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May 9th, 1933: night of death and destruction by "Jim" Seventy-eight years ago this evening--Tuesday, May 9th, 1933--a tornado roared out of Overton County, Tennessee into Kentucky and ripped a path of death and destruction through Monroe, Metcalfe, Adair, and Russell Counties. A preliminary account in the May 11, 1933 Courier-Journal reported thirty-seven dead in Kentucky with eight casualties - two dead and six injured - in Adair County. The same edition of the Courier reported 14 to 16 killed in Russell County, with many, many injuries there. The following week, the May 17th edition of the Adair County News carried a lengthy account of the horrific events of May 9th: STORM TOLL 36 IN STATE ______________ Five Persons Are Dead in Adair and Thousands of Dollars Lost in Property Damage ______________ 14 DEAD AND 69 INJURED IN RUSSELL COUNTY ______________ Sections of Northern Tennessee and Southern Kentucky were laid in ruins on Tuesday night of last week when swept by one of the most terrific tornadoes ever recorded in this part of the United States. The storm came out of the southwest at about 8:30, according to witnesses, swept eastward and returned along the same path a little past 11:00 o'clock that night. It passed within five miles of Columbia and in Russell County within about one-half mile of Russell Springs. Five persons were killed or died as a result of injuries in Adair County. They were: Mr. and Mrs. George Grider, of near Gentry's Mill; Bess Jones, colored, of Gadberry; Al Duvall and Ernestine Duvall, colored, of the Zion neighborhood. Rev. and Mrs. Roy Rediford and their 3-year-old child, all natives of this county, were killed in Tompkinsville. [The Kentucky death record index has entries for Roy Redeford, 30, & Rose Redeford, 28, both died May 9, 1933 in Monroe County; and for Billie Redford, four, who died May 10, 1933 in adjoining Barren County. Billie (his full name was James William) was born March 16, 1930, in Adair County; his mother was the former Miss Rose Compton. The Redifords had another child, Jessie R., born October, 1931 in Adair Co.] After wrecking towns and leaving a death toll of approximately seventy-five persons in Northern Tennessee, with particularly heavy losses at Birdstown and Livingston, the storm swept through Monroe County, demolished 100 homes in and near Tompkinsville and killed eighteen persons. The furious wind entered Adair southwest of Columbia and the first damage recorded was near Sparksville, where the home of Austin Gilpin and all outbuildings, with the exception of one old shack, was completely swept away. The Gilpin family had retired for the night when their house was blown over. A small boy who was sleeping on the second floor, managed to crawl uninjured from the ruins and ran several miles through the wind and rain to his grandparents for aid. Mr. and Mrs. Gilpin were both rescued but were ill from injuries and shock. The house owned by Ed Wheeler and family of Sparksville was also damaged by the wind. The tornado cut a wide swath through Flat Woods, sweeping timber and small buildings in its path and passed on into the Gadberry neighborhood, where very serious damage was recorded. The home of Amanda Jones, of color, was destroyed, [and] her daughter, Bess Jones, 35 years old, was killed and four others were injured. Aunt Mary Jones, also colored, lost her house and a nine-year-old girl living there suffered a broken arm and other injuries. The storm passed into the Zion neighborhood, wiping out a tenant house on the farm of Mr. Ernest Flowers, occupied by Al Duvall, of color, and family. A 7-year-old girl, Ernestine Duvall, was killed and six others in the family were badly injured. They were rushed to the Lebanon Hospital, where [Al] Duvall died on Thursday. His wife is not expected to live. Thousands of dollars worth of the finest timber in Adair County was destroyed on the farm of Miss Fannie Holladay and Mr. W.A. Garnett. A barn belonging to Mr. Charlie Tupman was blown away. The storm, moving eastward in its fury, swept away the new house of Irene Taylor, of color, in the White Oak section. Rainfall schoolhouse was destroyed. The house and outbuildings of Mr. Sam Conover were blown away but Mr. Conover, his wife and two children, who were sleeping in the house, were uninjured. White Oak church was damaged by a falling tree. Much other damage is reported in that section and in the Bailey neighborhood where Luther Bailey's place was wrecked and blown away. The heaviest loss of life occurred near Gentry's Mill just before the tornado swept into Russell County. Mr. and Mrs. George Grider were killed outright when their home and outbuildings were blown to pieces. Mrs. Nathan Blankenship, who lives just over the county line in Russell, was also killed. Theo Bryant, also of Russell County, was instantly killed, his wife injured and their home demolished. Fourteen persons are known to have died in Russell County and sixty-nine are reported injured. Heavy rains have greatly retarded rescue work, which is being carried on by the Red Cross and State Board of Health workers. Other damage reported since the above article was written are as follows: A daughter of Lige Bragg, Price's Creek, was injured and his home destroyed.The May 18th, 1933 edition of the Russell County News gladly