Tornado outbreak of March 20–21, 1913

Tornado outbreak of March 20–21, 1913
Weather map on March 20 showing weather patterns during the tornado outbreak
Tornado outbreak
Tornadoes≥ 16
Maximum ratingF4 tornado
DurationMarch 20–21, 1913
Overall effects
Fatalities53
Injuries≥ 156
Damage> $655,000 ($21,340,000 in 2025 USD)[note 1]
Areas affectedSouthern United States
Part of the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1913

On March 20–21, 1913, a tornado outbreak affected southern parts of the United States, claiming 53 lives and injuring at least 156 people. The deadliest tornado of the outbreak, retroactively rated F4 on the Fujita scale, struck Lower Peach Tree, Alabama, killing 27 people and injuring 60. Multiple long-lived tornado families occurred, including a long-tracked F2 in neighboring Mississippi that killed nine. Four other F2s in both these states and Tennessee each caused three deaths. At least a dozen tornadoes hit Arkansas, most of which were unrated. A few days following the outbreak, a much more violent and deadlier event began.[note 2]

Confirmed tornadoes

Confirmed tornadoes by Fujita rating
FU F0 F1 F2 F3 F4 F5 Total
9 2 0 13 0 1 0 ≥ 16

Prior to 1990, there is a likely undercount of tornadoes, particularly E/F0–1, with reports of weaker tornadoes becoming more common as population increased. A sharp increase in the annual average E/F0–1 count by approximately 200 tornadoes was noted upon the implementation of NEXRAD Doppler weather radar in 1990–1991.[3][note 3] 1974 marked the first year where significant tornado (E/F2+) counts became homogenous with contemporary values, attributed to the consistent implementation of Fujita scale assessments.[7][note 4] Numerous discrepancies on the details of tornadoes in this outbreak exist between sources. The total count of tornadoes and ratings differs from various agencies accordingly. The list below documents information from the most contemporary official sources alongside assessments from tornado historian Thomas P. Grazulis.

March 20 event

List of confirmed tornadoes – Thursday, March 20, 1913
F#[note 4] Location County / Parish State Time (UTC)[note 5] Path length Width[note 6] Damage[note 7]
F2 W of McGehee to near McArthur Desha AR 15:30–? 10 mi (16 km) Unknown Unknown
A tornado destroyed 25 homes.[17]
F2 Hoxie to Walnut Ridge Lawrence AR 15:30–? 5 mi (8.0 km) Unknown $100,000
A tornado wrecked both downtowns, injuring five people.[18][17]
F2 Near Paragould Greene AR Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown
A tornado destroyed a house, injuring four people inside.[17]
FU Gillett Arkansas AR Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown
Details are unavailable.[18]
FU Eudora Chicot AR Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown
1 death – Details are unavailable.[18]
FU Brinkley Monroe AR Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown
Details are unavailable.[18]
FU Star City Lincoln AR Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown
Details are unavailable.[18]
FU Nettleton Craighead AR Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown
Details are unavailable.[18]
FU Newport Jackson AR Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown
Details are unavailable.[18]
FU Wynne Cross AR Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown
Details are unavailable.[18]
FU Pine Bluff Jefferson AR Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown
Details are unavailable.[18]
FU Near Jonesboro Craighead AR Unknown Unknown Unknown Unknown
Two injuries occurred.[18]

