USA > Minnesota > Wabasha County > History of Wabasha County : together with biographical matter, statistics, etc. : gathered from matter furnished by interviews with old settlers, county, township, and other records, and extracts from files of papers, pamphlets, and such other sources > Part 71
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The loss of property was simply appalling, but when we contem- plate the fearful disaster and are called upon to record but one human lite lost, although many were more or less injured, it almost staggers credulity, and we are forced to repeat that, frightful as the calamity was, it was providential indeed that it came at the time and during the season of the year it did.
As suddenly and without warning as the cyclone struck did it pass away, and as it swept off, the noonday sun, in all its glory, burst forth only to shine on the wreck and desolation we have described. People hurrying hither and thither to extricate their families and friends from the ruined débris of what was once their homes, many of them made houseless and homeless at one fell blow, with no place to eat or sleep ; all within the space of two short minutes. Some were there who had by hard work and economy saved enough to build them homes for their families, who said they had not a dollar left in the world, but even then the feeling within them was hopeful, and they said they knew how they had worked for and built them
903
TOWN OF ELGIN.
homes, and with continued health and strength they could do it again, and they were thankful that there were no more accidents and deaths with their other misfortunes.
To add to their losses as well as deplorable situation, the sun disappeared after the storm almost as suddenly as it had appeared, the skies became overcast and a heavy rain beat down upon the nnsheltered residents of the desolate village, which lasted all that day and night, and until the Tuesday following.
The arrival of the 1 P.M. train going north to Plainview was the first means the inhabitants of Elgin had of communicating the terri- ble news of the disaster to the outside world, the telegraph poles and wires being blown down for the space of about a mile and a half, and the electrical elements having affected the wires as far north as Plainview. At about 1:30 P.M. Mr. E. T. Rollins, who was then telegraph operator at the Elgin office, in the railroad depot, by going along the track to about a mile south of the village, managed to make connections with the broken wires and telegraph the fact of the occurrence to Eyota, and by these means was the news first made known. The response was as generously and promptly made as it was needed ; money, clothing, food, merchan- dise and lumber from different parts of the northwest was sent in by kind hearts, to be received by willing and thankful hands. The afternoon train from Plainview brought at least two hundred persons from that place to the scene of the disaster, eager to render all the immediate assistance so needful, while from all portions of the adjoining country people began to pour into the unfortunate village and help in the work of clearing away the wreck and aid in providing means of shelter for the homeless. The injured received all the attention and care possible from a big-hearted, whole-souled people, and ere night arrived there were none but who had at least been temporarily provided for. As soon as some of the leading citizens could be assembled together a relief committee was organized, com- posed of Elijah Ordway, Alex. Seott, H. G. Richardson, Dr. W. T. Adams and Dorr Diekerman.
The people of Plainview and neighboring towns entered into the good work with remarkable generosity and enterprise, and at a meeting held in the Methodist Episcopal church at Plainview that night upward of two hundred dollars in cash was raised for imme- diate use. Early next morning a large delegation of men volun- teered their services, came to Elgin and labored all day in the rain
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HISTORY OF WABASHA COUNTY.
in the work of providing shelter for the houseless, and helping to save much of the perishable goods that stood exposed to the weather.
Following we give a full account of the destruction wrought by this fearful storm in the town of Elgin :
IN THE VILLAGE - CASUALTIES.
The only person killed was Mrs. Z. S. Thayer, about thirty-five years of age, and a native of Elgin. She kept a millinary store on Park street, adjoining the drug-store oceupied by A. L. Kimber. Mrs. Thayer was found lying partly across the counter, erushed beneath the roof. Her little girl, Mand, was found in the ruins, under a counter, unharmed.
Miss Edith Dillon, aged abont twenty, had her skull fractured ; William Bowen, seventy-six years of age, had a thigh broken, and John Townsend's child, about eight years old, was injured about the spine. R. W. Chapman, A. L. Kimber, and a few others, were more or less injured.
