The terrific north-easterly storm which swept the eastern Massachusetts coast on Tuesday was felt with unusual severity on the Vineyard. The wind for an hour or two, from three to five o’clock in the afternoon, blowing with hurricane force and leaving various forms of wreckage in its wake.

 

From all parts of the State have come reports of the havoc wrought by the storm, and Vineyard towns and villages, farms and water-frontage, have suffered from damaged boats and buildings, uprooted trees, ruined crops and the hundred and one minor disasters incident there to.

 

It is almost universally conceded to have been the fiercest gale for the time it lasted of any August storm remembered here for the past fifty years, and only exceeded in velocity perhaps by the well-remembered gale of November, 1898.

 

An elderly and long-life resident of Vineyard Haven is reported as saying that never in his life had he seen rougher water in Vineyard Haven harbor than prevailed there during the progress of the gale. It is estimated that the wind attained a velocity of eighty miles per hour. The barometer previous to the onslaught of the gale marked 28.90. In the 1898 storm the reading was 28.60.

 

The storm of Tuesday caught the trees beautiful in their wealth of summer foliage, which had become heavier from the heavy downpours of rain which preceded the hurricane, consequently many noble trees in the villages and countryside all over the island went down by the force of the wind, some of them torn up by the roots, after withstanding the storms of three score years or more.

 

Damage to buildings and boats are reported from all sides, and it will be weeks before the traces of Tuesday’s storm will be obliterated.

 

It would be impossible in newspaper space to enumerate a complete list at the present time of disasters locally on land and water.

 

 

At Edgartown, with the exception of a few boats sunk at their moorings and other parting their mooring lines and afterwards secured, no serious damage resulted.

 

A sloop yacht owned by Dr. Mefford Runyon parted from her moorings and went ashore on Chappaquiddick where she laid easily on a sandy bottom. She has since been floated.

 

If a gale if like intensity had been from the southeast instead of northeast, the story of damage along Edgartown’s waterfront would have been different in telling.

 

About the village the number of trees and large limbs which went by the board was appalling. For many years the two stately elms in front of the Country Court house, set out in 1857, have been the pride of the village. Two large limbs of the westernmost one crashed to earth and blocked Main street for about two hours until removed.

 

A large locust tree on the Jared W. Coffin, Dr., in 1840, went over with a crash, and completely blocked that street.

 

The willow tree on the premises of the Richard Q. Middletons, corner of Main street Pease’s Point Way, and another, an ash, on the grounds of Capt. A. K. Sylvia, fell into the street, rendering passage by vehicles impossible for a time.

 

Charles W. Crowell on upper Main street lost the mammoth apple tree which for years has been his pride and has been much admired by passersby for its beauty of bloom and wealth of crop with each succeeding year.

 

A beautiful maple on the D. A. R. premises, as well as two large trees on the J. F. Sayer estate, corner South Summer and Main street, were up-rooted, while another handsome tree on the sayer premises lost many of its top-most branches. It was from one of the falling branches from this tree that R. Carroll had a narrow escape from serious injury. Mr. Carroll jumped just in time to escape the falling limb which struck the auto-delivery which he had been driving and smashed in its top.

 

A handsome tree in front of Mrs. E. F. Hedden’s residence on North Water street also was up-rooted. It fell against the front porch with much force, doing some damage to piazza and upper windows of the house.

 

Many other trees went down in the fury of the gale, and the Silvia house, on Morse street, is reported to have lost a chimney.

 

On the Plain comes a story of a wash-tub being taken into the air from the premises of William G. Vincent on the head, knocking him down. Mr. Vincent was badly cut, and had to have the services of a doctor.

 

When the hurricane was at its worst several pedestrians attempted to negotiate the passage up Main street by the M. E. Church, but could not maintain their footing on the crossing and were carried to the opposite side of the street, afterwards going to the next street west to continue their progress up town.

 

Several of the Edgartown swordfishing fleet were out on trips to the fishing grounds, and much anxiety was felt for their safety. The Sch. Hazel M. Jackson, Capt. Robert L. Jackson, arrived at Edgartown Wednesday forenoon with a catch of 57 swordfish. She weathered the gale some 25 miles off the Vineyard, but only after a terrific experience at times the captain and his crew believing that the schooner would founder. Capt. Jackson regards his experience as the most thrilling of his eventful life. As it was, owing to the good prices received, the Jackson’s trip stocked $5,000.

 

Sch. Ethel Marion, Capt. Abraham Osborn, arrived Thursday morning, after an experience similar to that of the Hazel Jackson.

 

Two other Edgartown fishing schooners, which were out on trips, the B.T. Hillman and Liberty, are yet to be reported. Capt. Osborn thinks it probable they may be reported at any time soon from the Nova Scotia coast.

