Year: 1877

The storm moved over the village of
Ercildoun, Chester County, in its de-
structive course, for a distance of two
miles in nearly straight line, the
cloud-mass having two distinct motions,
the very rapid revolving one compara-
lively slow onward motion. The width
of its track was about three hundred
yards, nearly everything being blown
away or cut off in that range. A gentle
man who was walking in the fields, in
tent on paying an afternoon call, was
caught in the vortex, taken off his feet
and carried away. He has no recollec-
tion of what happened after he left the
ground, but was found two miles off, in
a lumber yard, with his Jaw broken and
sadly bruised about the body, so that
there are some doubts with regard to his
recovery.


The seminary for young ladies, owned
by Mr.. Darlington, had fortunately but
few occupants, the school having closed
but short time since and the pupils
gone to their homes. When the storm
came up Mr.. Darlington and his family
took refuge in the cellar, probably saw
ing their lives by so doing, as the roof
was blown off and one side of the build
ing shattered.


A COW was blown two hundred yards
and instantly killed. An orchard of ap-
pie trees was torn up by the roots and
carried considerable distance, the
leaves and every particle of bark being
stripped by the violence to which they
were subjected. A buggy was taken up
and blown away and the horse so bruised
that it was expected he would have to be
killed. In all this terrible visitation
there was nothing but wind, and not a
drop of rain or hail fell, while at Coates
vile the rain and hail were both severe
and violent. A roof of barn was blown
off at Ercildoun and wrapped tightly
AROUND tree at distance of one-quar-
ter of mile. Eight families are left en-
tirely homeless, their household goods as
well as the houses themselves being en-
tirely gone; the linen, bed-quilts, etc,
were torn into shreds, and are entirely
! valueless.


A wagon loaded with grain was taken
up, the grain thrown off, and the wagon
blown an eighth of a mile, the hubs be-
ing wrenched out of the wheels during
its progress. In one of the barns blown
| away a horse was in the STALL and was
found there after the storm, with the
stones piled up around him, and per-
fectly sound and unhurt, although
trembling in every limb.


A tree of two feet in diameter was
snapped as though it was pipe-stem.
The growing corn was cut off an inch
above the ground as clean as though it
had been done with knife.


The whirlwind, after doing all this
damage, followed the same northeasterly
course to wood about two miles beyond
Ercildoun, where it broke, depositing the
various material it had been carrying
with it. Shingles, stones, furniture, bed
clothes, straw, hay, trees, bark and
leaves were scattered around in chaotic
mass. Heavy pieces of timber, weighing
two or three hundred pounds, were
caught up and carried along as though
they were nothing more than straws, and
a hedge of the tough Usage orange, well
trimmed and closely matted, was stripped
of all its thorns, leaves, and bark, moth.
ing remaining but the whitened boughs
and smaller twigs.


A heavy axle was torn from under a
farm wagon and blown completely
through frame house, leaving shattered
apertures at its entrance and exit. The
Friends Westinghouse was uniniured
but some of the outbuildings, including
the horse-sheds, were blown away, and
the graveyard was covered with this and
other debris.