Reshaping the Tornado Belt: The June 16, 1887, Grand Forks/East Grand Forks Tornado

Reshaping the Tornado Belt

The June 16, 1887, Grand Forks/East Grand Forks Tornado

Vincent Godon, Nancy Godon, and Kelly Kramlich

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Reshaping the Tornado Belt

The June 16, 1887, Grand Forks/East Grand Forks Tornado

Copyright © 2011 by Vincent Godon, Nancy Godon, and Kelly Kramlich

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Preface

This project had very simple origins. Each of us is a meteorologist, keenly interested in tornadoes, climatology, and the history of the northern plains. We obtained our Bachelor of Science degrees in Atmospheric Science from the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Together we worked at the National Weather Service Office in Grand Forks for several years. Combined we have over thirty-five years of weather-related experience.

In 2007 we came across a black and white photograph from June 16, 1887, which showed the University of North Dakota’s Main building, located just west of Grand Forks, Dakota Territory, with major damage to its roof and walls. After conducting some preliminary research, several sources claimed Main was hit by a tornado, while other sources stated that the damage was caused by strong straight-line winds.

A little more digging revealed that St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Grand Forks was also damaged on June 16, 1887. Once again, there were varying accounts on what type of wind phenomenon damaged the church building. These disputes sparked further interest in finding out what actually happened to these buildings in 1887.

As the research progressed, many interesting side notes were uncovered, and the initial thoughts of a small project of limited scope were quickly erased. One of the most fascinating stories was the Signal Service’s (the predecessor to the National Weather Service) tornado belt theory. Simply put, in 1887 the Signal Service did not believe tornadoes could occur at latitudes as far north as Grand Forks or East Grand Forks. Thus, the scope of the project continued to widen.

As the research continued, interesting personal accounts and descriptions of the event were found. Rural school teachers described in amazing detail what happened as the storm rolled through. There were also thrilling tales of survival. Slowly, the pieces of the puzzle began to come together. It was evident that people in 1887 could not see the event on a large scale. Limitations in communication and weather knowledge prevented people from seeing the bigger picture.

Despite the scarcity of data, it became clear that this event affected a much wider area than Main and St. Michael’s Church. The June 16 storm completely cut off Grand Forks and East Grand Forks from the outside world. With better meteorological knowledge and the use of today’s mapping and analysis tools, we were able to conclude that the event was a tornado. This is the benefit of over a hundred years of scientific progress.

Most of the research for this project was done in Grand Forks through the perusal of microfilm newspaper records at the University of North Dakota’s Chester Fritz Library and the Grand Forks Public Library. We would like to thank Curt Hanson and Richard Suggs, both from the Chester Fritz Library, for their assistance on many occasions. The reference librarians at the Grand Forks Public Library were also helpful. Graphics and information were obtained from other regional sources as well, including the State Historical Society of North Dakota, the Minnesota Historical Society, and the North Dakota State University Libraries’ Institute for Regional Studies and University Archives.

Some resources were obtained outside of North Dakota and Minnesota. Old meteorological reports and newspaper records from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, were graciously provided by Dale Marciski, from Environment Canada. Information and a photograph of President Hayes’s visit to the Dalrymple bonanza farm in 1878 were provided by Nan Card, of the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center, in Fremont, Ohio.

Once the work was compiled into book format, we sought out several readers for their comments and suggestions. Thank you to Sandi Bates, Maurice Godon, Laurie Tweten, and Mark Ewens for reading the initial manuscript. Their thoughtful suggestions and comments were greatly appreciated. Lastly, we would like to thank Andrew Godon for tolerating the many long hours that were put in at various libraries in pursuit of information.