In attempting a deseription of the fearful havoe wrought by the storm we will take the principal streets of the village, commeneing with Park street, the leading business street, which runs east and west across the railroad track. On this street stood a large two-story frame building, owned by E. O. Morton, the first floor of which was occupied by Frank Ressler as a meat market and F. A. Amsden as a harness-shop, and the second by R. W. Chapman as a dwelling. Here, no doubt, was the most miraenlons eseape in the whole dis- aster. The building was pulverized as you would erush a head of ripe grain and then hurl it to the winds ; and yet four persons, Mr. and Mrs. Chapman and the Misses Edith and Hattie Dillon, were thrown out with the wreek and escaped with their lives ; two of the four only, Miss Edith Dillon and R. W. Chapman, being injured, as before stated. On the same side of the street were two one-story frame buildings, one belonging to and occupied as a dwelling by Frank Ressler, and the other owned by A. Y. Felton, of Plainview, and occupied by Thomas C. Udell as an agricultural machinery warehouse. The front of Ressler's dwelling was thrown ten or twelve feet off the foundation and the building partly unroofed, while Felton's was raeked nearly to pieces. On the other side of the street the storm played sad havoe. The two-story frame building belonging to George Bryant, the lower part of which was occupied by Mrs. Z. S. Thayer as a millinery store, and the upper floor by
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TOWN OF ELGIN.
John M. Townsend and family as a dwelling, was left a total wreck, as was also the other two-story frame building next door, owned by Richardson Bros., and occupied by A. L. Kimber as a drugstore and dwelling. Mrs. Kimber saved herself and child by seeking the security of the cellar ; but Mr. Kimber and John M. Townsend's family escaped by mere chance. Mr. Kimber was caught between the two buildings, which stood not over two feet apart, and it was with difficulty that he was extricated from the débris unharmed.
Mr. Townsend's family, like Mr. Chapman's across the way, were indoors at the time the house was struck. They were not thrown out, however, but came down with the wreck, and with the exception of the one child mentioned landed safe and sound. Mrs. Thayer, who was in the store below, met her death as already stated. A little farther west, on the same street, stood E. Ordway's new two-story frame building, the lower part of which was used by Ordway, Dickerman & Co., as a storeroom, and the upper floor as the lodge-room of Elgin Lodge, No. 115, A. F. and A. M. This entire building was destroyed. Ordway, Dickerman & Co's hard- ware store was unroofed, and the second story of Frank Kiernan's saloon and billiard-room blown off, while Bryant Bros. & Johnson's large store, which had but lately been occupied by A. Ludke, was badly racked, and the second story partly blown down. The railroad depot received but slight damages. The north end of J. W. Bry- ant & Co's grain elevator was demolished, and the structure racked. Richardson Bros'. grain elevator was slightly damaged, their lumber office and sheds were all down, and much of the lumber in the sheds picked up by the wind and scattered in every direction. Van Dusen & Co's coal-sheds near the depot were a total wreck, and E. Meilke's Northwestern Hotel, west of the depot, was partly unroofed and badly used up. Fred. Meyer's blacksmithi-shop on grain street, and Henry Claussen's house and barn on Van Dusen street were com- pletely destroyed. H. G. Richardson & Co's house, occupied by A. Meilke, had the front torn off and was otherwise damaged, while Henry Claussen's shoe-shop was not particularly injured. Capt. J. B. Norton's house opposite was racked, chimney down, stable and outbuildings leveled to the ground, hay lost and buggy broken to pieces. This includes all of the buildings on Park street, and those north of Park street and west of the railroad track. Another street about as greatly devastated as Park street, and also a business street as well as a street of residences, was Main street, which is in
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HISTORY OF WABASHA COUNTY.
the eastern part of the village, running north and south. Commenc- ing on this street where it is crossed by Dry creek, the bridge over which was torn to pieces, the first house is that of David Houghton, which was somewhat damaged, and a fine barn completely demol- ished. The next place is that of Benjamin H. Gould, which fared somewhat better, but was racked, a post from David Houghton's barn crashing through its north side. Mark Richardson's outhouses, sheds and stables were all demolished. At W. B. Porter's and W. H. Gilman's, trees two and a half feet through were broken off near the ground and thrown in all directions. The honses were not greatly damaged. Mr. Porter's barn was completely ruined, and a corner of Mr. Gilman's house was badly broken from the fall of a large tree. The corner of Main and Center streets, where stood William Bowen's house and barn, was swept clean. A few pieces of boards and a few sections of roofing scattered pell-mell, together with a few broken articles of furniture, was all that was left to indi- cate that a dwelling once stood on the gaping cellar. Mr. Bowen was alone in the house when the storm struck it. He was picked up unconscious on the road, covered with mud and sand. Further southward on Main street is the residence of John M. Houghton ; the house was partly unroofed and badly racked, barn unroofed and outbuildings completely destroyed. On the corner of Main and Mill streets stands the store of H. G. Richardson & Co., where the post- office is also situated. The new main part of this building was unroofed, and the back part badly racked, and the barn back of it completely demolished. Mrs. Woodward's dwelling across the way, owned by H. G. Richardson & Co., escaped as free from injuries, probably, as any house in town, as did also the blacksmith-shop south of it owned by Richardson Bros., and occupied by Mercer Bros .; but the next building, which was also the property of Richardson Bros., and occupied as a wagon-shop by Alex. Scott, was unroofed and several new carriages badly damaged. The residences of Charles S. Richardson, E. O. Morton and Mrs. Seeley, then occupied by William Baker, on Mill street, were comparatively uninjured. John Graham's house escaped very fortunately. The trees were so badly broken, that at first one had to cut his way to it with an ax, but the house was all right. George Farrar's old house, occupied by Fred. Westover, was unroofed, and the second story partly torn down, and Dr. W. T. Adams, south of this, had his barn and outbuildings completely demolished and his house slightly
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TOWN OF ELGIN.
