Burwell Tornado 1905 - Garfield County, Nebraska

BURWELL TORNADO OF 1905
source: The Trail of the Loup
By: H.W. Fought and W.W. Haskell
transcribed by: Melody Beery

The latest and in point of destructiveness the most disastrous of all the storms that have visited the Loup Valley is the Burwell Tornado of September 15, 1905. This came as suddenly as it came unexpected. Never before in history has a real twister of any great dimensions passed over our region. The so-called "cyclone" which struck Ord in September, 1885, could in no wise be compared to this either in velocity or in thorough-going destructiveness.

The season 1905 was unusually satisfactory to our farmers. An abundance of rain interspersed with spells of hot weather resulted in bumper crops in valley and highland. The latter part of the summer only was somewhat unusual in its meteorological manifestations. The latter part of August and the first part of September marked a dry spell which, while it matured the corn rapidly and thus brought it beyond the danger of frost, yet drew the moisture out of the ground at such a rapid rate that fall plowing fast became an impossibility. Then the change came. September 2nd saw a great area of low pressure slowly settle over Nebraska and other western states, which marked the beginning of a series of rain and windstorms seldom equalled in western history. Friday, September 15th, marked the climax of the great atmospheric disturbances. All throughout Nebraska and up and down the Missouri Valley, in Iowa, Missouri and Kansas, the winds blew with varying fury and deluges of rain and hail caused untold damage. That evening Burwell was visited by her destructive tornado.

The first intimation given the dwellers in the lower valley of any such catastrophe was some more or less incoherent messages by wire; then came the following postal card extra printed immediately after the storm by the Burwell Tribune:

THE TRIBUNE POST CARD EXTRA

"Burwell, Neb.. Friday Evening, 8:30

A cyclone struck the north part of Burwell at 6 o'clock this evening, demolishing sixteen buildings, Mrs. A. E. McKinney, wife of E. B. McKinney, being instantly killed, and Mrs. Geo. Dinnell, Mrs. Leeper, Clifford Dinnell and Frank Ilennich being hurt, the latter seriously.

M. Saba's general store is a wreck and the dwellings of these entirely demolished: Costello, Hanna, J. Dinnell, McKinney, Scribner, Leeper, the Star, R. L.Miller, Mrs. Dinnell, Mrs. Aikens. Many others more or less damaged.

Storm formed in The Forks west of town, was narrow, and extended only a mile and a half southeast of town." The full extent of the ruin wrought could nut be learned till Saturday morning. It then became apparent that good fortune alone had spared the town from a much more disastrous visitation. Had the wind column veered but a few rods to the southward it would have plowed its way through the heart of the hapless town and quite a different tale might now have been told. As it was, it certainly was bad enough, and years must pass before the storm trail can be entirely effaced.

The Burwell Tribune in a supplement to the issue of Thursday, September 21st, tells the story
of the disaster in the following language:

"Friday, September 15, 1905, will be remembered for years by the present inhabitants of Burwell as the day of the great tornado. "Weather conditions that day were very peculiar. The day dawned clear and bright, but within an hour or two a dense fog enveloped the earth. This lifted and the sun shone brightly for a short period of time. Then fog again descended and obscured the landscape. The afternoon was hot and close; clouds black and threatening festooned the horizon to the north. "About six o'clock the death-dealing funnel-shaped cloud appeared to the northwest of town and in a few moments death and destruction were dealt out. "But few of the people of the town saw the awful creature of the elements. Those who did took hasty refuge in storm cellars. Others did not know that anything more serious than a rain storm was brewing till the alarm was sounded.

"The tornado seemed to form in The forks —the confluence of the Calamus and the Loup—just northwest of town a couple of miles. Its first work was on the farm of M. J. Scott, close to where the funnel formed, where several grain stacks were promiscuously scattered over the country. A cornfield near Scott's was demolished.

Then the residence of Mr. Costello was razed. The family had gone to the cellar and thus escaped injury.

