Storm Ravages Home and School In Nebraska Town
In a Nebraska storm, Mrs Kilby later Nadine Mileur in her teens recalls the third floor of their house at 315 N 14th blown off. Her sister Yvonne was severely injured at the high school and buried under debris beside Bernard Sheley who was killed. Father operated a grocery store at Logan and 22nd, found after hours at a temporary aid station in the Elks Club with a bandaged head. He later remembered an insurance policy hidden in the debris.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Mother
Yvonne
Bernard Sheley
Dad
Logan
22Nd
Elks Club
Flight Over Orchard Lands in Cemetery Tree
A narrator describes flying over LeMaster's cherry orchard and landing atop a cedar in Denning Cemetery. The tree toppled, and after freeing from the branches the speaker became airborne again.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
LeMaster
Denning
LeMaster’s
Tornado Hits West Frankfort Area During Peabody Mine Outbreak
The account recalls a fierce tornado striking West Frankfort, killing or damaging homes near Deering and the Peabody No. 18 mine. A 15 year old resident describes the ground hugging funnel, debris flying, and families fleeing to basements as residents tally ruined houses and mess after the storm.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Nolen
West Frankfort
Deering
Peabody No. 18
Sam
No. 18
Frankfort Township
Newlyweds' home destroyed in severe storm incident
McClatchey, ex mayor of West Frankfort, and Leah, his wife, were newlyweds living with his father in the northwest part of town. Their Orient No. 1 mine had shut down the day before. A tornado struck the Church of God campgrounds west of town, prompting Leah to call them to a safe corner near an ice box as walls collapsed and only one wall remained.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
West Frankfort
Church of God
Kay Herstedt
Tornado Diary From Murphysboro Night Remembered
Tony Stevens recalls a devastating tornado that damaged a home in the 2100 block of Logan lower log home, a furnace fire, and a family of Ben Daniel and Jessie Marie barely escaping. He recounts neighbors' confusion, the journey uptown, and his husband’s near-miss while aiding storm damage elsewhere.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Ben Daniel
Jessie Marie
Logan
Daniel
Ben
West Frankfort
Murphysboro
Marion
Carbondale
Tony Stevens
Tornado Toll Reflections From a Missouri Family
A survivor recounts the Gartside area disaster detailing Edith Kelly and Edith Pieron’s deaths, the collapse of homes, injuries to family members, and the loss of belongings. The account notes a four year old brother Wilbur dying later, a baby sister found under debris, and siblings and mother severely injured during the storm. Side mentions include a corner service station and the terrifying roar described as many train engines in a tunnel.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Kelly
Edith Pieron
Gartside
Mary Pieron
Mother
Rose Cathrine
Tony Stevens
Mother’s
20Th and Gartside Streets
Edith Kelly
Augusta Raines
Raines
Wilbur
St. Louis
Betty
Constance Comte
Mildred Pieron
Train Engine Echoes Haunt Irene Survivors
Edith Pieron Kelly recalls a disaster scene where survivors describe the sound like multiple train engines in a tunnel, noting they lost everything except their clothes. The eyewitness account captures the fear and memory of the catastrophe.
Six cars blown into front yard after tornado in Murphysboro
Harry Kilby recalls six cars being blown into the front yard near his home at 22nd and Gartside in Murphysboro during a storm. He notes their home, an 18 month old structure, was damaged and a brother’s chicken house was destroyed while no one in the family was injured.
A Flight Through Townmount School Ruin Reveals Narrow Escape
Mrs Wright, director of the Frankfort Area Historical Museum, recalls a tornado event near Townmount School between West Frankfort and Orient. A crowd of students evacuated as the cloakroom ripped away, debris pounded, and she was hurled by wind into a ditch then into a cedar tree before landing amid rubble near the destroyed church. Her mother and rescuers search the rubble as she returns home.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Sherman LeMaster
Townmount Church
Also Mentioned on This Page
Nadine Mileur
Kilby
Mavis Wright
Frankfort Area
Orient No. 2
Orville Nolen
Nole
Mike McClatchey
Ice Box
Longfellow School
Kelly Murphysboro
Edith Pieron Kelly
Missouri
Elling
Annapolis
Mt. Vernon
Ilinois
Parrish
Kentucky
Indianal
Princeton
Owensville
Harry Kilby
22Nd and Gartside
Jim
Logan School
Logan Grade School
DeSoto School
Mrs. Wright
This is just the beginning! Our collection holds over 300 years of history, including rare newspapers, obituaries, marriage records, birth records, and so much more—most of which you won’t find anywhere else!