by Erik Larson
20 Dr. Samuel O. Young: Young account, Storm of 1900 Collection. Subject File. Rosenberg Library.
21 To her, palms and live oak: Rollfing, 1: 1. Louisa’s autobiographical account of her migration to America and her subsequent life would make warm, revelatory reading for any student of the immigrant experience.
22 In the summer of 1900: Mason, 54–56.
23 Josiah: Gregg Gregg, 101.
24 The New York Herald: Eisenhour, 1.
25 On Friday, September 7, Isaac had read: In no document does Isaac Cline actually say he read the census report in the Galveston News, but it was the biggest local news story of the day. Isaac most certainly read it. See also Weems, 23.
26 One of its French chefs: Eisenhour, 4.
27 “A child’s white hearse”: City Directory: Advertisement, J. Levy and Brothers.
28 The crests of the waves: Author’s observation of how tropical storms influence the surf off Galveston.
29 Isaac knew the low-pressure center: Cline, “Address.”
30 “If we had known”: Cline, “Cyclones,” 13.
31 The northeast wind brought: The locations of the planing mill, bulk coffee roaster, and the many livery stables are set out in the Fire Insurance Map for Galveston.
32 “Only one-tenth of an inch”: Cline, “Special Report,” 372.
33 “The usual signs”: Ibid., 372.
34 “Such high water”: Ibid.
35 Isaac’s concern: Cline, “West India Hurricanes.”
PART I: THE LAW OF STORMS
The Storm: Somewhere, a Butterfly
To reconstruct the origins and early travels of the Galveston hurricane, I relied on books and papers by the twentieth century’s most significant hurricane researchers, among them William Gray, Christopher Landsea, R. H. Simpson, Richard Anthes, Kerry Emanuel, and the two Pielkes, Roger junior and senior (see Sources). I found the Pielkes’ Hurricanes, published in 1997, to be especially useful. My description of how an easterly wave cycle might be perceived by the crew of a ship is based largely on an extended conversation with Hugh E. Willoughby, head of the Hurricane Research Division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. I also included, indirectly, the observations of researchers I interviewed in 1998 for a Time magazine article on intense hurricanes yet to come, among them Landsea; Gray; Pielke junior; Mark DeMaria, chief of technical support for NOAA’s Tropical Prediction Center; Jerry Jarrell, director of the Tropical Prediction Center; and Nicholas K. Coch, self-styled “forensic hurricanologist,” Queens College, New York.
1 Three children died: Galveston News, Aug. 13, 1900.
2 “The air near the surface”: Garriott, “Forecasts,” 321.
3 Springfield, Illinois, reported: Galveston News, Aug. 13, 1900.
4 In August, mean temperatures: Bigelow, “Report,” 47, 51, 54, 68, 70, 84, 125, 135.
5 From mid-July: Galveston News, July 14, July 15, Aug. 10, 1900.
6 Ten billion joules: Galveston News, Sept. 1, 1900.
7 Crickets swarmed: Ibid.
8 Others became massive: For excellent descriptions and illustrations of clouds, see International Cloud Atlas.
9 Ships directly in the path: Author interview, Hugh Willoughby, Hurricane Research Division, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
10 “Brown is the new color”: Galveston News, Aug. 2, 1900.
11 Every day an ad: Galveston News, Aug. 1, 1900.
12 “But suppose”: Zebrowski, 264.
13 “Could a butterfly”: Ibid., 263.
14 “One simulated storm”: Ibid., 265.
15 “Add a little glitch”: Ibid., 266.
Washington, D.C.: Violent Commotions
In this chapter, I relied heavily on the memoirs of Isaac and Joseph Cline, and on two fine histories of weather and the weather service, David Laskin’s Braving the Elements and Donald Whitnah’s A History of the United States Weather Bureau.
1 As a hobby: Cline, Storms, 14–17.
2 In fall, at acorn time: Joseph Cline, Heavens, 44.
3 Isaac’s uncle swore: Ibid., 8.
4 Stories circulated: Ibid., 10–11. “As I look back on it now,” Joseph wrote of the wild man, “it was a soul-sickening spectacle to see a human being, if one could call him that, in such a pitiable plight.”
5 Another turned Boyd’s Pond: Ibid., 13.
6 The law of convenient epiphany: Cline, Storms, 23–24.
7 He read everything: Ibid., 23.
8 his greatest dream was to write: Ibid., 23.
9 “I first studied to be a preacher”: Ibid., 26.
