Cyclone Near Mingo 1899

LOERCH, HOY, WESTON, TRAMEL, BAKER, OWEN, HADLEY, DEPPE

Posted By: Volunteer Transcriber
Date: 3/30/2012 at 15:17:25

Cyclone Near Mingo

Much Damage Done.

From almost a clear sky, on Sunday afternoon, appeared the often described cloud-with-a-tail-to-it, and was watched by many people in Newton. From the Rock island depot it was first seen west north-west and was watched until it disappeared about north-west. The cloud from which the tail protruded was a common, ordinary, dark summer cloud, nothing startling or alarming in the cloud itself, but the long, far-reaching, ever-destructive tail was so plain that all who saw it realized that the powers were being turned loose on the earth and damage being done. As the tail touched the ground, a great dust and smoke rose, which resembled the burning of a large straw stack, and as the tail lifted the turmoil would cease. Many were the guesses made as to where it was effective and distances were named all the way from three to forty miles.

A trip to the northwest we found the trace of a strong cyclone. In Mingo, it dipped down in Fred Loerch’s lumber yard and badly mixed up things there. It was traveling northeast and next dipped just north of the school house northeast of Mingo-known as the Valley School house. Here the timer commences where its power is terribly demonstrated. A short ways from here was the home of Jake Hoy, and his wife and several small children were alone at the house. The sweeping arm was seen in the timber, and she and the little ones were safe in the cave when the storm took the house away and no one knows what it did with it as only six or seven boards were left behind. The stable and every other building on the place were completely demolished. One horse was killed and other animals badly mailed and killed.

Just east of this is the farm of J. W. Weston, and here, again, things were badly demolished. The hay barn, wind mill and several other buildings were destroyed and some stock killed. Total loss will exceed $1,000 Due warning was given the family, and from the cave they watched the meanderings of the huge snake, at one time congratulating themselves that it was going to pass them without much damage, when it suddenly turned in its course and came back at them.

The next we heard of any damage was in a northeasterly direction at the home of Mrs. Cynthia Tramel, which was badly racked, but not demolished; barns and sheds destroyed and some injury to stock; and the two log cabins occupied by Isaac Baker and Ernest Baker not far from there were blown down. Also in this neighborhood the buildings of Wm. Baker were damaged; Mrs. Owen’s stable was blown away. Further on east of this we could hear of no damage.

There were but a few people in that section but who were underground on Sunday afternoon and we don’t blame them.

It was a gentlemanly and well behaved cyclone and gave out plenty of warning of its approach.

Mr. J. J. Tramel and wife in one buggy, and Mr. Walter Baker and Miss Coral Baker in another are reported as having a horse race with the elements, and that the “tail of the thing did not play fair”, as it would go one way and then another and required frequent turning and running. Mr. Baker and sister succeeded in getting out of the way, but the story goes that Mr. Tramel and wife got mixed up with the mud following the storm, somewhat to the (illegible) on of good clothes.

Sitting in a cave watching the perambulations of a cyclone, and trying to figure out whether the “gol blasted” thing is coming your way, may not be pleasant, - but being in a cave one feels better than in the top of a sixteen story building-even if the view isn’t as fine.

The new home of Coral Baker, near the Valley school house, was moved from its foundation.

Mr. Wes Hadley, who followed the storm, reports seeing a mare high up in the air which was carried some distance and returned to the ground without injury.

If the body of the storm had stayed close to the ground, instead of jumping as it did, the loss would have been enormous. The storm showed its great power wherever the ground was touched.

Neighbors and friends gave Jake Hoys about $60 on Sunday afternoon to enable him to get started again.

We are told that it touched at Santiago and tore up several houses there, before reaching Mingo.

At Mrs. Tramel’s, the barn was taken right up from the ground and nine head of horses were left tied to the mangers, none of them being hurt.

It struck the timber making a path about three hundred feet wide and took a clean sweep.

They could hear the terrific roar of the monster eighteen miles or more away.

The cyclone passed directly over Mrs. Deppe’s house, 4 ½ mils southeast of Baxter, and as it was so high when it passed, they stood out of doors and watched it. It was a sight, to be sure, that mass of trembling, twisting, dusty clouds.

About five miles beyond Mrs. Deppe’s, the cloud exploded with a terrific noise, and with that its force seemed to be spent.

It is reported that there was a fearful hailstorm, further north about the edge of Marshall county, some of the hailstones being as large as teacups.

When the “twister” crossed the west fork of Turkey Creek, it sucked the water straight up out of sight, so one person told us. ~ The Newton Journal, 5-31-1899.