The Great Cyclone of 1896


20 minutes of terror  |  255 Killed  |  Lafayette Park in ruins

 
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At 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 29, 1927, a powerful tornado touched down near Manchester Avenue and Kingshighway. Destruction was evident from Fountain Park to Hyde Park, with 78 killed and approximately 550 injured including students from Central High School where over 1,500 students were in class at the time. The tornado’s path was 12 miles long and 600 yards wide and damage estimates ranged up to 53 million dollars.

4132 McPherson

Southwest corner of Sarah and Delmar

Whittier and Maryland

Looking Northeast at Cook and Sarah

Fairfax and Sarah looking South

East side of Sarah Street, looking South from Page

Automobile wrecked during September 1927 tornado

Surveying damage from 1927 tornado at Herman Body Co.

Ruins of Berean Church at Cook and Sarah

First Presbyterian Church at Sarah and Washington

Northeast corner of Whittier and Olive

Demolished house at McPherson and Sarah