10 The president of: Ibid., 27.
11 A marker showed: Ibid., 30.
12 But mainly: Ibid., 30.
13 “Meteorology has ever been: Laskin, 138.
14 Mark Twain, merciless: Ibid., 146.
15 In 1881, police: Whitnah, 46–47.
16 Complaints also rose: Ibid., 46–53.
17 The assault got personal: Ibid., 53.
18 “You will cheerfully”: Frankenfield, 4.
19 Isaac led them: Cline, Storms, 32.
20 At Fort Myer, Isaac took apart: Ibid., 33.
21 The word madman: National Archives: Administrative. “Telegraph Cipher.” Box 1.
22 “Paul diction sunk”: Whitnah, 26.
23 These nocturnal sessions: Frankenfield, 6.
24 Often recruits told each other: von Herrmann, 4.
25 One lieutenant deliberately: Geddings, 9.
26 Another officer, seeking: Ibid., 3.
27 One morning a recruit: Ibid., 11.
The Storm: Monday, August 27, 1900
Here, and in subsequent chapters, I relied on an unpublished report by Jose Fernandez-Partagas, a late-twentieth-century meteorologist who re-created for the National Hurricane Center the tracks of many historical hurricanes, among them the Galveston hurricane. He was a meticulous researcher given to long hours in the library of the University of Miami, where he died on August 25, 1997, in his favorite couch. He had no money, no family, no friends—only hurricanes. The hurricane center claimed his body, had him cremated, and on August 31, 1998, launched his ashes through the drop-port of a P-3 Orion hurricane-hunter into the heart of Hurricane Danielle. His remains entered the atmosphere at 28 N, 74.2 W, about three hundred miles due east of Daytona Beach.
All references to the storm’s latitude and longitude in this chapter and subsequent chapters come from page 108 in Fernandez-Partagas’s report.
1 The first formal sighting: Fernandez-Partagas, 96, note 1.
Fort Myer: What Isaac Knew
1 He read how men caught: No one can know precisely what Isaac read at Fort Myer, but it is reasonable to conclude that he studied storms in great depth, since in his time storms were the “meteors” of the greatest interest. For horseflies, see Rosser, The Law of Storms, 40; for stranded deer, see Ludlum, 61; for levitated cannon, Ludlum, 62, 70. In Barbados in 1831 a hurricane carried a 150-pound piece of lead over 1,800 feet, and a 400-pound piece 1,680 feet. McDonough, 7. McDonough found also that the Barbados storm caused a strange change in ambient light. “While this storm was passing over the West Indies … objects which were of a whitish color appeared to be of light blue, so marked as to attract the attention of all the inhabitants.” McDonough, 8.
2 Thomas Jefferson kept: Hughes, 26. George Washington also kept a weather diary, Hughes tells us, and made his last entry the day before his death.
3 Samuel Rodman Jr.: Ibid., 31–32.
4 The first “scientific”: definition Frisinger, 5.
5 The first person to show: Ibid., 47.
6 Aristotle proved: Ibid., 67.
7 With the sobriety: Ibid., 32.
8 Columbus set off: Morison, 198; Ludlum, 1–3.
9 “The weather was”: Morison, 201.
10 Columbus and his captains: Ludlum, 1; Douglas, 47.
11 Columbus had at least: Morison, 584–93.
12 “The storm was terrible”: Ludlum, 6.<
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13 Only one ship: Morison, 590.
14 In 1638, Galileo: Frisinger, 67.
15 The meteorological significance: Ibid., 68.
16 To get any observable effect: Ibid., 68–69.
17 The term barometer: Ibid., 72.
18 Isaac considered him: Cline, “Century,” 3.
19 The Reserve put in: Snow, 1–17; Douglas, 132–35.
20 In 1627, a very brave: Lockhart, 37.
21 It was Edmund Halley: Frisinger, 123–25.
22 In 1735, George Hadley: Ibid., 125–28.
23 A century later: Lockhart, 37; Watson, 28; Trefil, 96–104.
24 Isaac, in his 1891 talk: Cline, “Address.”
25 “Who can attempt”: Thomas, 164. Thomas reproduces Archer’s full account on 154–69. See also Reid, 296–303. For detailed accounts of the three hurricanes, see Reid, Douglas, and Ludlum. For official death toll, see Rappaport and Fernandez-Partagas, “Deadliest.”
26 The second hurricane: Ludlum, 69–72; Reid, 340–65.
27 “The most beautiful island”: Ludlum, 69.
