Three-Minute History: Tornadoes Destroy Grinnell College but Commencement Goes On
On June 17, 1882, two tornadoes converged on Grinnell, destroying the college campus and killing almost 40 people. Three days later, Commencement went on despite the destruction.
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June 17, 1882, was a hot and steamy summer day in Grinnell. Students at Grinnell College were finishing up their end-of-semester work and preparing for Commencement.
At that time, no system was in place to warn residents about the severe weather headed their way. But to the west, a violent storm was brewing, and it was bearing down on Grinnell.
A little after 8:30 p.m., two tornadoes converged upon the town, meeting at the intersection of Eighth Avenue and Broad Street, the heart of the Grinnell College campus. The storm left wreckage where campus buildings, homes, and businesses had been just a few minutes earlier.
Both of Grinnell College’s major buildings were destroyed, and 39 people died, including two college students, Bingham Burgett and Burritt Chase. Other students were spared because the Grinnell baseball team was in Tama, Iowa, where they were playing an out-of-town game in defiance of President George Magoun’s edict against away games for Grinnell’s sports teams.
Seventy-three homes in Grinnell were destroyed, and many more were damaged. The downtown area was largely spared.
Three days, later, Commencement went on as planned, thanks to President Magoun’s determination to continue as normally as possible. Magoun’s address to the graduates was titled “God Was in the Whirlwind.”
Rebuilding Stronger than Before
Thanks in part to the leadership of J.B. Grinnell, community founder and prominent abolitionist, Grinnellians from both town and college came together to rebuild stronger than before.
In Grinnell, the 1882 storm is commonly referred to as a cyclone, as was common in the 19th century. The Grinnell College yearbook, known as The Cyclone, is an annual reminder of the event. The first yearbook with this title appeared in 1889.
To read more about this event, visit “Destruction and Rebirth: The Cyclone of 1882”, Episode 4 of the All Things Grinnell podcast, featuring Allison Haack, Special Collections and Archives. Also, after its grand reopening on June 28, the Grinnell Historical Museum will feature an exhibit on the 1882 cyclone for several months.
