On Thursday, March 27, 1890, a major tornado outbreak struck the Middle Mississippi Valley. To this day, this outbreak is still one of the deadliest tornado events in United States history. At least 24 significant tornadoes, several of which were generated by cyclic supercells, were recorded to have spawned from this system, and at least 187 people were killed by tornadoes that day, including a devastating F4 tornado that struck Downtown Louisville, Kentucky, killing at least 115 people and injuring at least 200 others. Five other violent tornadoes occurred elsewhere, including a long-tracked F4 tornado family that crossed two states, killing 21 people and injuring 200, and two other F4s that killed 14 altogether. A pair of F3s near the Tennessee–Kentucky state line may have killed a combined 37 people.

Background and impact

At 8:00 a.m. EST (13:00 UTC) on March 27, a vigorous low-pressure center of at most 29.1 inHg was in progress over central Kansas. Ahead of the low, an unstable air mass advected northward from the Gulf of Mexico, while a warm front positioned itself across Kentucky, southern Illinois, and south-central Missouri. By 8:00 p.m. EST (01:00 UTC), the low had deepened somewhat and tracked generally eastward across north-central Illinois, yielding a pressure of 29.274 inHg at Louisville, Kentucky, an hour earlier. A cold front encountering the warm, moist air mass over the Mississippi River Valley produced favorable wind shear for the development and growth of tornado-producing supercells over the warm sector. As a result, numerous long-lived tornado families occurred in a triangular region from St. Louis, Missouri, eastward to Louisville and southward to Huntsville, Alabama. In addition to 24 F2+ tornadoes, many other weaker tornadoes likely occurred but went unrecorded.

Confirmed tornadoes

March 27 event

Metropolis, Illinois/Sheridan–Blackford–Dickson–Delaware, Kentucky

This long-tracked, violent tornado family formed from the same supercell as the Bird's Point F3. One or more members of the family may have been the same as the Bird's Point tornado and touched down in Missouri, west of the Mississippi River, before entering Kentucky. After passing through McCracken County, the tornado traversed the Ohio River as a waterspout to strike the opposite shore at Metropolis, Illinois. In Metropolis the tornado destroyed 100 buildings, killed one person, and caused $150,000 in losses. The tornado reportedly carried water "as high as the rooftops" as it passed over the Ohio River. Unconfirmed rumors suggested that two Gypsies were killed in a nearby settlement and that a Gypsy woman was found 1/2 mi distant. Three confirmed deaths occurred on farms and in homes from just northeast of Metropolis to near Bay City. Another death occurred on the eastern bank of the Ohio River, in Kentucky. The tornado reportedly was "greenish" in appearance as it entered Livingston County, killing at least three and possibly as many as 11 people. In Crittenden County the tornado caused six deaths, five of which occurred in a home at Sheridan. Between Blackford and Dixon the tornado destroyed several dozen farms and miles of timberland; widespread F4 damage occurred in this area. Eight or more fatalities were reported in Webster County. A train derailed as it struck downed trees near Sebree, causing three indirect fatalities. Five people in one family were killed near Delaware. The tornado finally dissipated as a downburst in West Louisville, causing F2 damage, one fatality, and $50,000 in losses there.

Louisville, Kentucky

This devastating tornado may have first touched down in Harrison County, Indiana, but records that would indicate the precise location are unavailable. The tornado is estimated to have developed just west of Shively shortly before 8:00 p.m. CST (01:00 UTC). With a trajectory that varied between northeast and north-northeast, it approached Louisville at a speed of 36 to 40 mi/h. In Louisville observers witnessed a thunderstorm to their southwest, noting that the cloud was of "extreme blackness" and lit by lightning. Heavy rainfall preceded the tornado itself, suggestive of a high-precipitation (HP) supercell, and surface temperatures rose to 68 F. The tornado generated its first significant damage in the California neighborhood of Louisville, then caused the only incidence of F4 damage in the Parkland area, near the intersection of 28th and Dumesnil Streets. After leveling a couple of homes in Parkland, the tornado weakened as it entered Downtown Louisville, yet widened from 200 to 500 yd. The most extensive damage occurred in a swath from the intersection of 34th Street and the Algonquin Parkway to the western half of the central business district, including Crescent Hill. Numerous unreinforced buildings, often multi-story, collapsed, including the Falls City Hall, where 44 or more fatalities occurred—one of the highest death tolls due to a single building collapse from a tornado in U.S. history. Some sources placed the toll at 55 in the Falls City Hall. Throughout the path, wreckage caught fire, burning several people to death; century-old oaks and a water tower were downed; and iron railings were wrenched and snapped. Before crossing the Ohio River into Indiana, the tornado destroyed a total of 766 buildings–including 532 residences, 32 manufacturers, 10 tobacco warehouses, seven rail depots, five churches, three schools, and two public halls–in Louisville, costing the city at least $2.5 million. The tornado ended as a downburst in Jeffersonville, Indiana, causing widespread damage, minor injuries, and $500,000 in losses. At least 18 structures were destroyed or damaged there, primarily within a few blocks of the riverfront. In all, the tornado killed at least 115 people (possibly as high as 120), placing it among the deadliest tornadoes in United States history, and remains the deadliest tornado in Kentucky's history to date.<ref name="LouisvilleSummary">Multiple sources:

Aftermath and recovery

Following the tornado at Louisville, then-Red Cross president Clara Barton arrived to assist the recovery. Electric trolleys were used to compensate for a shortage of hearses. The City of Louisville, while declining outside aid, also established 60-man work crews to sift through wreckage for survivors. Three days after the disaster—on March 30, Palm Sunday—as many as 45 separate funeral services were conducted in Louisville.

Sources