racked. Opposite were E. W. Westover, whose house was pushed back six or eight feet from the foundation, and F. A. Amsden, living in a house belonging to Richardson Bros., which was unroofed and had one corner blown off. We will now take South Street which runs east and west along the southern bound- · ary of the village plat. On the north side of the street, and just west of the railroad track, stood the large barn owned by George Bryant, which was almost entirely demolished. The residence in front of it escaped with but slight damages, as did also Miss Mary Ann Bryant's residence; but her other house, occupied by Fred Meyers, was left half unroofed. Dorr Diekerman's new house, just enclosed, was laid flat on the ground, but the Congregational par- sonage, which he occupied, received no material damage. The Methodist church, a beautiful little edifice which cost about four thousand dollars, was a total ruin, hardly a stiek left standing, but the parsonage on the lot adjoining, occupied by Rev. J. W. Steb- bins, escaped with partial damages. George Farrar's fine barn and sheds were unroofed and some of his ontbuildings blown down, but his house weathered the storm very well. N. H. Moody's house escaped comparatively uninjured, but the handsome and eommo- dious schoolhouse south of it, at the head of School street, was a sad and complete wreck. Had the storm struck it at a time when school was in session, we shudder when we contemplate what the loss of life would doubtless have been. E. Ordway's residence was but little damaged, but the Eureka house, north of it on School street, owned by Thomas Mathieson and managed by M. H. Safford, was considerably racked and used up. The southern portion of the building was shoved back twelve feet from the foundation, and the barn leveled to the earth. Farther east on South street, on the bank of the White Water, lay the wreck of Charles S. Richardson's barn and windmill, and just east of this, on the north side of the street, was a inost remarkable example of the unparalleled force of the wind. Alex Scott's residence, a strong story-and-a-half frame build- ing, on a stone foundation, was built here on rising land overlooking the village. It was taken up bodily from its foundation by the wind, turned upside down and hurled through the air with tremen- dous force a distance of several rods, when it was dashed to the earth, and, together with all its contents, was reduced almost to splinters. Mr. Scott, who, with his wife and child, had sought refuge in the cellar, suddenly found themselves exposed to the beat-
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HISTORY OF WABASHA COUNTY.
ing rain, their house having been lifted off their heads with as much ease as if it had been made of paper.
This concludes our account of the disastrous effects of this ter- rible cyclone in the village, and is necessarily but a brief summary of its fell work, for in the limited space allowed in this history it is impossible to record in detail an event which would make a history in itself. Imagine, therefore, the trees mangled and twisted in all sorts of shapes and felled to the ground, window-panes shattered, shutters broken, shingles torn off and scattered, the chimneys all down, fences laid low, plank walks torn up, and all along the streets and on the vacant lots the ground strewn with broken lumber, shingles, pillows, bed quilts, household utensils, clothing, fragments of fur- niture, in fact a mixed assortment of anything and everything, and take all this in connection with the destruction of buildings we have related, and the reader will be enabled to form a slight idea of the appearance of the village of Elgin after the cyclone passed over it.
EASTWARD INTO THE COUNTRY.
The one-story house occupied by Mrs. Proctor and owned by Charles S. Richardson, east of the village, was unroofed and about half a story torn off. The house of Lucien Metcalf was half wrecked, his barn and cribs unroofed, his hay-sheds all torn to pieces and the place mangled up generally. Walter Dunn's house was racked and his barns unroofed. The hay-sheds and windmills of O. V. and I. W. Rollins, Joseph and H. G. Richardson were all more or less damaged, and Abner Smith's granary, sheds and corn-cribs were down flat. George Wedge's barn received some damages. H. D. Wedge lost a mile and a half of fence. J. E. Brown had his barn, granary and sheds blown over. J. R. Hunter lost his stable, and a few others suffered to a greater or less extent as far as Jacob Haessig's farm, but no serious damage was done in this direction outside what we have mentioned, and we will now return to the vil- lage and follow the path of the disaster westward.