List of Abbreviations

Newspapers

Words

Symbols

Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1: Grand Forks Weather Observer’s Account of June 16, 1887

Chapter 2: Early Maps and Directories of Grand Forks/East Grand Forks

Chapter 3: Early Grand Forks/East Grand Forks Photographers

Chapter 4: Grand Forks/East Grand Forks Transportation Development

Chapter 5: Grand Forks City Development

Chapter 6: Grand Forks Commercial Development

Chapter 7: The University of North Dakota

Chapter 8: The Grand Forks Fairgrounds

Chapter 9: East Grand Forks City Development

Chapter 10: The Keystone Bonanza Farm

Chapter 11: Origins of Weather Observing in Grand Forks

Chapter 12: Early Tornado Research

Chapter 13: Setting the Stage

Chapter 14: The Grand Forks/East Grand Forks Tornado

Chapter 15: Other Contiguous Damage Tracks near Grand Forks/East Grand Forks

Chapter 16: Cut Off from the Outside World

Chapter 17: Was it a Tornado?

Chapter 18: The Tornado Specifics

Chapter 19: Surviving the First Ten Days

Chapter 20: Rebuilding/New Construction through the End of 1887

Chapter 21: Falling into Obscurity

About the Authors

Appendix 1: Local Storm Report

Appendix 2: Damage Points along the Twenty-Mile-Long Tornado Path

Appendix 3: The St. Paul Connection

References

List of Illustrations

Figure 1 - Towns with 1887 newspapers

Figure 2 - Early Grand Forks map

Figure 3 - 1884 Sanborn Map of Grand Forks/East Grand Forks

Figure 6 - Finer scale segment of the 1884 Sanborn Map of Grand Forks/East Grand Forks

Figure 7a - Fowler’s Lithograph showing the southern half of Grand Forks

Figure 7b - Fowler’s Lithograph showing the northern half of Grand Forks

Figure 8 - Lamb’s Map of Grand Forks/East Grand Forks

Figure 9a - 1882 Lithograph showing the southern half of Grand Forks

Figure 9b - 1882 Lithograph showing the northern half of Grand Forks

Figure 10 - Dudley’s Grand Forks Lithograph

Figure 11 - Portion of Brenna Township Map, Grand Forks County

Figure 12 - Advertisements from early Grand Forks Photographers

Figure 13 - Steamboat docked on Third Street during the 1882 Red River Flood

Figure 14 - Berg’s Photographic Studio, back side of a Berg photograph

Figure 15 - Berg’s personalized designs from the front of a cabinet photograph

Figure 16 - Photograph of Blackburn

Figure 17 - Back side of a Blackburn photograph

Figure 18 - Blackburn’s personalized designs from the front of a cabinet photograph

Figure 19 - Back side of a Sunderland photograph

Figure 20a - Blackburn’s western Grand Forks perspective from Belmont School

Figure 20b - Blackburn’s eastern Grand Forks perspective from Belmont School

Figure 21 - City perspective covered in Figures 20a and 20b

Figure 22 - Looking west down DeMers Avenue

Figure 23 - City perspective covered in Figure 22

Figure 24 - Looking west down Alpha Avenue

Figure 25 - City perspective covered in Figure 24

Figure 26 - Looking northwest from the Syndicate Block

Figure 27 - City perspective covered in Figure 26

Figure 28 - Looking southwest from the Syndicate Block

Figure 29 - City perspective covered in Figure 28

Figure 30 - University Station

Figure 31 - Fisher’s Landing

Figure 32 - Original St. Paul, Minneapolis & Manitoba Railroad depot

Figure 33 - First St. Paul, Minneapolis & Manitoba Railroad passenger depot

Figure 34 - St. Paul, Minneapolis & Manitoba Railroad round-house

Figure 35 - Grand Forks and Missouri Valley Railroad depot

Figure 36 - Grand Forks and Missouri Valley Railroad survey advertisement

Figure 37 - Red River Valley land advertisement

Figure 38 - Grand Forks County Courthouse

Figure 39 - Grand Forks Jail

Figure 40 - Grand Forks City Hall

Figure 41 - Central School

Figure 42 - Belmont School

Figure 43 - St. Bernard’s Academy

Figure 44 - Schematic of St. Bernard’s Academy

Figure 45 - St. Paul’s Episcopal Church

Figure 46 - David M. Holmes

Figure 47 - Grand Forks pumphouse

Figure 48 - Schematic of the Grand Forks Roller Mill

Figure 49 - Grand Forks Roller Mill advertisement

Figure 50 - McDonald Roller Mill

Figure 51 - Schematic of the Walker Mill piling grounds and planing mill

Figure 52 - Walker Mill

Figure 53 - Schematic of the Walker Mill

Figure 54 - Pine Forests along the Red Lake and Clearwater rivers

Figure 55 - Large Pine Trees

Figure 56 - Log sleds

Figure 57 - Syndicate Block

Figure 58 - Parade before the laying of the cornerstone at the University of North Dakota

