On Feb. 19, 1893, a tornado destroyed the steeple at St. Paul’s United Church of Christ at the corner of Green and Bond streets. According to research by retired Maryland Supreme Court Judge Joe Getty for the Historical Society of Carroll County a number of years ago, an article in the February 1893 edition of the Democratic Advocate provided the following details of the storm:
“A violent storm, approaching the force of a hurricane, passed over this city and a portion of this county on Sunday night last. …” The article reports, “Smith Hall, the north wing of the principal building of Western Maryland College, seems to have received the full force of the tempest and was unroofed and damaged to the extent of probably a thousand dollars.
“The apartments of the young lady students are in this wing of the college, and they were preparing to retire for the night when the catastrophe occurred and were necessarily alarmed; but their fright was of short duration, and they were soon provided with comfortable quarters…”
Even though February must certainly be the most miserable month of the year, it is alive with many interesting events that happened in Carroll County history. I have written about the miserable month of February on numerous occasions – it’s therapy. Portions of this discussion have been published before.
Of course, it should be no surprise that much of the February news from the past involves harsh weather and natural disasters. Then again, some of it came in the form of man-made disasters. On Feb. 18, 1921, the Union Bridge Pilot reported, “Carroll appears to have been hit hard by financial stress.”
The February 1921 newspaper article reported that Carroll County was out of money and unable to pay schoolteachers. The paper recounted, “Teachers’ pay are being withheld owing in lack of funds, and it appears the county has reached the limit of its credit. …” Much more research is needed to determine how Carroll County extricated itself from the financial tar pit of the winter of 1921.
In 1921 the paper went on to say, “Today the [tax] rate is higher than ever, while the county’s treasury is in bad shape. What a rich collection of political ammunition to be used in our coming local elections! Let the voter be unbiased in his judgment, for remember, with every section wanting $55,000 schools and $50,000-a-mile roads, there will be enough uses for the county’s money to keep its treasury in its present condition for years to come … regardless of which of the political parties may be at the helm.”
The severe weather and financial woes of past Februarys have come even though Feb. 24, St. Matthias’ Day, is by tradition understood to be the luckiest day of the year.
According to research by the Historical Society of Carroll County, the Jan. 27, 1922, issue of the Union Bridge Pilot newspaper noted: “Another bit of old weather lore comes on February 24, St. Matthias Day. According to the old saying: ‘If he finds ice, he’ll break it. If he finds none, he’ll make it.”
The topic of Saint Matthias is fascinating. Matthias is a very mysterious character in the Bible. Indeed, he is only mentioned twice – in Acts 1:23, 26.
Following the Ascension of Jesus, Peter assembled 120 disciples to choose a replacement for Judas. Two were nominated for consideration, Joseph Barsabbas, also known as Justus – and Matthias.
The choice between the two was determined by the luck of the draw. Acts 1:26 says, “And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias. …” His name is never mentioned again in the New Testament, even though he was named the 12th disciple.
In Carroll County, we are not as lucky as Matthias in February. On Feb. 18, 1899, the Democratic Advocate ran an article titled, “Heavy Snow Storm – Railroads and Public Roads Blockaded – Westminster Cut Off from Outside Communication – Deepest Snow for Many Years – For four days last week and three this week snow fell almost continuously, and the total depth attained was nearly of quite three feet. Not only has the snowfall been unprecedented for many years, but the extreme cold has exceeded all past records in severity and duration.” The temperature remained below zero for a good bit of the month and reached as low as 27 degrees below zero in parts of Carroll County.
An article by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reports the “cold wave that would become known as the ‘Great Arctic Outbreak’ took the United States by storm. People across the nation braced for the worst as temperatures plummeted throughout the first two weeks of February 1899.” Over 30 inches of snow fell in the Baltimore area and for those who see Florida as a refuge from the cold, the temperature reached “−2 degrees in Tallahassee on February 13. … On February 17, ice was even witnessed flowing down the Mississippi River, past New Orleans, and into the Gulf of Mexico. … Over 100 people were estimated to have lost their lives during the Great Arctic Outbreak.”
Spring cannot come quickly enough.
Kevin Dayhoff writes from Westminster. His Time Flies column appears every Sunday. Email him at kevindayhoff@gmail.com.