Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1914-03-05
A Disastrous Storm.

There can be no question that March
came in like lion this year. Last Sun
day, the first day of March, opened uI
with snow storm that prevailed for
couple OF hours, and when the snow
stopped gale swooped down from the
north that was about the fiercest wind
that ever passed over this section. The
wind steadily increased in violence SUM-
day afternoon, and by nightfall it was
terrifying gale. Houses seemed to shake
on their foundations and many persons
never slept wink all night for fear OIL
the elements. This community was very
fortunate, for there was but little damage
or destruction of property. A number oil
windows were blown in, part OF the rooi
on hay barracks on the Billmyer farm,
near town, was blown off, and trees were
blown down in various parts OF the coun-
| ty. In Elmwood Cemetery dozen or
more tomb stones were blown over, but
none was broken. A large tree in the
cemetery was blown down.
AT Kearneysville the old unoccupled
GetZendanner creamery building was
blown down and demolished, and a
| couple of smokestackS at the quarrleS
were also blown over.
Berkeley county seemed TO catch the
worst OF the storm, and damage amount
| ing to many thousands Of dollars was
caused. A large bank barn OF Charles
Roush, three miles from Martinsburg, was
blown over and demolished, and on the
same farm another building used for
shelter for cattle and sheep was wrecked |,
killing several sheep. Hunter McKown'S
barn near Gerardstown was blown TO
pieces, the wreckage filling the county
road. Roofs were blown from The barns
OF Homer Small and Harry VanMetre, and
John Wilson's barn was partially wreck
ed. Miss Emma Gray's home at Gerards-
town was unroofed and H. p. Henshaw's
house, at the same place, was badly
damaged. AT Ridgeway the homes OF
w. S. Hiett and John Rldgeway were
unroofed. In Martinsburg much damage
was done by the storm, number OF
houses being unroofed and manufactures
being more or less injured.
Winchester and Frederick county were
partiularly hard hit by the storm, many
dwellings, business houses, barns and
other buildings being partly or entirely
demolished. Ii was night OF terror IN
w IOOl '" do o"Spt
the home of w. A. Baker, and he and
his wife and three children fled just in
time, as the chimney crashed into the
rooms where they had been sleeping a
few moments after they had gotten out.
The homes OF Hugh K. Green, A. l..
Barr and Holmes Conrad were much
damaged. Some $500 damage was
done to the buildings on the Winchester
fair grounds. Great havoc was wrought
in Mount Hebron Cemetery. Between
thirty and forty large cedarS and NAPLES,
were uprooted, in some instances pull
ing up with them portions OF collins and
bones OF persons long buried. A black
silk shroud that had enveloped corpse
was found tluttering from the roots OF a
tree that had been blown down. Many
of them were broken.
The storm did much damage in the
western end Of Washington county, Md,
in the ClearSpring neighborhood. The
roofs were blown from buildings, dozens
of houses we're damaged iii various ways,
three churches were partly wrecked, and
many thousands OF dollars loss caused
to the people OF that section.
The storm was very severe IN the
neighborhood of New York and Phila-
delphia, where a heavy snow accompa-
MED the gale. Huge drifts formed, some
places thirty feet in depth. and railroad
travel was entirely blocked, trains being
abandoned for from "a to 80 hours. Tel
ephone and telegraph wires were down,
trees blown across the tracks, and not a
wheel could be turned until the storm
was over. There was great suffering in
these cities and suburban towns, and a
number OF persons persisted in the snow.
The nrnnertY loss will run into millions.