Figure 59 - Laying of the Main cornerstone at the University of North Dakota

Figure 60 - Main building at the University of North Dakota

Figure 61 - Schematic of the Main building

Figure 62 - Hazeltine Advertisement

Figure 63 - Grand Forks fairgrounds - circa 1887-1888

Figure 64 - Grand Forks Trotting Association advertisement

Figure 65 - 1886 Territorial Fair advertisement

Figure 66 - Riverside Park Addition

Figure 67 - City perspective covered in Figure 66

Figure 68 - Signal Service Flag Indications

Figure 69 - 1886 North Dakota Territorial Exposition advertisement

Figure 70 - Grain elevator on the bank of the Red River

Figure 71 - East Grand Forks school

Figure 72 - Harvesting on the Dalrymple Farm

Figure 73 - President Hayes’s visit to the Dalrymple Farm

Figure 74 - Signal Service weather map

Figure 75 - Flag indications for the morning of June 16, 1887

Figure 76 - Number of Tornadoes 1854-1881

Figure 77 - Tornadoes between 1760 and 1886

Figure 78 - June 1887 weather conditions for Moorhead, Minnesota

Figure 79 - Judd’s personalized designs from the front of a cabinet photograph

Figure 80 - First tornado photographs in North Dakota

Figure 81 - 7:00 am EST June 16, 1887 Signal Service weather map

Figure 82a - Reanalyzed 7:00 am EST June 16, 1887 weather map, showing surface pressure field and fronts

Figure 82b - Reanalyzed 7:00 am EST June 16, 1887 weather map, showing the isotherms and isodrosotherms

Figure 83 - Storm damage points from June 16, 1887

Figure 84 - 3:00 pm EST June 16, 1887 Signal Service weather map

Figure 85a - Reanalyzed 3:00 pm EST June 16, 1887 weather map, showing surface pressure field and fronts

Figure 85b - Reanalyzed 3:00 pm EST June 16, 1887 weather map, showing the isotherms and isodrosotherms

Figure 86 - 10:00 pm EST June 16, 1887 Signal Service weather map

Figure 87a - Reanalyzed 10:00 pm EST June 16, 1887 weather map, showing surface pressure field and fronts

Figure 87b - Reanalyzed 10:00 pm EST June 16, 1887 weather map, showing the isotherms and isodrosotherms

Figure 88 - Grand Forks/East Grand Forks Tornado damage points on a township scale

Figure 89 - West wing damage at Main

Figure 90 - Cupola hole damage at Main

Figure 91 - Grand Forks/East Grand Forks Tornado damage points on a city scale

Figure 92 - Griggs House hotel

Figure 93 - Ingalls House hotel

Figure 94 - Wineman clothing advertisement

Figure 95 - Schematic of the St. Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railroad bridge

Figure 96 - Red Lake River bridge

Figure 97 - Northern damage path

Figure 98 - Southern damage path

Figure 99 - Communication line breaks

Figure 100 - Railroad schedule from St. Paul to Minot

Figure 101 - Railroad schedule from St. Paul to Gretna, Manitoba

Figure 102 - Grand Forks Daily Herald headline from June 16, 1887

Figure 103 - Tornado Belt diagram

Figure 104 - Varying wind directions from damage accounts

Figure 105 - Structures with damages over $500

Figure 106 - Death/injury locations in Grand Forks/East Grand Forks

Figure 107 - 1887 North Dakota Territorial Exposition advertisement

Figure 108 - Northern Pacific Railroad passenger depot

Figure 109 - Schematic of the Northern Pacific Railroad passenger depot

Figure 110 - St. Michael’s Catholic Church, the brick repair noticeable in the spire

