communication with the
stricken town was cut off.
1t was reported that bodies were
scattered all over the streets and sur
rounding country. The storm struck
the town from the southwest, travelling
north until about 100 yards from the
Oklahoma City and Western railway
track. Then 1t took northeasterly di-
rection through the business portion OF
the town.
Snyder has about $500 inhabitants. II
is in Kiowa county. In the Kiowa and
Comanche Indian country, opened to
white settlement in 1901 The town was
laid out largely by the s.. Louis and
San Francisco railway at the junction
of its two lines, and the company erect
ed an important building there. Sny-
der is the division point for the Quanah
division of the road. II was named for
Bryan Snyder. traffic manager for the
Frisco system.
While the tornado seems TO have been
widespread, rumors that other towns in
southwestern Oklahoma had been de-
stroyed was declared by telephone ex-
changes to be incorrect. However,
there is no question that much damage
to property and loss of life has occurred
In outlying districts.
The same tornado struck Quinlan. in
woodward county. on the Santa Fe rail-
road, destroying several houses. and at
that point at least three persons-Mrs.
Q. w. Cox. and her two sons-are
known to have been killed. Coming, as
ii did, while most of the inhabitants of
Snyder were asleep, but few had warn
ing of their danger.
The first news of the storm was re-
ceived about midnight Wednesday.
Soon thereafter, before any details had
been received, telegraph and telephone
wires went down. Trains were ordered
out from all available points, starting
from Hobart. Chicasha, Guthrie, Okla
homa City and other places. Every
train carried doctors, nurses and any
person capable of rendering aid. The
first relief train. sent from Hobart, thir-
ty-two miles north of Snyder, reached
the stricken town just before daylight
Thursday. Every one on board began
at once the work of relief.
On every hand they found wreckage
and streets were almost obliterated by
piles of demolished houses. In all di-
rections evidences of the terrible havoc
wrought by the storm were apparent.
The dead and dying lay about the
streets, In the yards and mixed up with
wreckage. while those who escaped ran
hither and thither in excited attempts
to bring order out of the terrible chaos
and render what meager aid they might.
The storm was not confined to Sny-
der. On the way to the stricken town
dead and Injured were passed in plain
sight of tn relief trains. but these were
passed by in the efforts of the rescurs
to reach Snyder. where there was great
need of their srevices.
The first man to reach Snyder and
return to telegraph point was the
station agent at Mountain Park, a
neighboring town. He had walked into
Snyder. reaching there at daylight. and
after taking a hasty view of the stu
alton and without gathering any exact
details of the storms effects returned
to Mountain Park. This man reported
the town partially destroyed, and as
serted tina: the list Of the dead would
reach somewhere between 300 and 400
The injured. he said. were to be seen
everywhere. and their number would
undoubtedly reach into the hundreds.
Ten undertakers attending the Funer-
al Directors convention at Oklahoma
CITY left that place with a carload OF
caskets for Snyder.
At noon Thursday Information came
from Snyder stating that the tornado
struck the town at s:45 Wednesday
night Twelve business houses were
destroyed and forty residences and the
number Of killed placed at seventy-five
Fifty were seriously injured, and about
the same number slightly. Fifty freight
cars were blown to pieces.