Downtown Albany devastated by tornado 81 years ago

Feb. 9—ALBANY — The weather report in the Feb. 9, 1940 edition of The Albany Herald read, "Georgia: Rain tonight and probably Saturday, slightly warmer tonight, colder Saturday and Saturday night."

As Albanians went to bed that night the falling rain proved the forecast to be accurate. Unfortunately, the forecast gave no warning of the horror and devastation they would witness when the sun rose the following morning.

The headline of the Feb. 10 Albany Herald tells the tale: "TORNADO KILLS 17; INJURES 300."

"The hazy morning light of six o'clock presented a scene that will long live in the memory of those who were up and about at that time. Albany, the metropolis of south Georgia, a mass of twisted steel debris; the business sections of Pine, Washington, and Broad streets a shambles of broken buildings, the streets littered with debris, fallen wires, plate glass and wreckage." These are the opening lines of an article written by John H. Crouch, News Editor of the Dawson News.

Crouch traveled by train to Albany, where he was one of the first to tour the city reporting "SCENES OF HAVOC IN EARLY MORN."

"As we crossed Washington Street leading into the Union Depot, the horror of the situation grew more and more," Crouch wrote. "Huge pieces of sheet metal were twisted weirdly about telephone poles. Sections of whole buildings on that side of the street between Engineering and Equipment Co. had been cleaved as if by some supernatural knife. Part of the roof of union station was gone, and although it was still somewhat dim, one could see the havoc that had been wrought by the tornado.

"Several automobiles parked near the Union Station had been crushed like eggshells from the impact of falling masonry. 'Anybody killed?' we asked, yet not knowing what extent of damage had been wrought to other portions of the city. Two railroad men, we judged from their caps, appeared dazed, and one of them shook his head, 'Terrible, terrible,' he kept repeating.

"The storm struck in the heart of the city, and God knows how many people have been killed. Leaving Union Station, we turned southward up Washington Street. The light was growing stronger; the rain had about ceased. The full horror of the sight was realized, but even then, not to its full extent. The comparatively new home of the A&P Tea Co. was leveled flat to the ground. Across the street the freight office of the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was a mass of ruins. As far as the eye could see, looking south from Washington, was twisted wreckage, broken windows, the streets a mass of debris. Only a handful of people were up and out at 6:30, and the ones we saw weren't saying anything. They were strangely quiet, as if walking in a dream and unable to understand what it was all about. Acquaintances would nod at each other, and there were queer little smiles — forced smiles. One woman didn't attempt to hide her tears. Her husband owned one of the stores."

Fire Chief D.W. Brosnan estimated that property damage from the twister would range between $5 million to $6 million following his initial survey. He also estimated that up to 1,000 Albanians were homeless and more than 750 of these citizens would need assistance in finding temporary shelter. The Red Cross reported, "A preliminary survey showing 190 Negro houses had been destroyed, 235 Negro houses severely damaged, 127 white houses destroyed or badly damaged, and 75 percent of the businesses were damaged."

Governor Rivers declared martial law for an area from Roosevelt Avenue on the north, Davis Street on the west, Cotton Street on the south and the Flint River to the east. As thousands of "sightseers" made their way to the crippled city to get a first-hand look at the carnage.

Mayor W.B. Haley called a meeting of a citizens committee to be held at 8 a.m. at the New Albany Hotel. Less than four hours after the storm struck, the plans and actions necessary for recovery had been initiated.

Chief Brosnan was place in charge of the general operation. John Phillips was placed in charge of communicating with Fort Benning for cots and first aid. Capt. S.D. Saye and Police Chief Jim Moore were named to keep people out of damaged building, and off the sidewalks. George Mock was placed in charge of using convicts to clear debris and get the injured out of damaged buildings.

L.R. Ferrell head of the local Red Cross and Herbert Haley went to Leesburg to send a telegram to the National Red Cross. C.M. Herrick of Georgia Power Co. said the hydro-electric plant was operational and was calling in crews from Arlington and Tifton. The majority of injuries were reported to be broken legs, arms, and backs. Additional hospital rooms were needed. Meta Young, manager of the New Albany Hotel, offered the Valencia and McIntosh rooms.

Aid from neighboring communities came immediately and in a variety of ways. The Dawson News, the Thomasville Times-Enterprise, and the Pelham Journal worked to keep The Albany Herald running until power could be restored. Dozens of nurses and doctors arrived by train form Atlanta and Macon; Fort Benning delivered 300 tents and 1,000 cots. Four companies of National Guardsmen totaling 300 men arrived in the city to assist in safety and security. During the day, 200 convicts from five adjoining counties were brought in to assist in clearing debris. However, Director Shurling of the National Emergency Council in charge of coordination, said the convicts would not be needed "because we have to feed them, and it's taking food away from our homeless."

W.M. Pryse, veteran managing editor of The Albany Herald, was awakened to the seriousness of the wind when a foot-square piece of pavement crashed through his bedroom window. While debris was flying, he made his way to the street, telephoned details of the disaster to The Associated Press in Atlanta as soon as the line was available. For his efforts on that day, Pryse received acknowledgment and thanks form The AP for his efforts to get the news story out.

While Pryse worked to put words to paper, his son Kenneth joined forces with a Herald coworker, Lester Rogers, using the paper's Speed Graphic to shoot the first pictures of the storm damage as sunrise broke over the city.

The Associated Press article that ran the same day adds more details, "Striking through soft, predawn warmth, a tornado careened savagely across Albany Saturday, killing 20 or more, injuring nearly 500 and smashing property worth $5,000,000 and $9,000,000.

"Rumbling in just after 4 o'clock 'like a thousand freight trains,' the vicious corkscrew wind started its mile-long furrow among old homes four blocks southwest of the downtown area, smashing dozens of these residences, killing a young woman."

