GRAZULIS: The entire town of Statesville had severe downburst damage. The loss in timber alone in this section was placed at $100,000. US Dept of Commerce April 29, 1909 Tornado Outbreak. At this time it is impossible to ascertain the damage and loss of life to stock; no lives so far reported. FROM THE NASHVILLE AMERICAN, May 1 1909, PAGE 4, "RUTHERFORD COUNTY. This tornado was almost certainly produced by the same supercell that spawned the even worse Giles/Lincoln County tornado just to the west. You can see his full report here. December tornado record crushed by historic onslaught of storms - The Four houses are blown down in Franklin. Robert Barnes and wife, near Fayetteville. That tornado alone caused an estimated $100 million in damage and the loss of 33 lives, which was only a fraction of the total damage caused by the Super Outbreak. No fatalities have been reported as yet, but several are very painfully hurt. The damage in town is slight compared with the country. Mrs. Welch and son, Byron, sustained slight injuries, the former being hit on the head and the latter had a gash cut in his cheek. Another strong tornado struck Franklin County near Decherd. Where Did The Tornado Touchdown In Tennessee? - PartyShopMaine RUGBY. W. S. McLaurine's baby were also killed. The most terrible cyclone in the history of Giles County struck with great fury between 11 and 12 o'clock Thursday night. Damage: Wires all down everywhere and communication with the country cut off. SHAMBURGER (2016): This tornado was not included in Grazulis' book Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991. GRAZULIS: Moved NE from just over the Alabama line, crossing extreme SE Giles County to 5 miles NW of Fayetteville. The clouds rolled like tremendous waves out of the southwest, and the thunder's crash was deafening, while the electric flashes played incessantly, lighting up the dark-canopied earth like a refulgent monster meteor. Dickson, Tenn., Apr. FROM THE NASHVILLE AMERICAN, MAY 1 1909, PAGE 2, section "NUMBER OF HOUSES WRECKED - Cookeville and Surrounding Territory in the Path of the Storm": COOKEVILLE, Tenn., April 30 - A storm of cyclonic effects struck this city last night about 1 o'clock. J. Ab Lane lost his barn and two mules. Thirty-six serious injuries were reported in the newspapers across both counties, with numerous other more minor injuries, so the total of 70 injuries shown by Grazulis was kept. The tornado outbreak of late-April 1909 was a deadly tornado outbreak that affected much of the central and Southern United States between April 29 and May 1, 1909. Sorry, the location you searched for was not found. The cyclone of the night of April 29th or morning of April 30th, did great damage near Rugby. January's largest single outbreak happened over the course of two days when 129 tornadoes were spawned, mostly in the South, in the record year of 1999. Farther to the east, the homes of Mrs. Upchurch and Mr. McAdoo were damaged or destroyed northwest of Lascassas. The worst damage to houses is the home of Prof. J. M. Goulson, a good two-story house, completely ruined, but no loss of life, though to look at the ruins seems marvelous that the family escaped. John Lee's barn was blown over. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. A list of the top 10 worst tornadoes in Texas history The largest national tornado outbreak was the Super Outbreak of April 26-28, 2011, which spawned more than 300 tornadoes across the eastern United States. Jack Pope's home was wrecked and he and his wife were killed. March 2022 Tornadoes Report | National Centers for Environmental A large oak tree was lifted bodily and blown across it, crushing in the roof. The village of Harms, five miles west of Fayetteville, was almost completely destroyed. It went on record as an F2 tornado. Owing to the fact that all telephone and telegraph lines are down it is impossible to get the details of the damage wrought. 