The Hailstorm of 1871

On July 16 1871, a severe hailstorm ravaged the area from Crescent, through Montoursville, Turbotville, and Washingtonville.  Birds and livestock were killed, many roofs were full of holes, and hail was a foot thick on the ground.

From Turbotville:
Dear Sir : I take pen to give yon an account of the most destructive hail storm that ever visit this part of Pennsylvania, on Sunday at half past 3 o'clock, p. m. It crossed the river below Muncy, and passed along about 11 miles north of this place. In its course it destroyed the corn and oats entirely. 

The most destructive path was less than a mile wide, while the whole was six to seven wile wide. The hail fell in inch quantities that it covered the ground from three to five inches deep. It ripped the leaves off the trees and orchards, so that they look like winter.

 I visited many places during Monday, and at 5 o'clock  I saw piles of hail at least two feet deep. The hail knocked the shingles in holes, and many houses and barns are so badly injured that they require new roofs. The lot cannot be ascertained yet, but must amount to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

 It moved nearly due east, and extended through Montour county as far as Strawberry ridge, and how much further I have not heard. After the storm was over the Muncy Hill were white with hail, and inch torrent of rain fell that the Warrior Run was higher by at least a foot than ever known. Where it crossed the road to Muncy it was very, very bad.

 I can not now give you the name of individual sufferers, but will next week More 

Williamsport

 The Williamsport Bulletin give the full particulars of the great hail storm from which we extract the following:

Commenced about Crescent and Trout Run, traveled in a south easterly direction to Montoursville, the track not extending over a belt of country more than three miles wide. The crops about Crescent were utterly destroyed. 

Adam Hinkleman lost all his corn ; 

Jacob Quiggle suffered severely in the loss of wheat and rye. 

Geo Ball's barn and house partly unroofed, and upwards of thirty young apple trees uprooted. 

Geo. Blair lost his growing crop,

 John Spotts had six acres of wheat entirely destroyed ;

 Moses Bower, Esq., lost all his corn, oats, and buckwheat in the ground. 

Hail at some places four inches deep on the ground. 

In Hepburn township 

John Miller lost 18 acres of corn and the same number of acres of oats ; 75 panes of glass broken in his dwelling; his loss in all will not fall much short of $1000. 

Wm. Rathmell lost 14 acres of corn, 9 acres of oat and 13 turkeys less estimated at $560.

 At Balls Mills

 106 panes of glassss broken in the mill and 60 in the dwelling house; fences prostrated ; 

Joseph Wheeland had ten acres of corn and 13 of eat destroyed at an estimated loss of $400. 

Geo-Hartman, in Eldred township, lost his growing crop and 

Wm. Collins suffered a loss of about $300 .

 Polley Wheeland $300 ; 

Joseph Frits, $500, 

John Neioe, three farms, $1,200;

 John Casseiberry, $1,000, Peter Fullmer, $500 ;

 Daniel Thomas, $1,000 ; 

Henry Lawrence, $500: 

Geo Collins, $300; 

Joseph Hagerman, $1000 ; 

David Saebold, $400 ;

 Russell Long, $500, 

Geo. Edkin, $800;

 John Mittinger, $800. 

We give but a few of the many sufferer along the route-Potatoes from the patch of Mr. Mittinger were strewed along the wash half a mile. Wherever the full fury of the storm burst on a field of oats or corn it was literally cut into shreds and the oats beaten into the ground. 

Montoursville suffered severely, the garden being almost annihilated. A very fine garden belonging to W. P.Paulhamus, filled with a choice variety of vegetable, worth not less than $200, was utterly destroyed. 

More than 24 hours after the storm a bushel of hail frozen into a solid mass was observed lying in his yard. The hail was piled up in many places to the depth of many feet, and the main street at one time was a solid sheet of water of sufficient depth to float a canal boat. 

James Harding lost 33 acres of corn. The glass destroyed in his hot houses will amount to $75, and the total loss of his garden will reach $500, to say nothing of the loss of his corn.

 Thomas Strebeigh bad a large crop of oats destroyed, and hi whole loss is estimated at $1,000. 

A. Tale had forty-seven acres of fine corn totally ruined and Geo. Konkle had about thirty acres

. The loss sustained in Montoursville will reach, if not exceed, $20,000 ; the losses to the farmers in the course of the storm Is difficult to estimate, bat it may be safe to assume that $75,000 will scarcely cover the aggregate losses from Cresoent to Montoursville.

 The birds suffered severely in the course of this terrific storm, great number having been killed outright.

At Turbotville the sky was black as night, the forked lightning flashed, the thunder rolled, the wind blew and the hall fell, presenting so the eye a scene indescribable. It was for a time emphatically an elemental war. The hail became master. It fell at some place to the depth of two feet and over, destroying everything in its track. Corn, oats, potatoes and other crops are beaten into the earth. The tree are as leafless as in mid winter even the bark in many Instances peeled off. 

Buildings were unroofed, or the roofs beaten full of holes. Windows are without glass, and, in short a most desolate scene presents itself to the eye. Some farmers are well nigh ruined. I conversed with one of the unfortunate men on Monday morning, who told me that he will be compelled to sell out, as he has nothing to feed his cattle and winter his stock. 

It seems the strip of country over which the storm passed is only about a mile or two wide, how long remain to be learned. On Monday morning the hail was a foot deep in some places. The storm extended into Columbia county, doing great damage in its course. 

Great chunks of ice, weighing four pounds fell in Northumberland county. .

============

READ MORE

==============