"C. W. Hennich's stable and outbuildings were next destroyed. Frank Hennich was in the stable when the storm struck it and attempted to get into the house when a flying timber struck him down, crushing his ribs and injuring him internally. He grittily crawled to a clump of bushes and waited for the passage of the storm. His mother and sister were frantically trying to get to his aid and were tossed about by the wind but happily escaped injury.

"The storm passed east from this point, demolishing stables, cribs and outbuildings at Kirby McGrew's, destroying part, of the Bartholomew house, occupied by Leslie Baker, then swinging a little south, it overturned John Dinnell's dwelling and razed Mike Saba's store.

"R. W. Hanna'a home, north of Saba's store about two blocks, a fine two-story dwelling, was totally destroyed—smashed, I guess would express it about as well as any detailed description. Mr. Hanna, his wife, their son, and Mrs. Hanna's mother were in the house at the time and how they escaped unharmed is nothing less than a miracle. The building was picked up bodily, carried a few feet and literally crushed into kindling wood. The four people were right in the midst of the wreckage and yet escaped without a scratch.

"The Haas house north of Hanna's, occupied by Ed. McGuire, escaped destruction, but the barn, outbuildings, trees, etc., were swept away.

"J. H. Schuyler's fine home, a little south and cast of Hanna's, was perforated by flying timbers, racked and wrecked. Clothing which hung in a closet in the house was whisked out of the window and disappeared. The house is almost a total wreck. His stable was entirely blown away.

"Wm. Kester's house, just east of Schuyler's, was partially unroofed. His stables and cribs were carried away. The debris from these buildings was carried eastward.

"The home of E. B. McKinney, east and a little north of Kester's, was the scone of the greatest calamity. Both Mr. and Mrs. McKinney were in the house when the storm struck it. The house was reduced to kindling wood. Mrs. McKinney was killed almost instantly. Mr. McKinney was carried up into the air but escaped with slight injuries.

"Mrs. Geo. Dinnells home, south of McKinney's, was swept out of existence. Mrs. Dinnell and son Clifford were carried away and up into the whirling mass of cloud and debris and thrown to the earth close together. Mrs. Dinnell sustained bruises and cuts about the head and body and is hurt internally. Clifford had his arm badly lacerated and broken.

"Geo. Bell's livery barn was unroofed and wagons and buggies were carried away and broken and twisted into all conceivable shapes.

One new wagon belonging to Frank Schuyler was found away down the road east,with the wheels gone and the spindles twisted off. The roof of Bell's residence, just across the street from the barn, had a large chunk taken out of the center, the damage looking as though it bad resulted from something having been blown through it.

"Mrs. Gring's residence, just east of Bell's, was badly damaged by wreckage blowing through it. "McGrew's old store building, occupied by J. H. Schuyler as a pump house, was demolished. The Star store, used in part as a store-house and part as a dwelling house by Wm. Jeffries, was razed. The family narrowly escaped death.

"North of McKinney's the wreckage of houses lies westward. Here Mrs. Scribner's home was made into matchwood; the house occupied by Mr. Wheeler and family shared the same fate. Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler and three children were in the house at the time but escaped without serious injury.

"Fred Woodworth's house (the Hoyt property), a concrete house, was unroofed and wrecked, the windmill, outbuildings trees, fences, etc., being entirely destroyed.

"H. C. Woodworth's barn was destroyed and his team taken on an aerial trip. The horses were found near W. L. McMullen's home, nearly a half mile southeast, unscratched.

"Mrs. Aken's dwelling was blown to smithereens, as was also that of Mrs. Leeper, wherein Mrs. Leeper was badly hurt.

"I. W. McGrew's fine home is almost a wreck although not torn up badly. Timbers were driven through it and it was carried off the foundation and generally wrecked. McGrew's barn was totally destroyed, buggies, harnesses, outbuildings, etc., went with the general wreck to the southeast.