 

At Chappaquiddick the Kenyon cottage, and also the cottage of Miss Dillon suffered some damage to piazzas and windows, and one house lost a chimney.

 

A word of praise for the prompt manner in which the obstructed streets were cleared. Supt. Colter had a gang at work under the lead of Raymond Walker. Tree Warden Fuller had a gang busy, and both the Electric Light Co. and the Telephone Co. were on the job with forces at work. Early the following morning the streets were passable again for vehicles, and during the day electric and telephone services were restored.

 

 

 

The freighter Augusta of the Intercoastal Line, bound from New York to Maine ports with a general cargo was beached in Vineyard Haven harbor, on the eastern shore, due to the wind and surf of Tuesday’s tempest. The freighter had put in to the outer harbor to escape the fury of the storm on Tuesday morning, but the wind and surf were too strong causing her to be blown ashore, dragging anchor. The Augusta, which is a vessel of seven thousand tons has a forward draft of fourteen feet and six feet aft. She is in water eleven feet deep forward and thirteen and a half feet aft, making it about two and a half feet in sand and gravel. U.S. Revenue Cutter Acushnet came to her assistance Wednesday morning early and endeavored to tow her off, but was unable to do so. The Merritt, Chapman, Scott Corporation of New York, wreckage and salvage company, has been asked for aid, and it is understood that they have a salvage crew on the way here. No one was injured when the Augusta went aground and there is only a small probability that the boat is damaged.

 

A horse, belonging to Joseph F. Duart, Lagoon Pond, was electrocuted when he stepped on a live wire on Beach street. Mr. Duart valued the horse at approximately $125. When the storm was at its height, the tent housing the valuable saddle horses of the Bradley stable was seen to be in danger of blowing down. Officer Melledy, accompanied by two other men, went to the assistance of the horses, and while the officer held the tent up, the other men succeeded in getting them from death or injury, which surely would have occurred had the tent fallen on them.

 

Communication with up Island residents was practically at a standstill, due to falling trees tearing down wires and blocking the roads. Two large linden trees in front of the library at West Tisbury were blown over, one falling on the library but doing little or no damage, the other landing on the house next to it. A great number of trees at Red Lodge, on Mohu, the summer estate of William M. Butler, were leveled. The Lambert’s Cove Road was blocked with uprooted timber. Near the head of Lake Tashmoo, the trees along the Vineyard Haven-West Tisbury road were also blown down.

 

 

 

The terrific gale which struck this town Tuesday, uprooting trees by the score, wrecking chimneys, disrupting and destroying light, telephone and telegraph wires and generally damaging property, was the most violent and damaging in its scope of any storm which has struck Oak Bluffs in a decade.

 

Beginning with a steady rain about two o’clock in the morning, following a threatened rainfall late Monday evening, the storm grew in intensity and about ten o’clock in the morning appeared to be at its height. The wind roared through the town, driving the rain with such force that it was impossible to face it. It continued unabated for several hours, the rain gradually decreasing, but at two o’clock the wind, with greater speed than ever swept through the streets uprooting many trees in the Camp Ground and other places. The chimneys on the Pawnee House were blown down, falling into the kitchen, wrecking it completely and damaging the dining room quite a little. The chimney on the Island House also was blown over, falling into the dining room. It was quite miraculous that no one was injured in either places especially the Pawnee House, where there were employees of the hotel at work.

 

The streets were flooded, one group of young folks who had been in swimming at the beach, stopping on their way home to swim in a lake in front of Judge Eldridge’s home on Circuit avenue. The bathing beach was also badly damaged, the rafts belonging to the Vineyard Grove Company being knocked to pieces like kindling wood, and the dock had several planks ripped out of it.

 

But the scene in the Tabernacle Grounds was appalling. Giant trees or branches of trees littered the grounds, the Tabernacle roof badly damaged, wires strewn around, for a time endangering the lives of any who came near them. It seemed as though a hurricane had started right in the Camp Grounds.

 

Along Lake Anthony, many small boats were thrown up on the shore, broadside to the beach, and a few, water filled, were sunk in several feet of water inshore. It will be sometime before all the damage is repaired, but workmen made gallant efforts to clear the debris and the light and telephone companies did their utmost to restore normal service.

 

The church near the Tabernacle had several stained glass windows blown in. A big catalpa tree between Horne’s and the Kohl houses was blown off by the terrific wind. County Park, Hartford Park, Cottage Park and Commonwealth Square all suffered quite a little from the effects of the wind. One of the old oak trees in front of 10 Commonwealth Square, the residence of Miss Emily Worth, was snapped off and crashed over on the piazza roof, bursting open the balcony door. The trumpet vine in Miss Worth’s yard was also badly damaged, and wind twisting the trellis and breaking off branches of the vine.