Tornado at Philadelphia – One Hundred and Fifty Houses Unroofed.

PHILADELPHIA, April 13. – The gale of last night amounted here in violence to a regular tornado. Great damage was done, and not less than one hundred and fifty houses were unroofed in various sections of the city. As far as heard from there has been no loss of life. Two large brick churches and three factories in Kensington were unroofed, and the large boiler house of the Franklin iron works, 150 feet long, was totally demolished. The Trenton railroad depot at Kensington was also partly unroofed.

The Tornado at Philadelphia.

The tornado which visited Philadelphia on Saturday night week, only lasted from ten to fifteen minutes. The day had been sultry, with high westerly winds. There were but few drops of rain, though indications of a storm existed for many hours. – Suddenly, at ten o’clock at night, there arose a fierce roaring of the wind, preceded by a few flashes of lightning and followed with a fall of hailstones. Instantly there was a tremendous rattling of window shutters, fluttering of awnings, falling of signs, lifting of roofs, destruction of walls, and even of buildings. The storm was felt with most severity in the northern part of the city, where not less than one hundred and fifty houses have felt its effect in the demolition of chimneys, injury to roofs and damage to walls. Some of the best constructed houses, apparently, suffered as severely as buildings of a less substantial character. In Kensington the effects of the wind are to be seen in every direction. – What is very fortunate, amid all this destruction and falling of bricks and scattering of timbers, scarcely any personal injury was sustained, only a few persons having received any injury, and that of no very serious character. The Philadelphia papers give detailed accounts of the property destroyed. Among the hundred and fifty houses that suffered damage five were utterly demolished. Of public and business structures injured are enumerated five churches, the Trenton railroad depot, one dye-house, and several manufactories. The pecuniary loss in Kensington alone is stated at more than $100,000.

The Philadelphia papers are burdened with details of the terrible and destructive tornado, which passed over that city on Saturday night week shortly before ten o’clock. It devasted (sic) a vast amount of valuable property, and cast panic and confusion on all sides. The tornado commenced in Pittsburgh on Saturday afternoon at 3 o’clock, and pursued a course east by southeast until it reached Philadelphia. The greatest amount of ruin in the latter city was at the north end, in the Sixteenth, Seventeenth, Eighteenth, Nineteenth and Twentieth wards, and the Pennsylvanian says:
In these the hurricane was most terrific, spreading dismay among the stoutest hearts, and affrighting every one in its course. – We have never witnessed scenes of greater terror than took place on that occasion, when women and children were running from the shattered dwellings to seek shelter among their neighbors and friends, and screaming and weeping as they went along, and others almost fainting with fright. – The number of houses partially or wholly destroyed will not fall short of two hundred, among which are five churches, one public school-house, Sutton & Co’s extensive boiler works, and numerous other buildings. The loss by this terrible visitation is estimated at over one hundred thousand dollars in real estate alone, while the damages to stock, furniture, &c., will swell the aggregate much beyond this figure.

RECAPITULATION

Dwellings damaged 224; dwellings destroyed 5; churches damaged 6; lumber yards damaged 11; glue manufactories damaged 2; machine shops damaged 2; carpenter shops damaged 3; chair manufactory damaged 1; nursery damaged 1; dye house destroyed 1; stables destroyed 3; planing-mill damaged 1; whiting manufactory bestroyed [sic] 1; slaughter-house destroyed 1; railroad depots damaged 2 – total 265. – Total damage over $100,000. Number of persons injured 9.

Another account says fifteen persons were injured.

The Adams Sentinel, Gettysburg, PA 21 Apr 1856