"D. E. Sawdey's place, next east of McGrew's, was a scene of desolation. All his outbuildings, windmill, dray wagon, harnesses, etc., were totally wiped out. His barn was destroyed, the horses blown over the house into the field southward and there escaped unhurt. The dwelling house was picked up, sent a short distance into the air and jammed onto the ground just off the foundation. It is almost a total wreck.

"R. L. Miller, who lives just east of Sawdey's, says the storm passed him on its first trip through, but after cleaning up R. B. Miller's place (the Carson farm adjoining town on the east), it swung back and completely wrecked his home the two-story part of his dwelling being lifted up and deposited wrong side up in the yard. The family had seen the storm coming and had taken refuge in the cave. Every bit of furniture in the house was broken to bits except a large mirror.

"R. B. Miller's place was hard hit and Mrs. Miller and the children bad a very narrow escape. Indeed it seems incredible that they could have escaped injury in the mix-up that occurred in the house. Barns, cribs, granaries, fences—everything on the place except the dwelling house itself was entirely swept away—some of the wreckage being carried south, part north. The dwelling was taken up, spun around and jammed into the earth and foundation. Furniture, plaster, debris from the storm, the lady and children, were mixed up indiscriminately but yet the folks escaped unhurt. One horse and several head of hogs were killed on this place. The storm passed southeast, sweeping away grain stacks, wrecking cornfields—in places shucking the corn and digging potatoes, crossing the Loup between H. T. Johns' and Ed Brown's places and entering the hills where it wiped out Wayne Waldron's farm house, barns, etc., and carried off his team. No further trace of the tornado can be found.

"Will Post's new barn in the Harrison addition was snatched out from among the dwellings roundabout and literally carried away. The only other damage done was the upsetting of Mr. Bilderback's house which was under course of construction."

"A relief committee, composed of L. B. Feuner, John Brockus, Guy Laverty, A. Mitchell and Fred J. Grunkemeyer, was appointed by a mass meeting of the citizens of Burwell Saturday afternoon to solicit funds and look after the unfortunate victims of the tornado. The meeting was called by W. C. Johns, chairman of the village board. Contributions are coming in nicely but a great deal more cash can bo used and contributions of clothing, etc., would not come amiss. "The cornice of the Burwell State Bank building was wrecked. "Windmills, cribs, etc., at Cram's stockyards were demolished. "The front of Janes & Sons' store was blown in, as was part of the front of Johns & Mitchell's. "One of the city's windmills went through the window of Baker's barber shop. "Nearly everybody in town lost a chimney or two. "The front of Murphy's saloon went out. "Arlo McGrew hung to a fencepost between the barn and the house until the storm had spent its fury. The ground around him was covered with timbers, but he escaped injury. "Charley Rupel lost a valuable cow in the mix-up. "One would bet money to marbles that a rabbit couldn't have escaped from where the Hanna family did without injury. "Mr. Costello's house was insured for $600.

"The only cyclone insurance carried by any of the losers was $300 by Mrs. Scribner, $1,400 by J. H. Schuyler and $750 by Mr. Carson. "Mike Saba, John Dinnell and J. H Schuyler, and Rev. E. Maleng, who were in Saba's store when it went up, had miraculous escapes. Mike found himself hung to a telephone pole near the Star store, Jerry flew out and grabbed a pole, John went out and up, landed and was knocked down by timbers several times. The preacher remained in the building until help arrived. All escaped without serious injuries.

A potted plant stood between McKinney's house and the gate, a distance of not over five feet from the house. It was uninjured.

"Mrs. Ed McGuire's canary bird was hanging in a cage on the porch and was carried away. The cage was found Saturday about half a mile away but no canary. Sunday morning the canary returned to the house and is now installed in a new cage.

"A part of a wooden hoop from a barrel was driven through a tree in I. W. McGrew's yard.

"Half of M. McGuire's potato patch was dug by the tornado. "It is a difficult matter to estimate the property loss. Many of the minor losses are not recorded.