28 The storm lurched: Reid, 345.
29 The third hurrican: Douglas, 173; Ludlum, 72–73.
30 Together the three: Douglas, 173.
31 The first captain: Friendly, 146.
32 On September 3, 1821: Ludlum, 81; for complete account, see 81–86. Also, Douglas, 221–26; Rosser, W. H., 9–17. For an account of the long-burning feud between Redfield and James Espy, “The Storm King,” see Laskin, 138–40.
33 It was Piddington: Douglas, 224.
34 “The unfortunate inhabitants”: Tannehill, 31.
35 “I had studied”: Cline, “Century,” 25–26.
36 Piddington, in his immensely popular: For example, Piddington, 102–3 and 134–37.
37 “you have the hurricane in your hand”: Piddington, 134.
38 As one nineteenth-century captain: Rosser, W. H., 41.
39 The chief did not want: For grave robbing, see Whitnah, 75. For sex scandals, see Cline, Storms, 76–78.
40 Isaac gave a beauty queen’s answer: Cline, ibid., 35.
41 “I was twenty-one”: Ibid.
The Storm: Tuesday, August 28, 1900
1 The earth’s rotation: Author interview, Willoughby (see note for this page). Cyclones in the northern hemisphere always rotate counterclockwise, in the southern hemisphere, clockwise, which helps explain why no hurricane can cross the equator. I simply could not understand how a counterclockwise cyclone could be generated by right-veering Coriolis winds, until Willoughby patiently explained the process. Blame for the pool-cue analogy, however, belongs entirely to me. See also Tannehill, 5–6.
2 On Tuesday, August 28: Fernandez-Partagas, 96, note 1.
Galveston: Dirty Weather
1 “Something new”: Cline, Storms, 39.
2 “They evidently learned”: Ibid., 39.
3 It did exist: Ibid., 45.
4 “I was told”: Ibid., 45.
5 “That looks like”: Ibid., 46–47.
6 Far to the north: McCullough, Mornings, 316–37.
7 Roosevelt called: Ibid., 337.
8 During a visit: Cline, “Summer,”336.
9 It was August: Cline, Storms, 51.
10 He tracked down reports: Ibid., 52.
11 “She was a beautiful”: Ibid., 57.
12 An inefficient man: Traxel, 42.
13 “In the past”: Ibid., 42.
14 In Greely’s first year: Cline, Storms, 65.
15 He fired: Ibid., 65.
16 A fondness for: Ibid., 66.
17 An observer in the Midwest: Ibid., 66.
18 On January 21, 1888: National Archives: Inspection Reports, Galveston, January 1888.
19 And then came: Laskin, 146–47.
20 The city had: Turner, Elizabeth, 24.
21 Through the Negro Longshoremen’s Association: Mason, 51. See also Turner, Elizabeth, 371–72.
22 On November 13, 1893: National Archives: Inspection Reports, Galveston, November 13–15, 1893.
23 At the time of Harrington’s appointment: Cline, Storms, 74.
24 In a later memoir: See Cline, Joseph, Heavens.
25 Morton’s assault: Abbe, Container 8.
26 “Nearly every real advance”: Ibid., June 17, 1893.
27 “Dunwoody is a selfish intriguer”: Whitnah, 79.
28 The system, he told Congress: Ibid., 87.
29 Moore, greedy for: National Archives: General Correspondence. Letter, March 29, 1900, Willis Moore to Owen P. Kellar.
30 “I knew,” Moore wrote: Tannehill, 110–12.
31 “Wilson,” he said: Ibid., 112.
32 He told Moore: Ibid., 112.
33 At breakfast: Cline, Storms, 83.
34 Indeed, in that same hurricane season: Miller, x (Introduction).
35 On November 26: Traxel, 296–99.
36 The sudden cold: Cline, Storms, 88.
The Storm: Thursday, August 30, 1900
1 At 9:00 A.M.: Alexander, 380.
2 “About 10 P.M.”: Ibid., 380.
3 There was, according to the Antigua: Standard Ibid., 380.
Galveston: An Absurd Delusion
1 In January 1900: Coulter, 63.
2 He explained first: Cline, “West India Hurricanes.”
3 “No greater damage”: Ibid.
4 “The damage from the storm”: Ibid.
5 “The single tornado”: Ibid.
6 By 5:00 P.M.: Greely, 444.
7 “This evidence of”: Ibid., 444.
8 “ebb surge”: I first heard this term from Nicholas K. Coch, professor, School of Earth and Environmental Science, Queens College, City University of New York.
9 “The tide now swept”: Greely, 444.
10 But Gen. Adolphus Greely: Ibid., 443.
11 “The water in the bay”: Tannehill, 35.
