Stoner Hill was devastated by 1912 tornado
The Caddo Parish Civil Rights Heritage Trail project is expanding its scope with a new series designed to help historic villages, towns, neighborhoods, and/or cities in Caddo Parish, Louisiana, investigate three different versions of their communities: the past, the present, and the future. Team members include Dr. Gary Joiner, Mik Barnes, Jaclyn Tripp, Dr. Laura Meiki, Dr. Jolivette Anderson-Douong, Dr. Amy Rosner, Dr. Rolonda Teal, and Brenton Metzler.
This month's focus is the Stoner Hill neighborhood.
In Stoner Hill's origin story may surprise you, Dr. Gary Joiner (Professor of History at LSU Shreveport) taught us that Stoner Hill is older than the city of Shreveport. In part II of our series on Stoner Hill, Was Stoner Hill in Shreveport named after cannabis lovers, we learned where Stoner Hill got its name and how it connected to America's Civil War. Part III of the Stoner Hill series showed what Stoner Hill was like in 1935 vs. what Stoner Hill is like today.
Part IV of our series examines the history of a tornado that destroyed much of Stoner Hill in 1912.
Jaclyn Tripp took the lead on this article.
SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) – A tornado that swept through Shreveport in 1912 killed ten people, injured more than fifty, and destroyed most of the homes in several communities–including Freewater Hill, which is now known as the Stoner Hill neighborhood.
After the tornado struck on Feb. 20, 1912, no homes were left standing in the Adner community on the Louisiana and Arkansas Road. Bowman Lane in Forest Hill and the Fairfield subdivision were hit particularly hard by the tornado, as was Freewater Hill's Bremmer Lane.
The tornado appeared out of the Southwest around 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday afternoon, Feb. 20, 1912. The Caucasian later called the tornado 'the most destructive in the history of storm disasters in Shreveport.'
After the tornado passed through the Centenary neighborhood, it hit Freewater Hill. Between 75 and 100 homes were completely demolished, and the devastation was so severe it was almost impossible to search through the debris and find where the homes had originally been located.
After destroying Freewater Hill, the tornado crossed the Red River into Bossier City.
'It seemed that the greatest damage was in the (African American community of Freewater Hill.) Shacks were taken up and hurled into the air and those who saw the storm say that flying timbers could be seen on all sides,' The (Shreveport) Times reported on Feb. 22, 1912.
Reports from within the community stated that people at Freewater Hill had to throw themselves into trenches and gutters to escape the tornado.
The Ambulance Corps of the Louisiana State National Guard erected dozens of tents, including three regulation hospital tents, for the homeless and the injured. The tents were set up on the east end of Olive Street at Freewater Hill.
Four stores and the Hopewell Church in the Freewater / Stoner Hill community were utterly destroyed. The stores were owned by African American business owners Mack and Ama Miles, Louis Parker, and Arthur Hawkins.
Police, firemen, and physicians entered the area as soon as possible after the storm, and a search for the dead and injured began. One of the first things the Mayor of Shreveport did after the tornado was to arrange for a wagon of groceries to be taken to Freewater Hill.
Donations poured in from across the city. The Captain of the No. 5 fire station began collecting clothes and taking them to city hall, which served as the hub for distributing goods to storm victims.
Eight houses were destroyed on Linwood and Fairfield Avenues, and two houses and a dairy barn on Herndon Place. The tornado also struck the Corbett place.
In Freewater, Mr. and Mrs. James Cook and Mrs. R. L. Stephens, who was holding a baby, narrowly escaped the tornado. Their homes were not as lucky.
'In the years gone there have been experiences storms which were more or less severe, when great trees were rooted bodily, when fences were leveled and houses of slim structure were otherthrown,' wrote a reporter for The Caucasian on Feb. 22. '…but, excepting the disaster experienced at Gilliam, the aggregate in the loss of life, of the number injured and of property destroyed on Tuesday afternoon is without a parallel in this section of the State.'
Sources:
The Caucasian, Feb. 22, 1912
The Shreveport Journal, Feb. 21, 1912, pp. 2
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Boston Globe
4 hours ago
- Boston Globe
How are the early weeks of hurricane season shaping up?
