The Little Known Greensburg Tornado...

We have all heard about the first EF5 tornado that destroyed 95% of the small town of Greensburg, Kansas on May 4th, 2007. Little is known about the tornado that happened on June 11, 1915.

I have come across some photos that probably came from historic postcards or photos someone had stored away for years and never gave them a second thought until last May. Included in this post are a couple of rare photos from that day. The residents of Greensburg, Kansas in 1915 were not afforded the warning that the modern day residents were given, which may have saved hundreds of lives as the 1.7 mile wide tornado rolled into the town after dark. I could not find any stats on deaths or damage from this twister. It amazes me to look at this photo from 1915 to see the same prairie style homes that can be seen surviving in Greensburg today, and possibly one of the same buildings, look right under the funnel in the distance, looks somewhat like THIS surviving building from 2007, let me know what you think. The other photo is from the Kline farm showing damage from the twister.

If we have learned one thing over time, it is that tornadoes do hit the same place more than once, ask the people of Oklahoma City. Lighting does strike twice, ask Don Frick. Lastly, we know that communities in tornado alley will be under the thumb of Mother Nature for a long time to come. The only thing we can do is to raise awareness, push storm shelters in newly constructed homes and hope the residents keep an eye to the sky. Click on the photos to view full sized. Photos courtesy of familyoldphotos.com