Figure 111 - Northern Pacific Railroad bridge under construction

Figure 112 - Center pier of the Northern Pacific Railroad bridge today

Figure 113 - Baptist Church

Figure 114 - Hazen’s fifty-eight worst tornadoes

Figure 115 - Old Main memorial

Figure 116 - Norman W. Kittson

Figure 117 - William C. Nash

Figure 118 - James Jerome Hill

Figure 119 - Alexander D. Griggs

Figure 120 - George H. Walsh

Figure 121 - Michael L. McCormack

Figure 4 - Adapted 1884 Sanborn Map of Grand Forks/East Grand Forks

Figure 5 - Segment of the 1884 Sanborn Map of Grand Forks/East Grand Forks

Introduction

It goes without saying that locating information on an event that occurred more than a hundred years ago was a major hurdle to overcome. Despite this fact, the authors searched for any piece of data tied to the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks area in the mid-1880s, which included newspapers, census records, city directories, personal diaries, photographs, and maps. Some promising leads resulted in dead ends, but enough information was found to complete this incredible story. Of the previously mentioned data sources, newspapers provided the most details on the actual tornado event. Therefore, newspapers are quoted regularly throughout this book. Rather than repeating the lengthy titles of these newspapers, they were abbreviated. As an example, the Grand Forks Herald is abbreviated as GFH. In addition, the Grand Forks Herald became a daily newspaper in 1881, so at that point it is abbreviated as GFDH. If there is a question about what a newspaper abbreviation stands for, please refer to the list of abbreviations or the reference section, where the entire name is spelled out.

The actual paper copies of newspapers from the 1880s were no longer available to the researchers, but microfilm copies of many of them are stored in many libraries and historical organizations. Figure 1 shows the frontier towns across eastern Dakota Territory and northwestern Minnesota that had newspapers from the time period around June 16, 1887.

The lines between the towns in Figure 1 represent railroad tracks. Not surprisingly, most of the towns that had newspapers were located along railroad lines. In 1887, news traveled fastest along telegraph lines, which were usually built adjacent to the railroad tracks, or on actual printed newspapers that were carried aboard trains. The newspapers shown in Figure 1 were just the local newspapers. News of the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks tornado was printed in newspapers from Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota (SPMPP, 1887), to New York City, New York (NYT, 1887). The news also crossed international boundaries, reaching the city of Winnipeg in southern Canada (MDFP, 1887b).

Figure 1 - Towns with 1887 newspapers

As information on the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks tornado appeared in so many different newspapers, there were some conflicting accounts of the event. This is a common phenomenon with news, even today. Experts generally agree that news events tend to be exaggerated and lose detail as they spread away from the original source (Grazulis, 1993). Therefore, if possible, the two existing Grand Forks newspapers from that time period, the Grand Forks Herald and the Grand Forks Weekly Plaindealer, were used as the primary sources of information. Newspapers outside the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks area mainly provided the details that confirmed the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks tornado of June 16, 1887, was part of a much bigger event. Due to the limitations in communication and technology, people who lived through the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks tornado were probably unaware that at least three other tornadoes had preceded it, from hours up to just minutes before.

Besides the limitations in communication and technology, another limitation is the significant distance between the towns in Figure 1. Most of this area was undeveloped and had no train service. Therefore, news from these rural areas only spread through personal contact. This was a much slower process, as transportation in the absence of train service had to be accomplished by boat, on horseback, or by walking. This distance barrier probably resulted in a limited range around each town from which any rural news actually reached the town newspapers. Even if information from these outlying areas did reach the local newspapers, it could take days, if it did reach the papers at all. By this point, the information could have been considered too old or not important enough to be printed. Therefore, information from outside the towns shown in Figure 1 may never have been recorded.

