Williamstown, Kansas Tornado
June
1893
Perry, Kan., June 23. -- The most
destructive and death-dealing cyclone that ever
visited
eastern Kansas passed through Williamstown and
the surrounding country in Jefferson county
about 7 o'clock Wednesday evening. It
traveled southeast and took in a scope of county
half a mile wide and about 6 miles long.
Not a house, barn or tree was left standing in
its path. It was accompanied by a terrible
rainstorm and midnight darkness. Eleven dead
bodies have so far been discovered, and it is
known that at least five more were killed.
Following is a list so far as is known:
Dead - L. F. Evans, Emery Evans, Mrs.
John Hutchinson, Samuel Stewart, six members of
the Kincade family
Fatally Hurt -
James Baker, Mr. and
Mrs. William Goeppert
Seriously Injured -
Rose Gray, Horace
Gray, Arthur Jones, Walter McCracken
The bodies of the dead are all horribly
mangled. Mrs. Hutchinson's arms and limbs
were found in a tree a mile from the house.
Eva Kincaide's head was severed from her body.
complete details cannot be obtained at this
hour, but it is probable that at least twenty
persons have been killed and thirty houses blown
down.
Daily Citizen, Iowa City, Iowa, 23 June 1893
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Jackson, Jefferson, and Pottawatomie Counties, Kansas Biographical Dictionary
1890 Read it online at ancestry.com. Use this
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