There's a fast ramp up in late summer and a fast cool down in early fall. Notice in the chart below how quickly the prevalence of hurricane and tropical storms becomes by mid-August but how fast it falls off later in September. The average Atlantic hurricane season in terms of storms per date. NOAA Advertisement Specifically, they show the number of hurricanes (yellow area) and combined named storms and hurricanes (red area) that occur on each calendar day over 100 years. The data has been smoothed using a 5-day running average centered on each calendar day. For the Atlantic basin, the chart is based on data from the 77 years from 1944 to 2020 (starting at the beginning of the aircraft reconnaissance era) but normalized to 100 years. The peak of the Atlantic hurricane season is Sept. 10, with most activity occurring between mid-August and mid-October. Related : Advertisement There's already been some activity in the Pacific, which again is typical. Pacific hurricane season begins May 15, a full two weeks earlier than the Atlantic because water temperatures are more conducive earlier in the Eastern Pacific. The Pacific season is also more drawn out, with tropical activity remaining high from July through much of September. A similar chart to what I showed you for the Atlantic has a much more plateaued look in the Pacific. Typical Eastern Pacific tropical storm and hurricane activity for an average tropical season. NOAA Back in the Atlantic, various influences will ignite more activity or suppress it. If the trade winds are weak, there's not a lot of dry air, and water temperatures are above average, tropical storm formation can accelerate. If we have cooler-than-average temperatures off of Africa — think of it like a cousin to La Niña and call it the Atlantic La Niña — then that cooler-than-average water will limit tropical activity. Likewise, dry Sahara dust coming off the African continent will suppress thunderstorm development over the ocean, which you need to get tropical storms and hurricanes. A blob of cooler-than-average water off the coast of Africa this June is likely contributing to suppressed tropical activity. NOAA Other influences on hurricane season include the Maiden-Julian Oscillation. This is a band of rotating tropical activity that occurs in the tropical Pacific Ocean. Depending on what part of its cycle the conveyor belt of thunderstorms associated with the MJO is located, it will enhance or suppress tropical energy. If an area of rising air forms over the Atlantic, then more thunderstorms will occur, perhaps leading to an organized tropical system. Last year the first named storm, Alberto, brought heavy rain and flooding to Mexico and parts of Texas. The storm was named on June 17, well within the average. Advertisement Early season storms tend to form in the Western Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico, or off the US southeast coast. The water is this region warms up faster than in the open Atlantic, where development is typically later in the summer and fall. Typically during June, tropical storms and hurricanes emerge close to the mainland United States. Boston Globe This year, the National Weather Service has predicted there's a 90 percent chance of a near- or above-normal hurricane season. There's only a 10 percent chance that we will see fewer tropical systems than usual. Once we do have a named storm, it will be called Andrea followed by Barry and Chantel. If some of these names seem familiar, it's because they are rotated on a five-year basis. Unless a storm causes significant death and destruction, the name will be reused —otherwise it can be retired. In 2024, the World Meteorological Organization retired Beryl, Helene, and Milton from the Atlantic basin list and retired John from the Eastern Pacific list due to their destructive impacts. Lastly, remember that we have not seen a hurricane reach New England shores since Bob in 1991, and we are statistically way overdue. It's not a bad idea to at least think about what you would do if a hurricane were to strike and make some preparations just in case.
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Yahoo
Heavy rains in dry season cause havoc in DR Congo's capital
At least 29 people have been killed in flood waters and landslides in the Democratic Republic of Congo's capital, Kinshasa, following unusually heavy rains in the dry season, the interior ministry has said. Homes were swept away, roads were flooded, and widespread power cuts were recorded as a third of the city was affected by the downpour. DR Congo's meteorological agency Mettelsat said that 90mm (3.5in) of rain was recorded on Saturday morning - higher than that of the rainy season that lasts from November through to May. Experts say the heavy rains are being fuelled by climate change. The consequences are devastating because of a lack of urban planning and proper drainage. Kinshasa sits on the Congo river, which is one of the longest in the world and stretches across the country. Many residents of the capital live in poorly built homes, or near areas prone to flooding, as its population grows with an influx of people from other parts of the country. Kinshasa's population is estimated to be nearing18 million - an increase of more than 4% from 2024, according to Macrotrends. Interior Minister Shabani Lukoo chaired a crisis meeting to coordinate the government's flood response, the interior ministry said in a statement. The government extended its condolences to bereaved families, and would cover the funeral expenses of the 29 people who died, it added. More than 100 people died in flash floods in eastern DR Congo's South Kivu region in May, and more than 30 in Kinshasa in April. Rare antelope captured on camera as experts say under 100 exist 'I risked drowning to flee conscription by Congolese rebels' The evidence that shows Rwanda is backing rebels in DR Congo Go to for more news from the African continent. Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica Focus on Africa This Is Africa
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Scientists warn of dangerous phenomenon as hurricane season begins: 'Getting more intense'
With hurricane season now underway, weather forecasters are closely monitoring tropical waves, as they are often the starting point for dangerous storms. USA Today reported on how technological improvements in weather forecasting over the past two decades have allowed scientists to better track tropical waves. These waves are actually low-pressure weather patterns found in the atmosphere that typically start by moving across the Atlantic Ocean. On their own, the waves are fairly insignificant, and most have little effect on the United States beyond impacting some thunderstorms and wind intensity in Florida. Strong waves, however, especially those from the African coast, can have a major impact on the weather in the U.S. and elsewhere. "Most of the hurricanes that get strongest originate from tropical waves," Chris Landsea of the National Hurricane Center said, per USA Today. In fact, about 85% of hurricanes labeled Category 3 or higher started in tropical waves off the African coast. This makes tropical waves especially important to monitor this time of year, as the Atlantic hurricane season began June 1. As with other weather phenomena, tropical waves have changed along with the climate. Last year, for example, a tropical wave pushed farther north than normal, leading to heavy flooding in the Sahara Desert. "All the entire tropical atmosphere is changing," said Kelly Núñez, assistant professor of atmospheric sciences at Texas A&M, per USA Today. "Tropical waves are getting more intense with the changing climate." As more polluting, heat-trapping gases are released into the environment, more extreme weather events become commonplace. One expert has even compared a warming climate to "basically steroids for weather." Particularly with hurricanes, stronger storms have occurred with greater frequency. Research shows that the rate of major hurricanes — those labeled at least a Category 3 — has doubled since 1980. Do you think your house could withstand a hurricane? No way Maybe a weak one I'm not sure It definitely could Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. The best way to deal with hurricanes is to be prepared well before any storm hits. If the power grid goes down, for example, having solar panels alongside battery storage can provide low-cost energy, even if others are dealing with extended outages. EnergySage's free service allows homeowners to compare quotes from local, vetted solar installers and save up to $10,000 on installation costs. For those who don't want the upfront cost of buying solar panels, Palmetto's LightReach program offers solar-panel leasing, enabling homeowners to lock in low energy rates and help the environment, all for no money down. To be even further prepared for hurricanes or any other extreme weather, have an emergency survival kit and an evacuation plan handy. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
