Berrien County MI Archives News.....Incidents of the Great Storm in Illinois and Southwestern Michigan. June 17, 1859
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Karra Porter karra.porter@chrisjen.com April 25, 2009, 4:51 pm

Grand Traverse Herald June 17, 1859

One of the most terrible and devastating storms ever known in this country 
visited lllinois, Minnesota, and some portions of Southwestern Michigan, on 
the 26th and 28th ult.  We glean and condense from Chicago and other papers 
the most interesting of the many terrible incidents.

At Pipestone, Berrien county, Mich., at about 11 o'clock at night, Alvin 
Robinson's family were awakened by the roaring of the tempest.  Mrs. R. arose 
and went to the door, followed by her husband, when both were suddenly caught 
by the wind and thrown under a bed occupied by Mr. Worth and his wife.  Almost 
instantly, a large log of the house was thrown across the top of the bed, only 
prevented from crushing the inmates by lodging diagonally against another log. 
Mr. Worth with difficulty extricated himself and his wife, and then proceeded
to look for his two children—a boy ten years old, and a girl twelve.  They 
were both thrown out of doors, and lodged at the end of the house. The girl 
had an arm badly broken above the elbow, and a shoulder put out of joint.  Her 
head and side were also badly bruised.  The boy was only slightly injured.

Another house, about fifty rods from this, built of plank, was lifted bodily 
from its foundation, carried over several stumps from three to five feet high, 
and thrown down upon three other stumps.  Of course it was all torn to pieces. 
The inmates were P. Dewitt and family, consisting of his wife, father, and 
three children.  Mr. Dewitt was very badly injured on his head and side, and 
one leg is nearly stripped of its flesh.  It is feared, also, that some of his 
ribs are broken.  His recovery is doubtful.

Mrs. Dewitt was also badly bruised on her head and limbs, but not seriously. 
One of the children, a boy nine years of age, is so badly bruised on his head 
that he cannot recover.  The youngest boy, six years of age, is badly cut on 
the head, and his brain is very much injured.  The others are only slightly 
hurt.

The storm lasted only a few minutes, but was so severe that hens in the trees 
were entirely stripped of their feathers, and hurled to the ground so 
violently as to kill them.  A large hollow log, eight feet long, in which were
an ox yoke, a shovel and a hoe, was carried so effectually that nothing can be 
found but the yoke, which lies fifty rods from the starting place, split to 
pieces.  The tornado seemed to expend itself upon a tract about forty rods in
width and from five to seven miles long.  Its course was from the southwest to 
the northeast.  The largest trees in its path were torn up by the roots, or 
broken and twisted off like pipe-stems.  The roaring was terrific and
could be heard for miles.

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