1913 Tornado - Bemis Park, looking towards Cummings St. just West of 33rd
Description
Black and white photograph (10.5 x 6 cm.) described on the reverse side as, Bemis Park, looking towards Cummings St. just West of 33d, with a view of a what looks like trees in Bemis Park in the foreground and several damaged houses beyond and strewn debris after the tornado that struck Omaha, Nebraska on March 23, 1913.
Few disasters have devastated Omaha as completely as the Easter Tornado of March 23, 1913. The storm descended with terrible force just after Easter services on Sunday evening. The tornado created a path of destruction seven miles long and a quarter mile wide. It killed 140 Omahans and injured 400 others. During the Easter Tornado one of the most badly damaged areas was the Bemis Park neighborhood. Palatial mansions were reduced to matchsticks. The Bemis Park neighborhood occupies the area bounded by 33rd, 38th, Cuming, and Hamilton Streets. The first house in the neighborhood was built in 1888. It was in the early 1890s, starting during the term of Omaha Mayor George Bemis, that the park was established. Sources: Moore, Thomas. Bemis Park, Once Wild, Now Lively -- With Kids. Omaha World-Herald, August 5, 1956.