1 could not continue on account of the wreckage of the roadways. As soon as a message could be sent to Pulaski, local doctors and citizens hastened to the scene of disaster to aid as much as possible in the work of relief. Aftermath of deadly April 1909 tornado outbreak in Centerville, TN (Tennessee State Library & Archives) 62 people were killed in the outbreak, with 31 of them dying when a massive F4 tornado. B. Thompson lives was blown across the street and his barn turned over, but his family was not hurt. The entire town of Statesville had severe downburst damage. Remembering the April 27, 2011, tornado super outbreak - Washington Post Miss Daisy Marshall received a few slight wounds. The total list of those killed in Giles County, so far as could be learned the day after the storm was eighteen white people and four negroes, making twenty two in all. Therefore a more accurate total of 6 deaths was used here, although the final number may have been even higher. It traveled through the Conway Community, destroying the local public school, Lancaster explained. If your child will play baseball or softball this spring, youll need to stock up on appropriate clothing and equipment. As soon as neighbors could be informed of the disaster, they hastened to the relief of the suffering. and Mrs. W. S. McLaurine, Mrs. Ella King, widow of the late Mit King, collar bone broken, Hiram Usselton's baby, seriously, perhaps fatally hurt, George Hardy, son of T. J. The Elk Cotton Mill was damaged about $5,000. There have been. All NOAA, (The following newspaper article was transcribed from The Pulaski Citizen of May 6, 1909.). FROM THE NASHVILLE AMERICAN, MAY 1 1909, PAGE 12, "ON THE MOUNTAIN": MONTEAGLE, Tenn., April 30 - Much damage was done in this section by the storm of last night. National Weather Service 11 deaths were recorded in the Missouri storm, 5 near Texas City and 29 along the Alabama-Tennessee state line. And then coming through Bee Spring destroying homes and families and a local church here by the cemetery.. There were no additional fatalities from these tornadoes. A relief committee was organized with John W. Young, Elkton R. 1, as chairman, and in a little while enough funds were in hand to provide food and clothing to supply the immediate necessities of those who had lost everything. Hardest-hit areas were in and around Pulaski, Bryson and Fayetteville. The storm seems to have entered the county from the southern side, passing between this place and Tennessee City. Eight-year-old boy of Paulina Farris, colored, Centreville. 11, had his skull fractured by falling timbers. Get the Android Weather app from Google Play, 5 reported dead after severe weather in Kentucky,, Rollover crash on I-65N in Davidson County leads, Man hit, killed on Old Hickory Blvd. Many narrow escaped from death are reported, but only one person is known to have been injured, an old lady, Mrs. Upchurch, but the extent of her injuries is not known FROM THE NASHVILLE AMERICAN, MAY 1 1909, PAGE 4, "SMYRNA IS STRUCK": SMYRNA, Tenn., April 30. During the late afternoon and the overnight hours of April 29, 1909, numerous strong to violent tornadoes affected the areas of northern Alabama, eastern Arkansas, southern Illinois, northern Mississippi, southeastern Missouri, and western Tennessee (the NWS Memphis, Tennessee, coverage area). W. S. McLaurine's baby were also killed. It was the deadliest known tornado outbreak to affect Tennessee until March 21, 1952, when 64 . Telephone wires are down and roads are in bad conditions. Questions? 63 people lost their lives, and more than 200 were injured from. Will Ross Lackey, Jr., and Esq. Bud Guffey, his wife, and two chidlren. - Dickson County was swept by a terrific storm last night, and as a result more than fifty houses lay wrecked today, and the damage to property will run far up into the thousands of dollars. List of North American tornadoes and tornado outbreaks One-half of the house where Attorney J. This would be typical of damage reports all along the storm route that night. The Evans Mills, on Stones River, one mile north of Florence, were blown into the river and destroyed. As it moved into Williamson County it eventually passed just south of Franklin causing 8 deaths and 11 injuries. His entire family was wiped out of existence. Only two houses were left standing. The home of Wilson Estes was also destroyed, together with the livery barn of Russell Estes, owner of Primm Springs Hotel. For a strip more than two miles in width along the railroad between here and Tennessee City, and on through that portion of the county traversed by the storm, scarcely a tree is left standing, but all lie as flat as if rolled over by some immense road roller. Thousands of trees were downed and cattle were killed. This tornado appears to be from the same long-track supercell which tracked from the Memphis area and later produced the tornadoes in Hickman, Maury, Williamson, Rutherford, Wilson, DeKalb, Putnam, Fentress, and Scott Counties. Homes were reportedly damaged or destroyed. SHAMBURGER (2016): Although Grazulis reported 10 deaths and 40 injuries from this major tornado, newspaper articles from the Nashville American and Williamson Herald indicated several more people were injured, killed, or eventually died from their injuries in the days after the tornado. Ab Hays, of Nashville, who was visiting Joe Rosson's family, near Port Royal, was seriously hurt by timbers, and died this morning. 