As an example, the June 16, 1887, Grand Forks/East Grand Forks tornado was a long-track tornado, which covered a distance of about twenty miles. The tornado touched down in Brenna Township in North Dakota, about seven and one-half miles west-southwest of Grand Forks. After passing through Grand Forks and East Grand Forks, the tornado continued another eleven and one-half miles into Minnesota, finally dissipating at the Keystone bonanza farm about two miles north of Key West. For this twenty-mile-long damage track, most of the newspapers discussed exclusively what happened in Grand Forks. East Grand Forks was a distant second, with Brenna Township third. Very little information was found on damages that occurred east of East Grand Forks. This was especially true for what really happened at the Keystone bonanza farm north of Key West. Some general information was found, but its rural location hampered the recording of accurate information. The Keystone Farm may have had more monetary damages than East Grand Forks. However, without more accurate information, a high damage figure cannot be established. A bonanza farm was very much like a small city. Its distance of just over eleven miles from East Grand Forks was insurmountable to the flow of information.

To establish a time line of the events leading up to, and following, the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks tornado, it was important to understand how time was viewed in 1887. First and foremost, time standards in 1887 were different than what they are today. Standard time in time zones was instituted in the U.S. and Canada by the railroads on November 18, 1883. Prior to that, time of day was a local matter, and most cities and towns used some form of local solar time, maintained by a well-known clock (on a church steeple, for example, or in a jeweler’s window) (Douma, 2008). The actual Atlantic/Eastern, Central, Mountain, and Pacific time zones in the United States were based on the 75th, 90th, 105th, and 120th meridians, which were longitudinal lines that ran roughly through the center of each time zone. Grand Forks and East Grand Forks were located in the Central Time Zone.

However, the headquarters of the United States Signal Service, the predecessor of the National Weather Service, was located in Washington, DC. Therefore, all Signal Service weather maps were published using Atlantic or Eastern Time. In the Red River Valley of the North in 1887, the Signal Service had local weather offices in Moorhead and St. Vincent, Minnesota, and at Fort Totten (near Devils Lake), Dakota Territory. In their Monthly Meteorological Reports, each of the local Signal Service offices were required to publish how their local time compared with the time of their headquarters in Washington, DC. The Moorhead office listed 7 a.m., 75th Meridian time [Washington, DC time], corresponds to 5:33 a.m., local [Moorhead] time; 3 p.m. to 1:33 p.m.; 10 p.m. to 8:33 p.m. (U.S. Army Signal Service, 1887a). The St. Vincent office noted 7 a.m., 75th Meridian time, corresponds to 5:31 a.m., local [St. Vincent] time; 3 p.m. to 1:31 p.m.; 10 p.m. to 8:31 p.m. (U.S. Army Signal Service, 1887b). Finally, the Fort Totten office stated 7 a.m., 75th Meridian time, corresponds to 5:24 a.m., local [Fort Totten] time; 3 p.m. to 1:24 p.m.; 10 p.m. to 8:24 p.m. (U.S. Army Signal Service, 1887c).

Since Grand Forks did not have an official Signal Service station, the time difference was not noted on an official form. However, the Grand Forks Herald stated in one of their editions that London and Grand Forks time differed by six hours and twenty-eight minutes (GFDH, 1886o). Using this piece of information, 7:00 am, 75th meridian time corresponded to 5:32 am, local (Grand Forks) time, 3:00 pm to 1:32 pm, and 10:00 pm to 8:32 pm. Therefore, unlike today, when there is only an hour difference between the Central and Eastern time zones, there was about an hour and one-half difference between Grand Forks/East Grand Forks time and Washington time in 1887. Times also varied slightly from east to west within each time zone, as the four examples above show. Daylight Savings Time did not begin until March 19, 1918, so there were no seasonal changes to the times listed above.

When piecing together the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks tornado story, the most shocking theme was that the people truly believed their towns were immune to tornadoes. The Signal Service proclaimed that areas north of a line from Duluth to Brainerd (Minnesota) to Fargo to Bismarck (Dakota Territory) had nothing to fear from these deadly weather phenomena, since they were north of the tornado belt. The local newspapers even advertised this fact as another reason to settle around the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks area. In reality, knowledge about tornadoes and the science of meteorology was in its infancy in 1887. Despite this fact, early meteorologists did correctly understand that tornadoes were more common across the central and southern Great Plains, an area that could truthfully be called a tornado belt. Possibly in a rush to define and quantify these mysterious weather events, the Signal Service tried to feign more knowledge than they possessed at the time. In their defense, the Signal Service also had limited information at their disposal. The population north and west of St. Paul, Minnesota, was still sparse, so an event that was not seen could not be reported.

