The Great 1900 Galveston Hurricane 110 Years Ago

[srainhoutx]

Happy Anniversary! We will never forget!

On September 8, 1900, the greatest natural disaster to ever strike the United States occurred at Galveston, Texas. In the early evening hours of September 8, a hurricane came ashore at Galveston bringing with it a great storm surge that inundated most of Galveston Island and the city of Galveston. As a result, much of the city was destroyed and at least 6,000 people were killed in a few hours time. The following is the account of Isaac M. Cline, the senior Weather Bureau employee present at Galveston, of the events leading up to the storm, his personal experiences in the storm, and the aftermath. The horror of Galveston is only partly described in this work. He was probably somewhat still in shock when he wrote this report as he lost his wife when his house collapsed during the storm and virtually all of his possessions. In a later biographical work, he referred to the shooting of hundreds of looters by vigilantes in the aftermath of the storm and the cremation of hundreds of unknown storm victims who otherwise would have decomposed where they lay. This particular report is excerpted from the Monthly Weather Review for September, 1900.

http://www.history.noaa.gov/stories_tales/cline2.html

[cisa]

When I see stories of the 1900 Hurricane, I always think of my Grandma, who was living in Velaso (now a part of Freeport) during the 1900 storm and the stories she'd tell us when we were small. She was very young but it left a lasting impact. She was quite a character.

[Ptarmigan]

The Great Galveston Hurricane is the deadliest hurricane in America and third deadliest after 1780 and Mitch. This week is full of tragic anniversaries from Great Galveston Hurricane, 9/11, Carla, and Ike.

[Katdaddy]

A sad day in tropical weather history for the Upper Texas Coast. Many years later IKE was a good reminder of the power of a storm surge. Rita as wake-up call for me. I learned I had been complacent being a tropical weather fanatic. We did not have many threats when I was young...Delia 63, Anitia 77, Allen 80, Alicia 83, Gilbert 88 with Alica being the CAT 3 of the 80s. Not much until Rita which I thought was the Carla of 05.

[EDDIE MORALES]

Hurricane Flora formed in late September in the tropical Atlantic Ocean. It moved westward, and strengthened to a major hurricane upon moving through the Windward Islands.