Tornado outbreaks of mid-to-late May 1896
The tornado outbreaks of mid-to-late May 1896 were a series of violent and deadly tornado outbreaks that struck much of the Central and Southern United States from May 15 to 28, 1896. It is considered one of the worst stretches of near-continuous tornadic activity on record, with tornado expert Tom Grazulis stating that the week of May 24–28 was "perhaps the most violent single week of tornado activity in United States history". There were four particularly notable tornado outbreaks during the two-week period. The outbreaks produced three F5 tornadoes as well as the third deadliest tornado ever in United States history, which is also the costliest in the United States’ history when adjusted for inflation. Additionally, at least one tornado crossed into Canada, inflicting more damage there. A total of at least 484 people were killed during the entire two week span by at least 38 different tornadoes which struck Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Kentucky, Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland.
Confirmed tornadoes
Possible tornadoes also may have hit Kalkaska, Midland, and Wayne counties, Michigan.Numerous discrepancies on the details of tornadoes in this outbreak exist between sources. The total count of tornadoes and ratings differs from various agencies accordingly. The list below documents information from the most contemporary official sources alongside assessments from tornado historian Thomas P. Grazulis.
May 27 event
Sherman, Texas
On the first day of the outbreak sequence, most of the fatalities came from a single supercell thunderstorm that traveled from Denton to Sherman. The tornado began in the Pilot Point area, where farm homes were shifted off of their foundations. The tornado widened and strengthened into a very violent F5 and swept away numerous farms west of Farmington and Howe. Later along the path, the tornado narrowed to around wide as it tore through Sherman. 50 homes were destroyed in town, 20 of which were obliterated and swept away. An iron-beam bridge was torn from its supports and twisted into pieces, and one of the beams was driven several feet into the ground. Bodies were found up to from their home sites, and a trunk lid was carried for. Headstones at a cemetery were shattered, and a 500-pound stone was carried for 250 yards. Trees in the area were completely debarked with some reduced to stumps, and grass was scoured from lawns in town. At least 200 people were injured, and bodies of the victims were transported into the courthouse and a vacant building. Several bodies were recovered from a muddy creek. 73 people were killed by this single tornado, one of the worst on record in North Texas and the Red River Valley region, in particular the Texoma region.Additional killer tornadoes were recorded north of Wichita, Kansas in McPherson County and further south in Bryan County, Oklahoma, also in the Texoma region.
Seneca–Oneida, Kansas/Falls City, Nebraska
A powerful F5 tornado, estimated to have been more than wide, tore through the towns of Seneca, Oneida, Reserve and Sabetha, Kansas. In Seneca, the tornado destroyed the courthouse and a new schoolhouse, and the opera house was completely leveled and swept away. Damage in Seneca alone was estimated at $250,000 where most of the homes, the fairgrounds and other small structures sustained at least heavy damage, if not complete destruction. The damage path was two miles wide at Reserve, and only three buildings were left undamaged at that location. The tornado damaged 50 homes and destroyed 20 others on the north side of Sabetha. Many farms were entirely swept away along the path as well, some of which were reportedly left "as bare as the prairie". The tornado continued into Nebraska, where four people died and damage occurred on the south side of Falls City. At least 200 people were injured.Whigville-Ortonville–Oakwood-Thomas, Michigan
Late during the evening hours of May 25, this violent tornado touched down in Eastern Michigan and moved northeast for about. The tornado affected portions of Oakland, Lapeer and Livingston Counties northwest of Detroit. Towns affected included Thomas, Ortonville, Oakwood, and Whigville just after 9:00 pm. Homes were leveled or swept away, and fatalities occurred along the path. Entire farms were leveled, and debris from homes was found up to away. Trees were completely debarked along the path as well, with even small twigs stripped bare in some cases. Homes were swept away in Thomas, including one that was obliterated with the debris scattered up to 10 miles away. A piano from that residence was found 200 yards away from the foundation, with one end "pounded full of grass". Weather Bureau inspectors reported that grass in the center-most part of the circulation was "pounded down into the earth, as if it had been washed into the earth by a heavy flow of water." At least 100 people were injured. With 47 deaths, this is the second-deadliest tornado ever in Michigan trailing only the Flint Tornado of 1953 which killed 116 in Genesee County just outside Flint. Twenty-two people were killed in Ortonville, ten in Oakwood, three in Thomas, four north of Oxford and three in Whigville with others in rural areas. Nine of the fatalities were in a single home in Ortonville.Other killer tornadoes on that day touched down in Ogle County, Illinois and Macomb & Tuscola Counties in Michigan. Several homes and farms in the Mount Clemens area were wiped out and others were moved from their foundations. The recently completed Colonial Hotel was leveled. Thirty homes were leveled in total, and two people were killed.
St. Louis, Missouri/East St. Louis, Illinois
This violent and catastrophic tornado—the third deadliest tornado in the United States’ history—struck the Greater St. Louis area in both Missouri and Illinois. This violent tornado killed at least 255 people, injured at least 1,000 more, and caused more than $10 million in damages. At the time, this was the costliest tornado ever recorded in the United States. It was one of at least 18 tornadoes to occur that dayAt least 137 people died as the tornado traversed the core of the downtown area, leaving a continuous, one-mile-wide swath of destroyed homes, schools, saloons, factories, mills, churches, parks, and railroad yards in its wake. A few of the destroyed homes were all but completely swept away. Numerous trees were downed at the Lafayette Park, and a barometer recorded a drop to 26.74 inHg at this location.
After devastating the city of St. Louis, the tornado crossed the Mississippi River and struck the Eads Bridge, where a wooden plank was found driven through a wrought iron plate. Uncounted others may have died on boats on the river, which could have swept their bodies downriver where they could not be recorded in the official death toll. The tornado continued into East St. Louis, Illinois, where its path was narrower, but its strength became even more intense. Homes and buildings along the river were completely swept away and a quarter of the buildings there were damaged or destroyed. An additional 118 people were killed, 35 of whom were at the Vandalia railroad freight yards.