| ||||||||||
 
Dr. Ronald P. Rogers CHIROPRACTOR Support for your body's natural healing capabilities 270-384-5554 Click here for details 
  
Columbia Gas Dept. GAS LEAK or GAS SMELL Contact Numbers 24 hrs/ 365 days 270-384-2006 or 9-1-1 Call before you dig 
Visit ColumbiaMagazine's Directory of Churches Addresses, times, phone numbers and more for churches in Adair County Find Great Stuff in ColumbiaMagazine's Classified Ads Antiques, Help Wanted, Autos, Real Estate, Legal Notices, More... 
|
The Weather Outside is Frightful... or Soon Will Be By Mike Watson The weather outside is frightful one more time, or so it will be in a few hours. Temperatures dropping into the teens, with snow, sleet, ice. Who wants to go out in that type weather, but often it is a necessity. In the past the weather has been, at times, frightful. We in Kentucky have had plenty of snow and ice in winters past and the professionals are anticipating a cold, icy, white weekend beginning any hour now. When the white plague is on the ground, even if it is not a record in any way, cabin fever and the accompanying symptoms seem to overtake so many of us that open rebellion comes into the minds of many. Here are a few weather notes assembled from nearly forty-five years of research into Adair County's past: The first week of January 1886 brought a very cold snap, with temperatures in the region dropping well below zero. Stanford, in Lincoln County, officially recorded a week-long low of 24 degrees below zero. Rockcastle County registered 28 below. Adair County was likely in the same temperature range. February 1886 came in with a big, white bang. All across Kentucky, Adair County included, and from Maine to Texas, a heavy snow began and for two days and one night the fall was considerable, with several days of light snow to follow. The totals for Adair, as far as existing information reveals, were from 18 to 23 inches of light, fluffy snow, with little wind to create drifts. The temperatures reported across the region spanned from 11 to 18 degrees at first, but dipped dramatically in the days that followed, preventing melting. At the height--or depth--of the February cold, 29 degrees below zero was recorded at Roundstone, in Rockcastle County, which may be taken as an indicator of the low temps in the whole region. Across the state the snowfall was much the same. From existing news accounts, older residents had never seen a deeper snow, except in the latter part of 1862, when 20 to 24 inches fell in parts of east central Kentucky. Incidentally, most in this area heated and cooked with wood, which they generally cut themselves. However, the purchase price for a rick of wood was between 50 and 75 cents, and for those who did use coal, the price was 13 cents per bushel. Early February 1907 saw eight to twelve inches all over Adair and Russell Counties. January 1917 brought eight to ten inches over much of Adair County. Thursday, January 24th, 1963 was the national weather day for Adair County. National news shows reported the official low temperature, a record so far as official statistics could reveal, was 30 degrees below zero at two or three locations in the county. Temperature as much as 36 below was recorded elsewhere in the county, but was considered "unofficial." Bradfordville, in Marion County, tied with Columbia on the 24th with 30 below. The following week Henry Giles, in his column Spout Springs Splashes, reported that neighbor Carl Lemmon's thermometer registered 35 below zero, was on a tree in the yard. Mr. Giles' had 28 below at 4:40 a.m. on the fateful date. On Tuesday, January 22nd, four to five inches of snow had fallen and temperatures began to drop. There was considerable wind with the weather front and drifting became a problem. I often heard our dad, Carl Watson, speak of the drifted snow being even with the fence posts on our farm out 704 on Earls' Ridge, between Old Concord-Walnut Grove School, and Inroad. Schools in Adair were closed on Wednesday the 23rd and remained closed into the following week due to the extreme, extended cold and lack of melting. I'll not even mention the white plagues of 1977, 1978, 1994, and subsequent times, which is more "current events" than "history"! Keep warm and dry, avoid driving--ice is not our friend! This story was posted on 2022-02-03 14:17:41
Printable: this page is now automatically formatted for printing.
Have comments or corrections for this story? Use our contact form and let us know. More articles from topic Mike Watson - History:
Brandy Held's mini-Hereford brings back memories Health and Wealth and Luck should be in abundance... Christmas reflections from long ago Final week of Military Display at Adair Research Center October is family history month Burials listed in the Brawner-Smith Cemetery History Monday: Preserving documents for future generations Reecer at the Adair Co. Genealogy and History Research Center A Columbia Landmark and Historic Stage Jane Lampton Clemens born 18 June 1803 View even more articles in topic Mike Watson - History |
 
115 Jamestown St. Columbia, KY. 270-384-2496 
  
   
 Provided by the Adair Co Fiscal Court and the Adair Co. Emergency Mgt. Agency 
|
||||||||
|
| ||||||||||
|
Quick Links to Popular Features
Looking for a story or picture? Try our Photo Archive or our Stories Archive for all the information that's appeared on ColumbiaMagazine.com. | ||||||||||
|
Contact us: Columbia Magazine and columbiamagazine.com are published by Linda Waggener and Pen Waggener, PO Box 906, Columbia, KY 42728. Please use our contact page, or send questions about technical issues with this site to webmaster@columbiamagazine.com. All logos and trademarks used on this site are property of their respective owners. All comments remain the property and responsibility of their posters, all articles and photos remain the property of their creators, and all the rest is copyright 1995-Present by Columbia Magazine. Privacy policy: use of this site requires no sharing of information. Voluntarily shared information may be published and made available to the public on this site and/or stored electronically. Anonymous submissions will be subject to additional verification. Cookies are not required to use our site. However, if you have cookies enabled in your web browser, some of our advertisers may use cookies for interest-based advertising across multiple domains. For more information about third-party advertising, visit the NAI web privacy site.
| ||||||||||
