The Great Natchez Tornado of May 7th, 1840 - 2nd Deadliest Tornado in US History

quote:

---

The date is May 7, the year is 1840. The place, Natchez, Mississippi. A bustling and booming river town along the Mississippi River, it’s 20 years after Mississippi joining the union and 20 years before the Civil War. 1840 along the Mississippi river is reminiscent of Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer.

---

quote:

---

Just before 2 p.m., the sky darkened so much that residents in town eating dinner had to light candles in order to see. One Dr. Henry Tooley noted that the barometer began to fall rapidly1. The rain came first, then the tornado.

---

quote:

---

By far, the worst of the damage, and the most loss of life, occurred on the Mississippi river. There were a large number of boats anchored at Natchez that fateful day. This was mostly because a town to the north, Vicksburg, had levied a tax on boat anchoring. So, many boat owners decided to come farther down the river to Natchez.

---

quote:

---

It was said that during the tornado the water rose between 10 and 15 feet, and that the water was whipped to such an extent where even a experienced swimmer “could not sustain themselves on the surface”

---

quote:

---

Lloyd’s Steamboat Disasters lists the number of lives lost at around 400, though this number was likely subject to large error. This by itself would have been a significant tornado, however damage also occurred above the river, in Natchez itself.

---

quote:

---

Damage was also reported to have occurred on plantations on the Louisiana side of the river. Some reports had the deaths in this area in the “hundreds” but these deaths were never confirmed. It is possible that the African American slave population was impacted in Louisiana. Due to their status at the time, it is likely they were not counted in many or any death counts.

---