In the mid-1880s, as more people settled across northern Dakota Territory and northern Minnesota, the northern extent of the tornado belt began to fall into question. Reports about strange windstorms appeared in some of the newspapers in Figure 1. However, unsure exactly what to call these events, they were termed whirlwinds, cyclones, dust devils, and hurricanes. Part of the confusion probably came from the fact that many of the new settlers in the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks area came from other countries or areas of the United States that never experienced tornadoes. When these new settlers came to the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks area, they found strong winds were common in the Red River Valley of the North. The flat terrain and absence of trees allowed the wind to seemingly blow unabated. Despite the varied names for the windstorms, the descriptions accompanying them left no doubt about what they really were. Winds lifting homes, people, cattle, or agricultural implements into the air could only be tornadoes. Even after the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks tornado hit on June 16, 1887, people were torn between the Signal Service’s tornado belt theory and what had actually transpired.

Another recurring theme occurring throughout this book is the competition Grand Forks had with Fargo. There does not appear to be any one event sparking this competition other than their similar proximity along the Red River of the North. Fargo, incorporated as a city in 1875, had a jump on Grand Forks. The Northern Pacific Railroad spurred early development in Fargo in 1871, with its first train crossing the Red River into Dakota Territory on June 7, 1872 (Renz, 1980). The city of Grand Forks was incorporated about six years later, in 1881. The first train into Grand Forks, from the St. Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railroad, arrived on January 13, 1880 (GFH, 1880a). As the railroads spurred most of the early Dakota Territory development, Fargo had about an eight-year head start on Grand Forks, a lead that proved insurmountable in the long run.

The fact that Fargo had a head start on Grand Forks did little to tame the competition. The Northern Pacific and the St. Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railroads brought immigrants from all parts of the world to both communities. In Grand Forks, many of the immigrants came from Scotland via Canada, and some would later become great leaders, such as Alexander Griggs and William Budge (Robinson, 1966). These men had wealth and connections and would not play second fiddle to Fargo. There were also men of great means and power in Fargo, men who took great pride in making their town flourish. It is often said those with the gold, rule, so these men also wanted their communities to blossom for their own personal benefit. Therefore, the competition with Fargo, even on something as simple as a baseball field, was well underway in the mid-1880s.

Not surprisingly, many of the early settlers of Grand Forks and East Grand Forks came via St. Paul, Minnesota. As the St. Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railroad was the only railroad to service the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks area for most of its early years, this St. Paul Connection was never far from view. The authors identified six men who were especially instrumental in the development of the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks area, and have included their biographies. These men, Norman W. Kittson, William C. Nash, James J. Hill, Alexander Griggs, George H. Walsh, and Michael L. McCormack, all had roots in St. Paul. Neither Kittson nor Hill ever lived in Grand Forks, but both had a huge stake in its development.

Clearly this story is about more than just the June 16, 1887, Grand Forks/East Grand Forks tornado. In researching this historic weather event, it quickly became apparent there were many other interesting story lines that also paralleled or tied in with the tornado occurrence. It was, therefore, hard, if not impossible, to describe just the tornado itself. Understanding the history of the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks area gives a reader a better mental picture of the area in the mid-1880s. Also, the story did not end once the tornado dissipated. In a sense, it was a crossroads in the development of both towns. How both Grand Forks and East Grand Forks tackled the tough decisions to be made in regard to rebuilding would have huge future ramifications. Therefore, this story begins with a background on both cities, progresses to the actual tornado, and ends with how both towns dealt with the issues following the tornado.

Chapter 1: Grand Forks Weather Observer’s Account of June 16, 1887

"A destructive wind and deluging rain passed over this place from west to east and of twenty-five minutes duration. The day opened cloudy and sultry, with a light south wind. Heavy dark clouds were observed at 2 p.m., accumulating in the W and SW, and appeared to remain stationary, gradually increasing in density. At 2:35 p.m. the wind was increasing in force from the NE, at which time the temperature dropped suddenly 8 degrees or 9 degrees and a number of whitish clouds were moving swiftly from NE, centering in the W and SW, all forming a dark, heavy mass of clouds, reaching nearly to the zenith.

