The Great Lakes Storm of 1913

The Great Lakes Storm of 1913 was was know by many names, including “the Big Blow,” “the Freshwater Fury” and “the White Hurricane.” According to the National Weather Service 258 lives were lost on the Great Lakes and 12 ships sank, while 30 more were crippled.  Jamie McLeod in a article on farmersalmanac.com states that “$5 million in ships and cargo was lost (about $100 million in today’s currency) [and] five of the sunken ships were never found.”  While not nearly as deadly in Mansfield the storm did shut down the city, the Mansfield News reported drifts six and seven feet deep in some areas.  Local street car service was stopped until the tracks could be cleared and the interurban cars were stalled and some could not be located during the night.  Passenger traffic on the railroad was also held up, though the trains kept moving.  Also mentioned is that a majority of factories were closed and church services were not largely attended.  Below are photos of the blizzard, mostly taken on November 10, 1913.  Click on image to enlarge.

Sources:

_{The Big Blow: The Great Lakes Blizzard of 1913. Retrieved from https://www.farmersalmanac.com/weather/2011/10/31/the-big-blow-the-great-lakes-blizzard-of-1913/
Great Lakes Hurricane of 1913. Retrieved from https://www.weather.gov/media/apx/spotter/1913Storm.pdf}