The Hurricane

Audubon gives a vivid description of a “hurricane” he encountered while traveling near Henderson, Kentucky. Although it seems apparent from the description that we would call his hurricane a tornado, the scene he describes will seem familiar to those who lived through Gustav in Baton Rouge:

“First, the branches were broken off with a crackling noise; then went the upper part of the massy trunks; and in many places whole trees of gigantic size were falling entire to the ground…. The mass of branches, twigs, foliage and dust that moved through the air, was whirled onwards like a cloud of feathers…”

John James Audubon, “The Hurricane,” 4-page autograph manuscript. McIlhenny AEF4388.