Half a mile west of the village is the farm of Curtis Bryant. He lost a large barn. together with corn-cribs and other buildings, while four of his horses and two colts were killed. One of the colts, a three-year-old, was taken by the wind from in front of his house and carried north about forty rods, over fences and buildings, and found dead. Col. W. H. Feller's barn was unroofed, house dam- aged, granary moved off the foundation, and another building down
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TOWN OF ELGIN.
flat. Frank M. Bigelow's large barn was down to the plates and partly moved on the foundation ; house considerably damaged and windmill all to pieces. Fred C. Hartson's house, occupied by Jud- son Hudson, was taken by the wind thirty feet from its foundation and utterly demolished, and, wonderful to relate, Hudson, his wife, child and sister escaped from the flying debris safe and sound. A place occupied by Mrs. Amelia Drake had a stable and granary blown down, besides trees destroyed. William Tornow, tenant on William Brown's farm, suffered severely, and Mr. Brown had a barn and granary demolished, containing four hundred bushels of oats, one hundred and fifty bushels of wheat and fifteen tons of hay, which were all destroyed. The storm made terrible havoc among his trees and timber. At this point there appeared to be a succes- sion of storms constantly forming, which spread out nearly two miles in width. H. G. Richardson & Co's house west of this - Gus Warner, tenant- had the barn and granary blown down, besides trees. badly damaged. Charles Dobbins had his stable, hog- house and granary blown down, honse partly wrecked and partly unroofed, his stock hurt and trees badly injured. A plank 2×6 inches, broken from a hay-rake, was carried from abont one hundred and fifty feet southeast of the house and crushed a hole through the west side of the house. The granary of Harrison Rice was blown down and his stable destroyed. He lost thirty tons of hay and twelve acres of corn, and his house was partly unroofed. Henry C. Woodruff had his barn blown down, which was a great loss, as he had water-works in the barn attached to his windmill, which was also blown down. His house was partly unroofed, and his loss in timber and fruit-trees was irreparable, as it had taken him nearly twenty years to grow them. Pursuing farther westward, we have ascertained in brief the following damages wrought by the relentless wind : William Cook, machine-shed and corn-crib in- jured, wagonhouse, henhouse and windmill down, roof on barn moved, and fine grove destroyed. William Searles, barn unroofed, corn-crib and stable partly unroofed, hay and machine sheds and windmill torn down, seventy-five tons of hay destroyed, and thirty acres of timber badly damaged. August Swanke, house badly racked and shingles torn off, barn partly unroofed, granary, shed and stable destroyed. A. B. Hart, house, machine-house and sheds blown down, and fifteen acres of timber damaged. Mrs. Hart and child escaped by going down to the cellar. E. Raymond, a tool-
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HISTORY OF WABASHA COUNTY.
house, 45×60, and a cow-shed and stable, 25×200, blown down. On another place he lost two houses and a barn, seventy tons of hay and a windmill, and had forty acres of timber destroyed. A. Park, barn unroofed, sheds partly unroofed, hoghonse moved, henhouse destroyed. H. Southwick, barn unroofed, sheds down and five acres of timber destroyed. Mr. Patrick, stable blown down and house injured. M. Nash, house partly unroofed and the furniture damaged. Mr. Fitch's shade-trees down, and a number of cherry- trees torn out by the roots. A. Demke, granary badly broken up. James W. Finney, on Mr. Taylor's farm, honse partly unroofed and moved off the foundation, and barn, granary and corn-crib wrecked. August Barrent, on Henry Dewitz's place, lost everything he had. The house, two granaries and barn were demolished, all the furni- ture destroyed and clothing blown away. Mr. Barrent and family were caught up by the wind and hurled skyward with the flying débris,-one of the boys being carried by the wind southeast about forty feet, then northwest about sixty feet and south, twenty feet, landing him on a wood-pile; then he was seized again and carried about twenty-five feet and left in a ditch. Another boy was carried about sixty feet and dropped in a small creek. Strange to say, neither . was much hurt. John Twitten, hay and sheep sheds blown down, besides a hoghouse, 16×80, and the house partly unroofed. Thomas Brooks' farm, occupied by Joseph Hines : the house was carried from the foundation fifteen or twenty feet, where it struck a willow-tree, and was hurled about six feet beyond the tree. that keeping it from entirely falling, only a part of it being blown off. The family were in the house, and the tree keeping the building from falling doubtless saved their lives, although some were quite badly hurt. The barn, sheep-shed, 30×40, granary and hoghouse, 16×80, were destroyed. At another farm, owned by Thomas Brooks, a granary was blown down. The Fitch schoolhouse was laid perfectly flat, the bell alone remaining to show the site. Duane W. Searles' buildings were partly down, while F. Bennike lost his barn, granary and part of his house. W. H. White, barn blown down, granary injured, shingles torn off the house and the windmill blown down. A hired man in the barn was carried with it, being injured about the head. A horse was hurt, fences on one side of the farm carried off, and the fruit-trees nearly all destroyed. Forty tons of hay were seattered. A. B. Stacy, house racked, chimneys blown down, wagonhouse, granary and hay-sheds leveled, and
.
