Armistice Day Blizzard of 1940
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 8 พ.ย. 2010
- www.mnhs.org/ On November 11th of each year, Americans celebrate Veteran's Day, acknowledging the services and sacrifices of the men and women of the American military. But in the minds of many Minnesotans, the day evokes an additional memory: that of a powerful winter storm that exploded over Minnesota in 1940 and is remembered today as the Armistice Day Blizzard. Minnesota Historical Society Collections Assistant Tony Krosschell discusses this tragic event that took over 150 lives and its impact on the National Weather Service's forecasting practices.
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In the book "All Hell Broke Loose" by William Hull, my favorite story is about a man who was an amateur meteorologist and DID "see it coming". He owned a recording barometer (barograph) and saw the needle drop off the drum because of the low pressure of the approaching storm.
He then had his local service station fill his gas tank, put antifreeze in his radiator, and put chains on his tires. The service station attendant was in his shirt sleeves and thought the man had totally lost his mind! But in hours the flakes began to fall and we can only wonder what the service station attendant thought then!
My father was 15 when this storm hit, living in SW Minnesota. He had two paper routes, one morning and one evening. On the morning route, he was in shirtsleeves. By the evening route, he was in "Winter clothes" and the weather had gotten absolutely horrid. He did finish his route, and very fortunately someone in an automobile saw him walking on the roadside, picked him up, and drove him home. He remembered this storm until the day he passed, in 2010.
My grandfather was out hunting when the storm hit. He was poorly dressed but fortunately he hadn't strayed too far from his car and was able to get his car into Lake City where he spent the night in a gas station.
Oh my, what an amazing presentation of the Armistice Day Blizzard. My mom had told me about it, but I had not idea it was to that extent and so many deaths resulted. My mother's birthday was Nov. 12, and so on her birthday she would mention the storm and when she was a young girl left at home while her parents when to play cards at a neighbors on the farm down the road. The storm came in and they couldn't get back home, and she said she spend about three or four days along taking care of herself as best as she could. Now I know how truly bad that blizzard was.
Crazy to think the worst blizzard wasn't even in the winter. Middle of fall.
My grandma still tells the story where her dad didn't go hunting that day but then went out preparred and saved a few guys. It was so bad people were flipping there boats over and hiding underneath. 1hr south of cities in redwing mn.
My mother and her family had gone to her aunt and uncle's farm in SW Minnesota. They had to slide down a snow drift to get to the barn to tend the animals.
My Great Grandpa Hugh was one of the lost duck hunters. My Grandpa was six when it happened. He wore a silver dollar around his neck that was found on his deceased father until his own passing a few years ago.
My grandparents talked much about this storm. In North Dakota, my grandpa was on his way to propose to my grandma when he got caught in the blizzard. He ended up blindly feeling his way along a random fence to someone's farm house where he was able to take shelter for the night. My grandma said that after all the snow had fallen and the skies were once again sunny and blue, the snow looked like a landscape of diamonds across the North Dakota prairie and was SO beautiful. But then...when it melted...how many dead bodies were revealed of those who had been trapped in the storm and and had been laying beneath that beautiful snow cover. She said it was beyond heartbreaking. And how many people died just feet from their front door or on their very own front step -- many of suffocation from the air pressure rather than the actual temperatures...as some homes couldn't even get their front doors open because the pressure was too great (similar to in a tornado). And many dying from sheer lack of visibility due to the whiteout conditions and being unable to get their bearings or have any way to gauge where they were or if they were at all close to shelter. Again, with many so very near to the front doors of their own homes, but sadly they were unaware because they simply couldn't see beyond their hand in front of their face due to the blinding winds and snow. How fascinating and heartbreaking all at once. A truly epic historical event.
My mother's family farm was east of Royalton, MN. She said that they strung a sturdy wire between the house and the barn so they could hold onto it and get to the barn even when the visibility was zero. Cows have to be milked no matter what!
My mother grew up on a farm on the Iron Range which is pretty much northern Mn. She said they couldn't get out of the farm for 3 weeks.
great video. my deepest sympathy's for those people who perished in this storm. living through the blizzard of 78 in New England I can honestly say...there is nothing like the wrath of mother nature. on one hand she can be brutal , then give you the most beautiful day on her other.
My grandmother talked about the storm. They were fishing and it started to snow like mad
I have been through two vicious blizzards here in Minnesota - not to the extent of the 1940 blizzard - but bad in their own ways.
my grandma talked about the storm. she was fishing and it started to snow.
My Dad told about this blizzard I was not thought of then (born) and it was really bad
Strangley, the first time I’d heard about the blizzard was listing to ‘CCO Radio while driving home from Duck Hunting in the early 1990’s.
The Halloween blizzard of 1991 actually dumped more snow, but better cars, better roads, better communication, and better plows kept the damage down.
but surprisingly, the weather service wasn't totally prepared for the dumping of snow we got.
That's what my Dad said about it, too. We were talking about the blizzard in the winter of 1888-89 and he mentioned this one, which I had never heard about (and now I need to look up the '91 blizzard, too!) and said we lost some family in the 1940 one. The one in '78 came after a winter warm-up as well.
And better costumes 😂
I had a bread route at the time of the '91 blizzard. If I remember correctly, the temps were in the 50s just a few days before this hit. I never missed any work but I was stuck behind a grocery store in St. Louis Park for over 2 hours. Remarkably enough, that snow all melted & we got hit again the day after Thanksgiving with another 16" of snow. That was about it for the whole winter as far as snow went.
This day was the worst day for Duck Hunters, who were half of those 49 lives lost in Minnesota on Monday, November 11, 1940. it started with people throughout the Midwest leaving coats at home to go duck hunting because temperatures were in the 60s that morning prior to that blizzard. temperatures in South Dakota, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Michigan dropped off significantly from the 60s to well below zero quickly within the matter of minutes, turning rain to sleet, and then a whiteout blizzard. that blizzard was the exact reason why it was so deadly for many duck hunters and sailors who were unprepared for the big temperature change.
Yeah, many a sailor died out duck hunting... why did you bring up sailors 😂
@@mdizzle7742 because the sailors were in boats when the storm arrived in 1940.
My Dad had told me about this, how my Grandfather who took the streetcar from Downtown St. Paul to the Arcade Phalen area , was 4 hour late on a 1/2 hour ride. He had told him and my Grandma about how many times they got stuck...
It's difficult to wrap your head around the idea that blizzards are regional events. It may seem like the snowy end of the world where you were at, while just fifty miles away, they hardly got any snow at all.
I say this because of all the claims here of "the Halloween blizzard" the "blizzard of '91", etc..
My Dad talked about that storm.
The shipwrecks were horrific, too.
Armistice Day is not used any more it's Veterans Day
To those of us of a "certain age" it will always be remembered as Armistice Day.
great video. my deepest sympathy's for those people who perished in this storm. living through the blizzard of 78 in New England I can honestly say...there is nothing like the wrath of mother nature. on one hand she can be brutal , then give you the most beautiful day on her other.