clipped from: www.kttc.com ROCHESTER, MN (KTTC-TV) -- 125 years ago on August 21st, the face of Rochester was changed forever.
A deadly twister bore down on the city, with an outcome no one expected.
BEFORE TORNADO
AFTER TORNADO
Cheryl Finnegan, an educator with the Olmsted County Historical Society, says, "The cyclone came in the evening. Um, 6 o'clock, the clouds turned green. And it hit Cascade Creek and destroyed Lower Town."
The Lower town Chery Finnegan is talking about is north Rochester. And what looks like this today, looked like this on August 21, 1883. An F-5 twister, the strongest rating a tornado can have, tore through the northern side of town.
Cheryl says, "It was devastating. 29 people were killed."
Cheryl says, "The cyclone came so fast. And it was over in 10 minutes, and afterwards the sky was clear."
Before
After
Cascade Park
View from Coles Mill
Be sure to check out Steph’s story, including video, by clicking here.