1917 — March 11, Tornadoes, Newcastle/21, Millville/1, Hagerstown/2, IN, Cincinnati OH/4– 28

— 28 Blanchard tally.*

Indiana (24)
— 26 Logansport Pharos-Reporter, IN. “26 Perish, Many Missing in Sunday Storm.” 3-12-1917.
–22 Newcastle.
— 4 Hagerstown area.
— 26 Logansport Press, IN. “Blast Rivals Rail Wreck as Worst State Disaster.” 11-2-1963, 5.
— 24 Henry/Wayne counties. Armington. “Tornado in Henry and Wayne Counties, Ind., March 11, 1917.”
–21 Newcastle.
— 1 Millville area.
— 2 Hagerstown area.
— 24 Henry/Wayne counties F4. Grazulis. Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991. 1993, pp. 280, 750.
–21 Newcastle.
— 1 Millville area.
— 2 Hagerstown area.
–2 Children of Ernest Graves, ½ mile south; brick home destroyed.
–? Ora Smith, in shanty, carried 100 ft., back thought broken; “perhaps fatally injured.”
— 24 Newcastle. Schmidlin and Schmidlin. Thunder in the Heartland. 1996, p. 250.
— 24 Nat. Weather Ser., Louisville KY Weather Forecast Office. Violent Tornadoes in Indiana.
–21 Newcastle, Henry County.
— 3 Millville area, Henry County and Hagerstown area, Wayne County.
— 23 Goshen Democrat, IN. “Cyclone Deaths at Newcastle, Ind., 23.” 3-13-1917, p. 4.
–19 Named in the article (see Narrative Information – Newspapers, below).
— 4 Hagerstown. Two Gray children and two farmhands names Ludwick and Swanson.

Ohio ( 4)
–4 Grazulis. Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991. 1993, p. 750.
–1 Montgomery County, F4.
–3 Cincinnati, northeast side, F3.
–4 Schmidlin and Schmidlin. Thunder in the Heartland. 1996, pp. 252-252.
–3 Cincinnati. Schmidlin and Schmidlin. Thunder in the Heartland. 1996, p. 252.
–1 Montgomery County. Schmidlin/Schmidlin. Thunder in the Heartland. 1996, p.251.
–3 Cincinnati. Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce. “Tornado at Cincinnati, Ohio…” 1918, p134.

* While it is the case that the Logansport Pharos-Reporter of March 12 and the Logansport Press of November 2, 1963, write that there were twenty-six fatalities, we note that there are several discrepancies between the Pharos-Reporter listing of deaths of March 12 and the March 13 listing of fatalities in the Goshen Democrat. In that no other sources we have been able to identify note twenty-six fatalities, we choose to use the number of twenty-four found in Armington (Weather Bureau), Grazulis, the National Weather Service (Louisville WFO), and Schmidlin and Schmidlin.

Narrative Information

National Weather Service on IN: “March 11, 1917. Henry, Wayne [counties]. 24 [fatalities]. 2:55pm. The southern side of New Castle was devastated by this tornado, suffering 21 fatalities and the destruction of 350 buildings. The storm then continued to the east southeast parallel to IN 38 and took lives south of Millville and south of Hagerstown as farms were leveled. The tornado dissipated near Greens Fork.” (NWS, Louisville KY Weather Forecast Office. Violent Tornadoes in Indiana.)

Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce: “The first well-defined tornado in the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, of which there is any authentic record occurred during the evening of March 11, 1917. The preceding disastrous storm of July 7, 1915, was not classed as a true tornado although there is some evidence that it was a gyratory storm but on a comparatively lard scale. Previous to this we have not been able to find a record of a storm within the area of the city of Cincinnati that was of the nature of a tornado.

“During the afternoon of March 11, 1917, the weather was unseasonably warm with a light southwest wind and an overcast sky. The weather map made from the observations taken at 8 p.m., 75th Meridian Time, or 7 p.m., local time, showed an area of low pressure over the lower Lake Region with a trough of low pressure extending south-westward across the Ohio Valley close to but slightly northwest of Cincinnati. At the time of observation a thunderstorm was approaching the city from the west, and a light rain was falling. The thunderstorm was over the western portion of the city from about 6:50 p.m., to 7 p.m., local time, and over the central portion of the city from 7 p.m. to 7:12 p.m. …. About 7 p.m., the barograph trace at the Abbe Meteorological Observatory showed that the pressure fell sharply .08 of an inch and rose sharply .09 of an inch….

“The tornado occurred in the eastern portion of the city sometime between 7:20 p.m., and 7:30 p.m., local time. Three of the large feed circuits of the Electric Light Company went out at 7:28 p.m., which was probably the time the tornado was most destructive. When the path of the tornado is traced backwards it passes midway between the two Weather Bureau stations which are four miles apart, and over a thickly settled portion of the city. The instrumental records to not show that any storm of this nature passed between the stations. All the available evidence seems to indicate that the tornado developed close to or over the region where the first destruction of property occurred.