30 - A heavy and disastrous cyclone passed through this section last night between the hours of eleven and twelve o'clock and struck one-quarter of a mile west of Franklin, killing an old negro woman and injuring three of her children, two of which may die. For several minutes it was as bright as the glare of a noonday sun with this setting, the wind terrific in force and volume halted at no obstacle, and in its path it left an imprint on everything it touched. Besides the devastation mentioned, fences, timber and numerous small buildings were blown away and other damage done. Special thanks to Sam Shamburger from the National Weather Service office in Nashville, who did extensive research on this tornado outbreak. Mrs. Berry (sic) Prosser, near Fayetteville; fatally injured. 1909 Oct 14, Tornado Outbreak, AL (11-21), AR (2), GA (1-2), TN (42 Mrs. Will Adcock and her daughter are reported killed, but not verified. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration It is seldom our mountain country has such a cyclone. National Weather Service. - April 29, at 8:15 p.m., Charlotte was visited with an electrical storm and tornado about 300 yards wide, taking all in its path. Affecting particularly the Mississippi and Tennessee Valleys, it killed over 150 people, 60 of them in the U.S. state of Tennessee alone. From the foot of the mountain, near Wonder Cave, half way to the top, two-thirds of the large trees are down. More than 320 died in the twister barrage . This tornado appears to be the same tornado that struck Decaturville and Perryville in Decatur County, which crossed the Tennessee River before moving across central Perry County. It is thought that the dead and injured list will be increased by further reports. Only one member of this large family escaped unhurt. Columbia, Tenn., April 20. A horse owned by Rev. At Florence, a village about six miles from here, the large mill known as "Ward Mill", on the Stones River, was blown completely into the river. Will McGrew's family consisted of ten. Houses, barns and buildings generally were blown down or else badly wrecked. This particular cyclone began its work of destruction in the neighborhood of Conway, though several barns and tenant houses were blown down west of that place. In the end, this first tornado, an F3, cut a path 45-miles long through Hickman, Maury, and Williamson counties. It will amount to hundreds of thousands of dollars. The path length was estimated based on a beginning point in the Bushtown area and end point just past Algood. FROM THE NASHVILLE AMERICAN, MAY 4 1909, PAGE 5, "THREE CHURCHES DESTROYED": ALEXANDRIA, Tenn., May 3. The old McGavock home is wrecked. Among the towns affected were Horn Lake, Mississippi, where about half of the fatalities were recorded, and Whitehaven, Tennessee, where the tornado damaged 30 homes. Will Hudson, another farmer near Charlotte, lost his barn, and had several head of stock crippled by the storm. Get the Android Weather app from Google Play, 5 reported dead after severe weather in Kentucky,, Rollover crash on I-65N in Davidson County leads, Man hit, killed on Old Hickory Blvd. It was around 10:15 p.m. when the first of these tornadoes came rolling out of Hickman County into the White Oak area, just across the county line. It was the deadliest known tornado outbreak to affect Tennessee until March 21, 1952, when 64 people died statewide. Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. FROM THE PULASKI CITIZEN NEWSPAPER ARTICLE ON MAY 6, 1909 "FIFTY HOUSES WRECKED. The tornado destroyed homes on at least three farms and killed an elderly man and a child in separate homes. The second largest was the Super Outbreak of April 3-4, 1974, which was credited with producing 148 tornadoes in the central and southern United States (though 4 of these were later . Fayetteville, Tenn., April 30. Deadliest Days: Killer tornadoes in Middle Tennessee The tornado passed up the Nashville and Murfreesboro turnpike, between this place and Florence, for a short distance, and for a quarter of a mile or more made a complete wreck of the telegraph and telephone lines. Tornado Outbreak of April 29, 1909 (The following newspaper article was transcribed from The Pulaski Citizen of May 6, 1909.) The tornado was a mile wide at times, and its winds reached 300 mph, putting it at the top of the Fujita scale for tornado intensity.