March 21 event

List of confirmed tornadoes – Friday, March 21, 1913
F#[note 4] Location County / Parish State Time (UTC)[note 5] Path length Width[note 6] Damage[note 7]
F2 S of Madison to near Buckhead Morgan GA 06:00–? 8 mi (13 km) Unknown Unknown
1 death – A tornado hit five plantations, wrecking 30 buildings and injuring seven people.[17]
F2 Louisville to N of Macon Winston, Noxubee MS 06:00–06:30 30 mi (48 km) 100 yd (91 m) >$25,000
9 deaths – A tornado family destroyed or damaged 25 homes in Louisville, killing a few people and injuring 15. Near Macon it killed seven more, including five family members, and wrecked a church before dissipating.[17][19]
F2 Near Ruleville Sunflower MS 06:30–? Unknown Unknown Unknown
3 deaths – A tornado obliterated homes.[17]
F2 Rienzi to Corinth Prentiss, Alcorn MS 06:30–? 5 mi (8.0 km) Unknown Unknown
2 deaths – A strong tornado ravaged Riezi, causing deaths there. 18 injuries occurred.[17]
F0+ SSW of Wayland Springs to NNE of Ethridge Lawrence TN 06:30–? Unknown Unknown Unknown
A strong quasi-linear convective system (QLCS) traversed Middle Tennessee, generating multiple tornadoes. This event—possibly a family of up to two tornadoes—unroofed several homes, blew others off their foundations, and leveled five or six barns. An injury occurred.[2]
F2 Near Florence Lauderdale AL 07:00–? Unknown Unknown Unknown
3 deaths – A tornado destroyed seven barns and 20 homes, killing three children.[17]
F0+ NNE of Riversburg to Bivens Giles TN 07:00–? Unknown Unknown Unknown
A tornado damaged an orchard, tenant homes, outhouses, and machinery. It also downed fruit trees, ripped off a cupola, tore loose a kitchen, knocked down chimneys, unroofed some homes, and destroyed a pair of buggies.[2]
F2 W of Decatur to near Trinity to near Meridianville Morgan, Limestone, Madison AL 07:30–? 40 mi (64 km) 100 yd (91 m) Unknown
3 deaths – A tornado family destroyed outbuildings, a church, and tenant homes, as well as other residences, injuring 20 people. Two of the dead were children.[17]
F2 SW of Lewisburg to near Verona to S of Chapel Hill Marshall TN 07:30–? 15 mi (24 km) Unknown $100,000
3 deaths – A tornado destroyed or damaged many barns and homes, injuring three people.[2]
F2 Murfreesboro Rutherford TN 08:10–? 2 mi (3.2 km) 100 yd (91 m) $300,000
A tornado hit downtown Murfreesboro, unroofing seven boxcars, felling trees, collapsing stables, and damaging buildings. An injury occurred.[2]
F2 E of Talladega to Heflin Talladega, Clay, Cleburne AL 09:00–? 35 mi (56 km) Unknown Unknown
An intermittent tornado destroyed 12 homes, leaving 100 people homeless and injuring 10 others. At times multiple tornadoes were observed 1 mi (1.6 km) apart, and parallel damage swaths were reported.[17][19]
F4 Scyrene to Lower Peach Tree Clarke, Wilcox AL 10:30–? 13 mi (21 km) 400 yd (370 m) $130,000
27 deaths – A violent tornado impacted 100 homes at Lower Peach Tree, blowing to "splinters" and leveling over 20 well-built houses, according to reports quoted by Grazulis. A pillow was found 20 mi (32 km) away. 60 injuries occurred, among them 10 at Scyrene.[20][17]
F2 Asahel to E of Camden Wilcox AL 11:00–? 12 mi (19 km) 200 yd (180 m) Unknown
1 death – 10 injuries occurred.[17]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ All losses are in 1913 United States dollars unless otherwise noted.
  2. ^ An outbreak is generally defined as a group of at least six tornadoes (the number sometimes varies slightly according to local climatology) with no more than a six-hour gap between individual tornadoes. An outbreak sequence, prior to (after) the start of modern records in 1950, is defined as a period of no more than two (one) consecutive days without at least one significant (F2 or stronger) tornado.[1]
  3. ^ Historically, the number of tornadoes globally and in the United States was and is likely underrepresented: research by Grazulis on annual tornado activity suggests that, as of 2001, only 53% of yearly U.S. tornadoes were officially recorded. Documentation of tornadoes outside the United States was historically less exhaustive, owing to the lack of monitors in many nations and, in some cases, to internal political controls on public information.[4] Most countries only recorded tornadoes that produced severe damage or loss of life.[5] Significant low biases in U.S. tornado counts likely occurred through the early 1990s, when advanced NEXRAD was first installed and the National Weather Service began comprehensively verifying tornado occurrences.[6]
  4. ^ a b c The Fujita scale was devised under the aegis of scientist T. Theodore Fujita in the early 1970s. Prior to the advent of the scale in 1971, tornadoes in the United States were officially unrated.[8][9] Tornado ratings were retroactively applied to events prior to the formal adoption of the F-scale by the National Weather Service.[10] While the Fujita scale has been superseded by the Enhanced Fujita scale in the U.S. since February 1, 2007,[11] Canada used the old scale until April 1, 2013;[12] nations elsewhere, like the United Kingdom, apply other classifications such as the TORRO scale.[13]
  5. ^ a b All dates are based on the local time zone where the tornado touched down; however, all times are in Coordinated Universal Time and dates are split at midnight CST/CDT for consistency.
  6. ^ a b The listed width values are primarily the average/mean width of the tornadoes, with those having known maximum widths denoted by ♯. From 1952 to 1994, reports largely list mean width whereas contemporary years list maximum width.[14] Values provided by Grazulis are the average width, with estimates being rounded down (i.e., 0.5 mi (0.80 km) is rounded down from 880 yards to 800 yards).[15][16]
  7. ^ a b The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Storm Data publication does not list exact damage totals for every event, instead giving damage categories. As such, damage for individual tornadoes is not comprehensive.

References

  1. ^ Schneider, Russell S.; Brooks, Harold E.; Schaefer, Joseph T. (2004). Tornado Outbreak Day Sequences: Historic Events and Climatology (1875–2003) (PDF). 22nd Conf. Severe Local Storms. Hyannis, Massachusetts: American Meteorological Society. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d e f National Weather Service (2017). Written at Old Hickory, Tennessee. NWS Nashville Tornado Database (Report). Mississippi State, Mississippi. Archived from the original on January 21, 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2025 – via Mississippi State University.
  3. ^ Agee and Childs 2014, p. 1496.
  4. ^ Grazulis 2001a, pp. 251–4.
  5. ^ Edwards, Roger (March 5, 2015). "The Online Tornado FAQ (by Roger Edwards, SPC)". Storm Prediction Center: Frequently Asked Questions about Tornadoes. Storm Prediction Center. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  6. ^ Cook & Schaefer 2008, p. 3135.
  7. ^ Agee and Childs 2014, pp. 1497, 1503.
  8. ^ Grazulis 1993, p. 141.
  9. ^ Grazulis 2001a, p. 131.
  10. ^ Edwards et al. 2013, p. 641–642.
  11. ^ Edwards, Roger (March 5, 2015). "Enhanced F Scale for Tornado Damage". The Online Tornado FAQ (by Roger Edwards, SPC). Storm Prediction Center. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  12. ^ "Enhanced Fujita Scale (EF-Scale)". Environment and Climate Change Canada. Environment and Climate Change Canada. June 6, 2013. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  13. ^ "The International Tornado Intensity Scale". Tornado and Storm Research Organisation. Tornado and Storm Research Organisation. 2016. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  14. ^ Agee and Childs 2014, p. 1494.
  15. ^ Brooks 2004, p. 310.
  16. ^ Grazulis 1990, p. ix.
  17. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Grazulis 1993, p. 737.
  18. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Alciatore 1913.
  19. ^ a b Von Hermann 1913, p. 342.
  20. ^ Grazulis 1984, p. A-26.

Sources

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