gave credit where credit was due: The unfortunates people of the great disaster, and the public in general highly appreciate the fine spirit that actuated Mr. and Mrs. J. A. Oaks, proprietors of the Russell Springs Hotel, in generously turning over the hotel and facilities as an emergency hospital for the treatment of the injured. The Methodist people are also entitled our appreciation for donating the use of their church building for the same purpose. The Red Cross has shown its great worth in the rendering of prompt and efficient service to those needing help and attention. In behalf of all Russell countians. The News desires to express their thanks to the people of the counties of Adair, Boyle, Casey and Taylor, and others that may have assisted in any way. Nath & Prudy Blankenship, (Mr. & Mrs. Nathan Blankenship mentioned in the Adair County News article, above) lived on current-day Hwy 1545 (Bottom Road), about 0.6 miles off Hwy 80, almost exactly two miles (as the crow flies) from the Adair-Russell line and nearly due east from the Gentry's Mill community. My grandparents and their five youngest sons, including my father, had removed from near the Russell-Pulaski County line the previous year to Bottom Road, about a quarter of a mile closer to Russell Springs than where the Blankeships resided. On the evening of May 11th, my grandfather penned the follow letter to his sister Nan, who lived near in Ingle, Pulaski County. (The letter is transcribed verbatim, imaginative spellings and all.) Russell Spgs Ky May 11, 1933 Mrs. Nan Williams My Dear sister, We have just eat supper, and I thought I would write you. We are all as well as could be expected, considering what we have went through. We have witnessed the worst cyclone, that ever hit Ky. Both of our barns were blown away, our hen house blown off thefoundation. Our mules cow and hog were all in the barns but neither of them hurt. [page 2] I will just try to tell a little of it, can't tell it all nor any one else can. We went to our cellar, although our house was not damaged except one window pane & 5 brick blown away. Mr. Blankenship our nearest neighbor's house, two barns, all out buildings, him, his wife and a orphant boy were blown away, all wrecked together about the cinter of where the barn stood. Words can't express this. We came out of our cellar and could hear the aughful cries. We went through a torrant [page 3] of rain and electricity to there aid. We took a cot and carried Mrs. Blankenship to our house. She live about 2 hrs, took Mr. Blankenship to the hospital yesterday eve. Mr. Ray Folley's house, barn, and entire family live just the other side of us from Mr. Blankship were blown away, they are all in the hospital. We can stand 300 yds from our house and see where 3 or four houses were blown away. The hotel [and] Methodist church are both being used for [page 4] for hospitals. I have no idea how many wonded there are in the hospitals. You can see clothing, lumber, pieces of chairs, anything most in fields, woods are [should be "or"] any where in its path. Willie's family are here. It never struck them. Willie come when he heard of it. We got him to go back and get Edith and Irene. He is helping us on our barn. There were about 10 men helped us some this evening. Our mules are at Martin Wilson's, our cow and hog are outside, could not find [page 5] our cow tonight, there is no fence left. We sure have something to be thankful for by our livesbeing spared. I would like for you all to come and visit us, and see some of the aughful disaster. But I do hope you may never witness any thing like it. I will quit, can't start to tell any of it. With love to you all, I remain Your Bro. I've heard my Granny talk a lot about the tornado that hit that evening seventy-eight years ago. She and a neighbor had walked to town (Russell Springs) and back that afternoon, and she would always mention that was really hot and very still, and that, "Oh, it just felt so lonesome." That evening, just before the storm hit, Denny Ray Thomas and perhaps another fellow stopped by the house and wanted Uncle Woody to go with them to some kind of to-do at the Russell Springs High School (on Hwy 80). My Grandpa and Granny talked them out of it, and a short time after that, the worst of the storm started. Everyone went through the rain to the outside cellar at the back of the house. Granny was the last to go in, and a gust of wind caught the cellar door and it hit her head. My Uncle Leo remembered that after they brought Mrs. Blankenship to the house, Uncle Hobert held a dough board over a broken window to keep the rain out of the room where they had taken Mrs. Blankenship.Granny also talked about a big maple tree just across the road being rootwadded by the storm, and either she or or my father that some glass jars on a fence on the right side of the house weren't touched. At that time, Martin Luther Wilson and his family also lived on Bottom Road, just past the Blankeships on the other side of the road; so mighty was the force of nature that night, Martin thought the end of the world was at hand. I believe (but can't recall for sure) that either my father or my Granny said the "orphant boy" Grandpa referred to in the letter was a Grant. Compiled by "Jim" This story was posted on 2011-05-09 15:13:56
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