“A possible explanation of the origin of the tornado is that the wind at the observatory was blowing at the rate of 24 miles an hour from the northwest from 7:08 p.m., to 7:13 p.m., and at the rate of 18 miles per hour from the southwest during the same time at the Government Building. Blowing at these rates and directions the two winds would meet about ten minutes later at the point where the tornado is supposed to have originated. These directions and velocities were maintained for only five minutes after which the directions became west at both stations and the velocities gradually decreased….

“The tornado passed through the eastern suburb of Cincinnati known as South Hyde Park or Mt. Lookout. The first evidence of the storm was at the corner of Fairfax and Cinnamon Sts., where a small residence was blown down. Two short blocks farther east on Lavinia street a tree was blown over and another small building was partly destroyed. Another short block to the east the storm crossed Madison Road where the poles carrying the electric cables of the Cincinnati Traction Co., were blown down and several large signboards on the east side of the street were demolished….

“After crossing Madison Road the storm passed up a gradual slope and across the Cincinnati Golf Grounds for a distance of about one mile without causing much damage. Passing down the hill to the east of the golf grounds the storm apparently increased in intensity and the path of greatest destruction began at the head of Morton St., about half way down the hill, where one house was entirely demolished and another partly destroyed. The north half of the roof of the house on the left of the path of the storm was carried 300 feet to the northwest over a row of houses and deposited in a yard, while a portion of the roof of the house on the right side of the path was carried about 500 feet across a gully to the southeast and smashed to pieces of the side of the hill….The path of destruction was about fifty feet wide on Morton Street.

“The path of the storm from the head of Morton Street was plainly marked, passing a little east of north down the hill to the ‘Arcadia’ subdivision, and then up the hill across Linwood Avenue along the south side of the Kessing homestead…and to the corner of Grace and Griest Avenues. Trees on the south side of the path lay to the north and northeast and those of the north side lay to the south and southeast….Nearly all buildings, trees, etc., directly in the path of the storm between Morton St., and Grace St., were blown down, except Kessings Home which is an exceptionally well-constructed building.

“After crossing Grace Avenue the storm gradually decreased in intensity and width but was still destructive down Griest Avenue, across Delta and Herschell Avenues, through Ault Park and as far east as Red Bank.

“The total length of the path of the storm from near Cinnamon or Lavinia Streets to Red Bank was three and one-quarter miles, but the path of greatest destruction was about three-fourths of a mile, from Morton Street, to Delta Avenue, and the width in this region varied between 50 feet and 300 feet or more.

“As the storm occurred after dark, cloud observation was difficult. A few people, however, claim to have seen the tornado cloud, one witness describing it as pear-shaped with the neck end towards the ground, the center of the cloud having a dull reddish glow. This same party also describes the lightning as being of the sheet type and of a diffused glare. There is general agreement as to the tremendous hissing, roaring noise accompanying the passage of the storm. The rainfall attending the storm was light.

“As a result of the storm three people were killed and thirty-two injured. Following is a list of the killed: Ohmer Glenn, aged 82, of 1279 Grace Avenue; John Nelson, aged 80, Linwood and Grace Avenues; Matthew J. McCarthy, aged 3, Griest and Delta Avenues.

“Ninety houses were totally or partly wrecked and the property damage is estimated at Between $250,000 and $300,000.” (Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce and Merchants’ Exchange. “Tornado at Cincinnati, Ohio, March 11, 1917.” Sixty-Ninth Annual Report of… for the Year Ending December 31, 1917. Cincinnati: 1918. pp. 133-134).

Newspapers

March 12: “With 26 known dead in the tornado which swept eastern Indiana and part of Ohio yesterday, unconfirmed reports from small communities in the section visited by the storm indicate that the total number of deaths may be above thirty.

“New Castle, Ind., which suffered the most severely, had 19 known dead [22 named below] and 15 persons missing.

“Four deaths, those of two children and two farm laborers were caused in Wayne county, near Hagerstown.

“Three were killed at Cincinnati, Ohio,

“Reports that three had perished at New Lisbon, O., three at Mount Summit, Ind., two at Moreland, Ind,, and one at Ashland, Ind., could not be confirmed….

