(As I prepare this column on Wednesday, February 22, 2023, we are midweek in Spring Severe Weather Preparedness Week for the State of MS. Grenada Star shared formative articles pertaining to weather related preparedness. Severe weather can occur any time of the year, day or night - be prepared! In connection with severe weather, today’s selected Sentinel article details a terrific windstorm that did extensive damage in Grenada, which was the worst in fifty years.)
Grenada Sentinel
Saturday, June 18, 1898
On last Monday afternoon, shortly after 4 p.m., Grenada was visited by a terrific wind and rainstorm, which lasted about twenty minutes. The storm came with frightful velocity from the southwest, Grenada was directly in its path and furnished ample evidence of the fact after the storm had passed. Trees were uprooted, twisted out of shape and symmetry and stripped of their limbs and foliage; houses were unroofed and damaged in various other ways; chimneys were partially or entirely demolished; doors and windows were smashed; telegraph poles and wires were blown down; fences were wrecked and a vast amount of other damage, running up into the thousands, was sustained by the inhabitants of Grenada. While many persons were greatly frightened, but few, if any, realized the furious and uncompromising force and ferocity of the wind until the wide extended area of debris was seen covering the entire city. The people of Grenada are not accustomed to storms of this character. They have, in fact, enjoyed singular immunity from atmospheric disturbances. Not for more than half a century has such a storm as that of Wednesday evening been witnessed in this vicinity. There has apparently been a law of compensation invoked in the interest of Grenada since that frightful and fatal visitation of 1846, which history and tradition inform us was accompanied by a lamentable and melancholy loss of life.
Among those who suffered especially severe damage to property: the Oil Mill and Compress lost much tin and iron roofing; the Grenada Hardware Company and E.A. Meaders & Co. had a great part of their tin roofing ripped off - the water poured in through the ceiling and did considerable damage to goods before they could be removed to a place of safety. The entire roof was blown off the machine shop of Kettle & Berry, and S.A. Morrison’s livery stable lost part of its roof. The Methodist and the Episcopal churches came in for a large portion of the fury of the wind, the latter sustaining very heavy and serious loss. The large and magnificently beautiful stained glass Bishop Green Memorial window in the rear and west end of the church, was broken and shattered to pieces. This window was placed there at a cost of about $350. Besides, other smaller memorial windows were similarly destroyed.
The residence part of Main Street presented the appearance of a recently felled forest. There was almost a continuous heap of green leaves and branches piled about in the yards, while many large and beautiful shade trees were either blown down or stripped and dismantled of their limbs and thick heavy foliage. One of the magnificent shade trees on the college campus was a total wreck and others were sadly disfigured. The elegant and beautiful yards of Judge A.T. Roane and Prof. Granberry were robbed of much of their picturesque beauty. The other places on Main Street, which were similarly damaged, were those of J.C. DeLoach, Mrs. Frazier, Mrs. Davis, J.C. Perry, G.W. Lake and Max Ginsberger.
Among those in other parts of town whose residence property received injury was H.B. Barbee. In his large and lovely yard one of the trees fell on and broke down four panels of iron fence, while in the rear a number of large trees were blown down. The yard of Louis Majet was rendered less attractive by loss of trees. M. Moore’s barn was destroyed, but fortunately no stock was killed. No section of the city was slighted and as it was no one was killed or even hurt.
(H.B. Barbee’s house is still standing on Margin Street. Locals know this property as the Golladay Lake house.)