Then the storm lifted the center of its fury a little and boomed on into the business section centered around the 37-year-old Dougherty County Courthouse. Here it ripped roofs from building after building, battered in windows and doors by the hundreds and sliced away almost the entire top floor of the St. Nichols Hotel.

Finally, it dropped heavily into a Negro residential section along the muddy Flint River and mowed a death-pocked path through flimsy houses before it moved on into sullen, rainy skies north and east, leaving a swath of destruction roughly 15 blocks long and four wide.

Godsent, officials agreed, was the hour of the storm's arrival because only a handful of the town's 15,000 population was in the battered area. Twelve hours later, a Saturday afternoon crowd of thousands would have been in the wind's path.

Bodies recovered late this afternoon included those of 19 Negroes, most of them killed in their homes near the river, and one white woman, crushed in her home on Oglethorpe Avenue.

A crew of more than 500 rescue workers cleared narrow lanes for ambulances through debris-chocked streets and searched for bodies of possible additional victims in the wreckage.

The city's single, 50-bed hospital swiftly was swamped by the first flood of injured and the high school gymnasium, the First Methodist Church, the city auditorium, and an auditorium at the African American high school were converted hastily into emergency hospitals. Also used was the dining room of the New Albany Hotel, which though in the full path of the storm, was comparatively unharmed.

Water was cut off immediately, as was the electric current, leaving the clocks of the city standing at the fateful hour of 4:25. Care in immediately cutting the wires off dispelled danger of fires, a usual consequence of a twister.

Army planes droned and circled the city, cameramen from the city newspapers and news reel service ground away from every vantage point. The State Patrol and National Guard at noon had moved in and gotten control of the traffic tangle. The horns of private cars pressed onto service as ambulances filled the air with an uneasy sound, a constant reminder to the population numb with grief for the devastation and tragedy that has come to their city.

As building inspectors went through the rubble, their reports were ominous.

"J.T. Haley, of the Haley estate, said this morning that damage to property owned by the estate was so extensive that an offhand estimate could not be made," The Albany Herald reported.

Damage to Rosenberg Bros. Department Store was estimated at $80,000. A temporary roof was being installed, and the building as a whole came through in good shape. The Whitehead Building suffered $32,000 in loss and was not covered by insurance. The A&P Company's store was destroyed with an estimated loss of $12,000 for the building and $25,000 in stock and equipment.

While articles in the Herald proclaimed, "SKY'S THE LIMIT FOR FEDERAL FINANCIAL AID IN REBUILDING TORNADO-SWEPT CITY," Brosnan and other community leaders made it clear that Albanians must make the first contributions toward the recovery efforts in the city. This led to $1,497.81 being donated just two days after the storm hit.

Henry Nelms, a wealthy planter, arrived in Albany, and said, "Albany is my town, I love it and always have. I wanted to come yesterday, but I am lame and not very well. I managed to get here today, however, and I want to make this little contribution to the relief fund." He then handed over a $500 bill and five $100 bills. Considering that $1 in 1940 is the equivalent of $18.50 in today's dollars, the losses and contributions listed here are not inconsequential.

It was reported at the time that more than 200 tornados had struck Georgia in the last 56 Years. But weather forecaster George W. Mindling said, "The number was no cause for alarm. Going back to 1884, six other tornadoes struck in the Albany area. Although no one has been able actually to measure the velocity of a twister, some meteorologists believe wind speeds of 500 miles an hour are necessary to move heavy objects such as monuments, bridges, and locomotives, which have been carried away in tornadoes."

P.J. Brown reported that on his Chehaw farm 11 miles from Albany, "He found 27 new straw hats, one new dress, two suits of new underwear, old letters, old railroad freight bills, and other paraphernalia from railroad offices. He also found two pairs of silk stockings, one $5 bill and two $1 bills, canceled bus tickets and roofing shingles."

Just 3 days after the storm hit, Herald headlines stated, "PLANS TO MAKE THE SOUTH'S MOST BEAUTIFUL CITY ARE UNDERWAY." Plans were being made to bring in a consultant to advise community and business leaders on how to best move forward in their recovery efforts.

By Feb. 25, Alfred Kestner of Washington, a renowned architect was in town working as the coordinator of the reconstruction program. The Herald reported in an article on that date that, "Mr. Kestner, internationally famous architect, who is in charge, is bringing to his duties here practical thoughtfulness that will be invaluable. Mr. Kestner believes that a city is a place to live in graciously and a place in which to make a living. A city should take many things into consideration: It should first of all be built for people. It should have a business district that is attractive, but definitely not uniform in appearance."

On Feb. 28, Brosnan, in his capacity as building inspector, requested from the Albany City Commission, "that an ordinance be drawn prohibiting wooden laths in all new buildings in the city. Rock lath which, is just as cheap as wood lath, or metal lath, which costs a little more, were recommended. ... It costs no more to build safely, and the buildings are going back stronger."

Brosnan also said a number of buildings should have sprinkler systems installed. A plan was also being considered to expand Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital to a 100-bed capacity to better serve the needs of the community should another disaster occur.

It was no longer a question of if Albany would recover, but what improvements that recovery would bring to the city. As The Herald reported the day after the tornado, "Albany can take it. Men whose places of business were complete wrecks stopped to shake hands with others to whom the same experience had come. 'Hope you'll soon be on your feet again soon' they said. 'The same to you — we'll pull out of this thing in the same old way.'"

And that attitude prevails idea today in a community that has seen more than its share of disasters: "The same old way."

___

(c)2021 The Albany Herald, Ga.

Visit The Albany Herald, Ga. at www.albanyherald.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.