From the April 12, 1923 issue of the Democrat: “Tornado Crashes Thru Hunterdon County Farms”
“A violent storm of tornado proportions hit Hunterdon County last Thursday afternoon about five o’clock. It became extremely dark and rain fell almost as a solid sheet of water accompanied by a terrific wind and by lightning and thunder. The most violent part of the storm did not last more than ten minutes ….but leaving in its wake damage of many thousand dollars.
The storm progressed with great violence up the Delaware Valley from Philadelphia to Easton. In Hunterdon County two regions suffered the most severely: they were roughly the ridge on which are located Sergeantsville, Baptistown and Mt. Pleaseant and the Valley of the Neshanic River, especially in the Reaville area. (In East Amwell, the tornado pretty much followed the Old York Rd from Rt. 202 and on to Cloverhill).
On the David Dilts farm near Reaville, his son-in-law, Earle Lane, was tending the stock in the barn when, …with one blow the barn was lifted from its stone foundation. The upper story, filled with hay and corn stalks was totally blown off to the east, while the main section, with forty tons of baled hay dropped down on Lane and the stock and machinery located in the stone part under the heavy floor. Lane was pinned under the wreckage and badly bruised but was finally able to dig himself out wriggling for some distance along the ground and dangerously near the crazed horses, also pinned in the wreckage. By the headlights of two automobiles neighbors worked during the night to rescue the stock. After four days of digging it was impossible to rescue most of the animals so Dr. Harris shot the remaining seven cows and horse. All of the chickens and chicken houses were blown away as was the peach orchard, but the house standing amongst it all was untouched.
At the next farm, that of Henry Schlaffer, the wind tore away part of the barn, curled the tin roof off of it, ground up a wagon house and several chicken houses, making hundreds of chickens homeless, and grinding an orchard of nineteen sturdy apple trees into twisted splinters. Heavy brooder stoves were blown across a large field, the well covering was landed on the roof of the house, and other great timbers struck it, demolishing the windows and chimney. Although the people in the house were not hurt the house was severely damaged.”
In this long article, much damage was done to East Amwell farms. Collections were taken up to help the needy. Many people said they definitely witnessed a funnel cloud. In Mt. Pleasant, Mrs. Kuhl Dalrymple was picking eggs in the hen house when the wind picked it up and carried it away. Who said you had to live in Kansas?
Jim Davidson