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TOWN OF ELGIN.
buggy and machinery broken, fences and thirty tons of hay blown away. Amos Welch, windmill torn to pieces. Harry Dodge, fruit- trees injured and hay blown away. S. Snow, house partly unroofed and kitchen blown down; barn, hay-sheds and stable entirely destroyed, machinery, wagon and cutter demolished and hay blown away. The two houses, barns, sheds, granary and machine-house of D. M. and F. G. Harvey were laid flat, not a vestige of the build- ings being left. Their hay was blown away, machinery broken and crops destroyed. Fred and James Harvey's house was swept down, Mrs. Harvey being caught and held by timbers, but fortunately but little hurt. George Harvey's windmill and three sheds were blown over. On the Dieter place, occupied by E. F. Dodge, the house was carried eighty-five feet, and the L demolished. Mrs. Dodge, with her baby and girl ten years old, ran down the cellar as soon as the doors of the house blew open, and Mr. Dodge started for the same place with another little girl, but did not reach it, being carried away with the house, luckily escaping injury. After the storm was over one of his boys crept from the débris of the L unhurt.
The stone schoolhouse on the Lake City road was almost entirely demolished. Having now described the effects of the storm to a point about ten miles west of the village of Elgin, we will abandon further description. Not that there is no more devastation to be written up, but for the reason that it does not come within our prov- ince to extend outside of the limits of the county regarding which this history is written.
RELIEF WORK.
We previously alluded to the appointment of a relief committee at Elgin immediately after the cyclone, and the generosity of the contributions. Below we append a list of the donations received by the committee for distribution:
Wabasha county (special).
$200 00
Plainview
489 00
Viola
258 00
Eyota village (cash)
111 50
Eyota village (stove)
17 00
Eyota ladies
23 25
St. Charles 161 00
St. Charles ladies
46 00
Dover.
75 00
Rochester
100 00
Kellogg
8 00
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HISTORY OF WABASHA COUNTY.
Kellogg village
$ 23 00
Chatfield.
92 50
Winona (Inmber). 800 00
Winona (cash).
395 00
Winona (merchandise).
50 00
Minneiska
26 50
St. Paul.
500 00
August Leitz' committee.
185 56
* J. G. Lawrence, Wabasha
25 00
J. C. Bartlett, Wabasha.
15 00
John Stewart, Wabasha.
5 00
F. P. Foster, Hyde Park.
5 00
S. A. Foster, Plainview
5 00
E. C. Ellis, Fairweather. 3 00
5 00
James McCarty, Plainview 5 00
John Gregor, Elgin. 5 00
Hibberd, Spencer, Bartlett & Co., Chicago.
25 00
Markley, Alling & Co.
25 00
Tredway & Sons, Dubuque.
10 00
W. W. Braden, St. Paul.
10 00
E. W. Crocker, Parker, Dakota
5 00
H. B. Thayer (to Maud)
5 00
Mrs. Hyde, Mazeppa, a lot of clothing.
3,714 31
This concludes our history of the disastrous cyclone which passed over Elgin and devastated the country from as far west as the Dakota border. One month afterward, to the day, the fearful wind- storm known as the "Rochester Cyclone," a full account of which appeared in our history of Olmsted county, swept over the country, but did no damage at Elgin, although it blew hard but steadily there.
After the storm the work of reconstruction and repairing was pushed forward with a degree of enterprise and energy that few at the time would have predicted. A commodious and imposing school-building has been reared from the ruins of the one destroyed, and now stands as a majestic witness of Elgin's enterprise, while arrangements for the construction of a new church edifice have been definitely made, and as soon as spring opens the edifice will be pushed to completion. With this exception, and excepting also the Morton building, the Bryant building, which was occupied by Mrs. Thayer, and the Richardson building, which was occupied by Kim- ber's drug store, every building was partly demolished has
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