12 “The appearance of the town”: Ibid., 35.
13 the Progressive Association: Mason, 74.
14 The city’s engineer: Ibid., 74.
15 The city’s Evening Tribune: Ibid., 74
16 “But,” engineer Hartrick wrote: Ibid., 74.
17 “It would be impossible”: Cline, “West India Hurricanes.”
PART II: THE SERPENT’S COIL
The Storm: Spiderwebs and Ice
1 The storm entered: Fernandez-Partagas, 108.
2 As vapor rose: For an excellent discussion of clouds and cloud physics, see Volland.
3 But hurricanes defeat this cycle: For a comprehensive analysis of this phenomenon, see Liu.
4 In 1979 a tropical storm: Henry et al., 22.
5 A Philippine typhoon: Ibid., 22.
6 Ninety-six and a half inches: Tannehill, 72.
7 Hurricane Camille: Pielke, Roger A., Sr., 2–3.
8 Camille’s rain fell: Ibid., 3. Hugh Willoughby of the Hurricane Research Division, in reading the manuscript of Isaac’s Storm for accuracy, called this an urban legend.
Galveston: Louisa Rollfing
I based this entire chapter on Louisa Rollfing’s autobiography, in the Galveston Collection of the Rosenberg Library.
The Levy Building: Isaac’s Map
1 At three o’clock: Galveston News, Sept. 5, 1900.
2 At the police station: Ibid.
3 Isaac heard the first clap: Daily Journal.
4 One of the newest arrivals: The New York Times, Sept. 11, 1900, 3. (See “Vessels at Galveston.”)
5 Isaac sent a man: Young, 1.
6 Throughout July: National Archives: General Correspondence. Letters: James Berry to Official in Charge, Galveston, July 5, 1900; Isaac Cline to Weather Bureau, July 9, 1900; James Berry to Official in Charge, Galveston, Aug. 16, 1900; Isaac Cline to Weather Bureau, Aug. 19, 1900. Box 1423.
7 He told Secretary: National Archives: Letters Sent. Moore to Wilson, Sept. 15, 1900.
8 Baldwin left: National Archives: Administrative. Box 7. Slip Book. Aug. 29, 1899–Oct. 23, 1900. No. 425.
9 Moore promised: National Archives: General Correspondence. Telegram, Aug. 20, 1900. Box 1473. See also letters (No. L.R. 7510-1900): Acting Chief Clerk to Official in Charge, New York, and Acting Chief Clerk to Official in Charge, Galveston, both of Aug. 22, 1900.
10 He telegraphed Moore: National Archives: General Correspondence. Telegram, Aug. 20, 1900.
11 For the last week, Young: Young, 1.
12 “He agreed with me”: Ibid.
Cuba: Suspicion
1 Through Dunwoody, Moore persuaded: National Archives: General Correspondence. Letter, Moore (as acting secretary of agriculture) to Gen. T. T. Eckert, Western Union, Aug. 28, 1900. Box 1475.
2 Cuba’s meteorologists had pioneered: Douglas, 230–36; Hughes, 13; Tannehill, 63.
3 “It was at first very difficult”: National Archives: Records of Surface Land Observations. Records Relating to Hurricane Display Systems in the West Indies. Report, Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 1899. William B. Stockman. Box 1.
4 Internal memos flew: National Archives: General Correspondence. Box 1470. The saga begins with Stockman’s report of July 31, 1900. At one point, Moore’s office advises Stockman, “it is thought well to suggest care on your part that you may not allow your work to get beyond your strength; and thus impair, through physical disability, the excellent record made by you at Havana.” Garriott’s wonderfully crafted note is numbered L.R. 7057-1900. Moore’s note is scrawled in pencil at the bottom of a memo slip in the same file.
5 It was paramount: National Archives: General Correspondence. Letter, July 6, 1900, Stockman to Official in Charge, St. Kitts.
6 He spent a good part: National Archives: General Correspondence. The complete story lies in Box 1471. It begins with a letter from a secret informant to Stockman, dated Aug. 8, 1900, and ends with Moore’s terse letter of Sept. 6, 1900, two days before the Galveston storm.
7 On August 24, 1900, W. T. Blythe: National Archives: General Correspondence. Letter, Aug. 24, 1900, Blythe to Moore. Box 1475.
8 On August 28, Willis Moore: National Archives: General Correspondence. Letter, Moore (as acting secretary of agriculture) to Gen. T. T. Eckert, Western Union, Aug. 28, 1900. Box 1475.