At 3 p.m. the wind was blowing a gale from the NW, at which it commenced to Hail, the stones being of a peculiar shape and some measuring from three to four inches in circumference. Hail fell only for about 20 seconds. At 3:20 p.m. the wind reached a maximum velocity of about 75 or 80 miles per hour, blowing several houses into pieces, unroofing quite a number of others and moved some from their foundations.

Six miles north of here, a passenger train consisting of two coaches, one baggage car and a smoker, was blown from the track nearly fifty feet and rolled one of the coaches over twice. The engine and front tender wheels remained on the track while the rear tender wheels were off. None of the passengers were killed, but six or seven were severely injured, and seven or eight slightly so. The train at the time was running at the rate of eighteen or twenty miles per hour.

The west wing of the University of North Dakota was blown to pieces damaging it to the extent of about $10,000. Next were the fairgrounds and society buildings, which were laid waste; damage to buildings and grounds about $6,000. Several dwellings in the city were moved from ten to fifteen feet from their foundations. One two-story wooden building, in which were three women and two children, was torn to pieces, one woman and a girl about twelve years of age being instantly killed.

The storm passed into East Grand Forks in Minnesota, where several buildings were blown down, one man killed, and several severely hurt. The destructive force of the storm was over two miles wide and about twenty long. Pieces of planks and scantling were driven into the ground over three feet, and in a few cases boards were forced through buildings. Those who had cellars got into them on the first approach of the storm, and in two cases where people occupied them, the houses were moved from their foundations over twenty-five feet, leaving those in the cellars exposed to the storm but uninjured.

After the storm had passed, the streets were strewn with tin roofs, lumber, parts of buildings, &c. A large saw-mill, owned by T. B. Walker, was damaged, the tall chimneys being blown off. The damage to the building, machinery and lumber was over $5,000. Several thousand dollars damage was done to the Riverside park; large trees were uprooted, and others broken off about ten feet above the ground, showing evidences of a terrific storm. The total damages to Grand Forks and vicinity is estimated at about $60,000, two people killed, and about 20 or 25 more or less injured" (Minnesota Signal Service, 1887).

Chapter 2: Early Maps and Directories of Grand Forks/East Grand Forks

Frontier settlements in the Northern Plains were usually established in conjunction with new transportation routes. Grand Forks, Dakota Territory, and East Grand Forks, Minnesota, were no exception. Both towns were located at the intersection of the Red River of the North and the Red Lake River, between St. Paul, Minnesota, and Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The Red River, via the Minnesota River, was one way people could travel between St. Paul and Winnipeg. The Red and Red Lake Rivers also provided a water and food source for the early inhabitants of Grand Forks and East Grand Forks. The trees that lined the banks of the rivers provided the only wood for miles around, which could be used as fuel or building material. Clearly, the early residents of Grand Forks and East Grand Forks relied heavily on the two rivers.

The fact that the Red River was so important to the development of Grand Forks is also evident in how the original town was laid out. Figure 2 shows an early map of Grand Forks, with the arrows denoting the boundaries of the original town site. The Red River formed the eastern boundary, Ione Avenue the northern boundary, Sixth Street the western boundary, and Division Avenue the southern boundary. The streets of the original town site paralleled the Red River, while the avenues were perpendicular to it. As the city expanded in later years, and the streets were laid out from north to south and the avenues from

Figure 2 - Early Grand Forks map

(Courtesy of the Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections, Chester Fritz Library, University of North Dakota)

east to west, it became a challenge to tie in the newer city additions to the original town site.

The main east-west avenues in Grand Forks, from north to south, were Griggs, Hill, Ione, Dakota, Cheyenne, Selkirk, International, Alpha, DeMers, Kittson, Bruce, Division, Gertrude, Franklin, and Minnesota. Six of these avenue names (Dakota, Cheyenne, Selkirk, International, Alpha, and Minnesota) were taken directly from the names of steamboats which ran on the Red River. Griggs Avenue was named for Alexander Griggs, who is often referred