Saturday news. (Watertown, S.D.) 19??-19??, 1914-06-25
DESTRUC GIVE TOR ADO SIRIIE
| WATERFOWL IUESDA Y Z EVEKIlll1
Many Persons Injured and Three Hundred Buildings ~
Damaged, Some d Which Az Completely N|Issksd
Relief Fund Promptly Started.

4ASAkNSA Ne11S
a tornado of unusual proportions
visited watertown Tuesday evening.
1T was distinguished from ! cyclone
IIioper BY the fact that rs scope was
less widespread, the path of its havoc
being confined to width yerying
from three hundred to . thousand
feet.
The tornado seemed to start at the
extreme west end Of Lake Pelican
and worked east. There seemed to be-
two funnel shaped clouds only d short
distance apart AT times Il seemed al
if they were dancing the tango and
they would apparently Join and after
whirling for q few seconds would
separate again and dance around The
two funnel shaped clouds came over
the city dumping ground where one
OF Frank Benefits draymen was un-
loading something from a hayrack,
when the wind picked up the hayrack.
after he had unhitched the team and
turned them loose, and carried the
hayrack with the man In ii for several
blocks and lit on 8 pile Of manure
and dashed It into 4 thousand pieces.
The man turned several aomersaults
in the air and came down on soft
spot uniniured.
The tornado then struck the South
Dakota Central round house and ut.
terly destroyed III ss.sssace it pro
ceeded towards Henry WBensbeclS's
block while the smaller one of the
funnel shaped clouds went over to
First street s. w. and totally destroy
ed Walter McLaughlin's house and
barn and unroofed several other
houses.
Then the smaller funnel shaped
IIcloud swung in on Sixth avenue S.
between Oak Street and Maple Street
and demolished several other build
ir1gs, some totally and others only III
part
Then the two Joined forces and pro.
lceeded In q northeasteriy direction
and on Third street s. b. It wrought
great destruction. Then 1t continued
Its course In that direction until it
struck the st. Louis railroad round
house and tore that up quito badly.
At Hans Mathiesen's farm northeast
Of the city is q steel bridge. This
bridge was torn up and carried about
half mile.
AT the home Of Oscar Egge on south
Maple street q heavy timber from the
Henry Wiersbeck housemoying lot af
block away was hurled through the
side Of the house and tore the whole
back end OF the house out Mr.. Egge|
lost almost all Of his furniture and
his house is badly wrecked.
A cottage on south Maple street.
belonging to Il. J. Shaw and occupied
by James Townsend's family was. al
most totally destroyed and the house
hold goods are a wreck. Mrs. Town
send was at home with two little chill
dren and did not have time to getI
into the basement. She and the chill
dren remained In q bed room which
was the only room IN the house which
was not filled with broken timbers,
They escaped ,ininjured.
Just across the street il anothert
cottage which was occupied by q loco-t
motive fireman and his little family
This house was totally destroyed. The
woman and children took refuge inl
the basement and as the house wasl
blown on the foundation part Of theI
house fell into the basement. TheI
woman was badly injured and one OIL
the children suffered q fractured skull
They were taken to the hospital Inn
rlediately after the storm had passed,
The three modern houses Of r. Il.
Bernsr on South Maple street were
also badly demolished. No one wasI
injured In any Of these houses
The home OF b. M. Barker, on the
same street. was also badly hit. Thel
rnrf.h was bI0yvr1 f,N and evo,v Viva -, |