1924 Lorain Tornado Centennial

Vintage postcard showing Lakeview Blvd (the curved road)
and US Route 6 at the bottom

It's hard to believe that today is the 100th anniversary of the Lorain Tornado of 1924. 

I remember first hearing about it when I was pretty young (and being afraid of tornadoes for a long time afterwards). My parents probably first made me aware of it at the time of the 1965 Palm Sunday tornadoes – which means the infamous Lorain tornado had only happened 40 years earlier. And now it's 100 years. Sigh. 

It would be pretty difficult to find anyone alive who remembers living through it. My father was almost three years old in 1924, but he had no recollection of it at all. Fortunately, he and most of his relatives all lived near Highland Park (now Central Park).

Below you can see the tattered remains of the front page of the Lorain Times-Herald of Monday, June 30, 1924. 

The Chronicle-Telegram from the same date (below) weathered the storm a little better.

On the one-year anniversary, the Lorain Journal marveled at the comeback the city had made in the past year since the tragedy.

At the five-year mark in 1929, the Lorain Journal observed on its front page that many fine buildings had replaced the tornado-damaged ones, greatly enhancing the appearance of the Downtown and surrounding area.

The twenty-fifth anniversary in 1949 was a little more muted.

As was the 50th anniversary in 1974, played out against the backdrop of a Downtown once again torn up – this time by Urban Renewal.

****

The Lorain Tornado of 1924 had been a favorite topic on this blog over the past 15 years, with many "Then & Now" postcard/photo treatments, as well as front pages from other cities reporting the disaster. Click here to visit those past posts. When you scroll to the bottom, be sure to click on the 'Older Posts' link at the bottom right so that you don't miss any.

****

Here's a final look back, written by Connie Davis for the Chronicle-Telegram of June 27, 2000.