Indiana Tornado Victims.
“At New Castle:
Everett Dunlap.
Bernice Davis, 13. [Not in Goshen Democrat fatality list of March 13.]
Orris Davis. [Not in Goshen Democrat fatality list of March 13.]
James Neillis.
Gray Davis.
Mrs. John Davis, 60, of Mooreland, mother of Gray Davis.
Orville Davis, 6, son of Gray Davis.
Mrs. Archie Fletcher.
Mrs. Alice Williamson.
Miss Opal Williamson.
______ Haler, 13, daughter of John Haler
D. D. Razor, 12, son of W. T. Razor.
______ Newton.
Bernice Day, 8
June Day.
Ethel Day, 17.
Mrs. Marie E. Williams.
Mrs. Vere Higgins, daughter of Mrs. Williams.
Earnest Waterman, 7.
William Lowrey, 68, burned to death.
Price Shelton.
______ Day, aged 2.

“Near Hagerstown:
Two sons of Ernest Gray.
Two farm hands, on place of Clint Milliken.

“Seriously Injured:
….
Mrs. Peter Day, 58, probably fatally….”

(Logansport Pharos-Reporter, IN. “26 Perish, Many Missing in Sunday Storm.” 3-12-1917, 1.)

March 13: “Newcastle, Ind., Mar. 13. – Calls for additional companies of Indiana national guard to patrol the darkened streets of Newcastle and prevent the looting of the district which was destroyed by a tornado Sunday, were sent to Governor James P. Goodrich by Mayor J. L. Watkins.

“The death list was placed officially at nineteen in Newcastle, and four in Hagerstown, a few miles to the east, where the storm swept after demolishing three square miles of territory in Newcastle. More than 100 were injured, several of them so seriously that the city officials fear that at least four more, now being cared for in emergency hospitals, will died.

“The official list of dead at Newcastle is: [We list instead of the narrative paragraph in original]

1. John Nellis, age 25;
2. Everett Dunlap,
3. Gray Davis, 35;
4. Mrs. John Davis, 60, mother of Gray Davis;
5. Orville Davis, age 6, son of Gray Davis;
6. Mrs. Archie Fletcher, age 22;
7. Mrs. Asa Williamson,
8. Mrs. Vera Williamson Higgins, age 24, daughter of Mrs. Asa Williamson;
9. Earl E. Razor, age 14;
10. Frank L. Newton, 29;
11. Bernice Day, age 8;
12. Jane Day, age 6;
13. Ethel Day,
14. Ernest Waterman, age 6, son of Asa Waterman;
15. William S. Lowery, age 55;
16. Price Skelton, age 24;
17. Ray Day, age 22;
18. Ernest McLean, age 11;
19. Jessie McLean, age 7 years.

“The dead at Hagerstown are:
1. Ernest Gray Jr., 3 years;
2. John Gray, 2 years;
3. _____ Swanson, farm hand;
4. _____ Ludwick, farm hand.

(Goshen Democrat, IN. “Cyclone Deaths at Newcastle, Ind., 23.” 3-13-1917, p. 4.)

Sources

Armington, J. H. “Tornado in Henry and Wayne Counties, Ind., March 11, 1917.” Climatological Data: Indiana Section. Indianapolis: Weather Bureau Office, April 28, 1917. p. 24. Accessed 3-8-2020 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=HoSs-irllxYC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce and Merchants’ Exchange. Sixty-Ninth Annual Report of the Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce and Merchants’ Exchange for the Year Ending December 31, 1917. Cincinnati: Robert T. Morris Printing Co., 1918. Google preview accessed 3-8-2020 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=Ir9NAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=true

Daily Examiner, Connersville, IN, “Two Children Are Killed.” 3-13-1917, p. 3. Accessed 3-8-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/connersville-daily-examiner-mar-13-1917-p-3/
Grazulis, Thomas P. Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991: A Chronology and Analysis of Events. St. Johnsbury, VE: Environmental Films, 1993, 1,326 pages.

Goshen Democrat, IN. “Cyclone Deaths at Newcastle, Ind., 23.” 3-13-1917, p. 4. Accessed 3-8-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/goshen-daily-democrat-mar-13-1917-p-4/

Logansport Pharos-Reporter, IN. “26 Perish, Many Missing in Sunday Storm.” 3-12-1917. Accessed 3-8-2020: https://newspaperarchive.com/logansport-pharos-reporter-mar-12-1917-p-1/

Logansport Press, IN. “Blast Rivals Rail Wreck as Worst State Disaster.” 11-2-1963, 5. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=84400396

National Weather Service, Louisville KY Weather Forecast Office. Violent Tornadoes in Indiana. Louisville KY: NWS. Accessed 3-8-2020 at: https://www.weather.gov/lmk/violent_tornadoes_indiana#March_11__1917

Schmidlin, Thomas W. and Jeanne Appelhans Schmidlin. Thunder in the Heartland: A Chronicle of Outstanding Weather Events in Ohio. Kent State University Press, 1996, 362 pages. Partially digitized by Google at: http://books.google.com/books?id=QANPLARGXFMC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_v2_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q=&f=false