Knox City Friday March 13, 1953 Tornado
Few in Knox City know firsthand how bad a day March 13, 1953 would become though most have heard the stories. William Walter Hyde was a retired mail carrier who became one of the seventeen fatalities resulting from storm. Ironically, Walter was the last of his immediate family to die tragically. A native of Greenville South Carolina, Walter grew up in Alabama. As a teenager his father Harley Hyde was killed when a boiler blew up at the cotton gin where he worked. When his mother Harriet, married a fellow widower, Benjamin "Tiny" Alexander, he and his two
brothers, I.B. and Pierce, welcomed three new siblings Mary, Street, and Orah into their family. Benjamin and Harriet eventually had three children of their own
Frank, David, and Hattie. His brother I.B. eventually became Sherriff of Marshall County Alabama. His youngest brother Pierce was found in the Tennessee River. The
official cause of death was listed as drowning; however, speculation was he was murdered due to gambling debt.
It is not known when Walter moved to Texas, but was listed in the 1900 US Federal Census as residing in Jones, Texas, by the 1910 Census he resided in Knox City.
Back in 1953, the warning systems we are familiar with today did not exist and the tornado took many in town by surprise. The tornado touched down on the Southeast
side of Knox City and avoided the downtown area. Damage was estimated at $600,000 (over $5 million in 2012 dollars), 25 people injured, and 17 fatalities. Eye
witness accounts described bodies hanging from trees. Walter was killed when his house collapsed.
(Courtesy of I.B. Alexander)
Few in Knox City know firsthand how bad a day March 13, 1953 would become though most have heard the stories. William Walter Hyde was a retired mail carrier who became one of the seventeen fatalities resulting from storm. Ironically, Walter was the last of his immediate family to die tragically. A native of Greenville South Carolina, Walter grew up in Alabama. As a teenager his father Harley Hyde was killed when a boiler blew up at the cotton gin where he worked. When his mother Harriet, married a fellow widower, Benjamin "Tiny" Alexander, he and his two
brothers, I.B. and Pierce, welcomed three new siblings Mary, Street, and Orah into their family. Benjamin and Harriet eventually had three children of their own
Frank, David, and Hattie. His brother I.B. eventually became Sherriff of Marshall County Alabama. His youngest brother Pierce was found in the Tennessee River. The
official cause of death was listed as drowning; however, speculation was he was murdered due to gambling debt.
It is not known when Walter moved to Texas, but was listed in the 1900 US Federal Census as residing in Jones, Texas, by the 1910 Census he resided in Knox City.
Back in 1953, the warning systems we are familiar with today did not exist and the tornado took many in town by surprise. The tornado touched down on the Southeast
side of Knox City and avoided the downtown area. Damage was estimated at $600,000 (over $5 million in 2012 dollars), 25 people injured, and 17 fatalities. Eye
witness accounts described bodies hanging from trees. Walter was killed when his house collapsed.
(Courtesy of I.B. Alexander)
Knox City Friday March 13, 1953 Tornado
Few in Knox City know firsthand how bad a day March 13, 1953 would become though most have heard the stories. William Walter Hyde was a retired mail carrier who became one of the seventeen fatalities resulting from storm. Ironically, Walter was the last of his immediate family to die tragically. A native of Greenville South Carolina, Walter grew up in Alabama. As a teenager his father Harley Hyde was killed when a boiler blew up at the cotton gin where he worked. When his mother Harriet, married a fellow widower, Benjamin "Tiny" Alexander, he and his two
brothers, I.B. and Pierce, welcomed three new siblings Mary, Street, and Orah into their family. Benjamin and Harriet eventually had three children of their own
Frank, David, and Hattie. His brother I.B. eventually became Sherriff of Marshall County Alabama. His youngest brother Pierce was found in the Tennessee River. The
official cause of death was listed as drowning; however, speculation was he was murdered due to gambling debt.
It is not known when Walter moved to Texas, but was listed in the 1900 US Federal Census as residing in Jones, Texas, by the 1910 Census he resided in Knox City.
Back in 1953, the warning systems we are familiar with today did not exist and the tornado took many in town by surprise. The tornado touched down on the Southeast
side of Knox City and avoided the downtown area. Damage was estimated at $600,000 (over $5 million in 2012 dollars), 25 people injured, and 17 fatalities. Eye
witness accounts described bodies hanging from trees. Walter was killed when his house collapsed.
(Courtesy of I.B. Alexander)
Few in Knox City know firsthand how bad a day March 13, 1953 would become though most have heard the stories. William Walter Hyde was a retired mail carrier who became one of the seventeen fatalities resulting from storm. Ironically, Walter was the last of his immediate family to die tragically. A native of Greenville South Carolina, Walter grew up in Alabama. As a teenager his father Harley Hyde was killed when a boiler blew up at the cotton gin where he worked. When his mother Harriet, married a fellow widower, Benjamin "Tiny" Alexander, he and his two
brothers, I.B. and Pierce, welcomed three new siblings Mary, Street, and Orah into their family. Benjamin and Harriet eventually had three children of their own
Frank, David, and Hattie. His brother I.B. eventually became Sherriff of Marshall County Alabama. His youngest brother Pierce was found in the Tennessee River. The
official cause of death was listed as drowning; however, speculation was he was murdered due to gambling debt.
It is not known when Walter moved to Texas, but was listed in the 1900 US Federal Census as residing in Jones, Texas, by the 1910 Census he resided in Knox City.
Back in 1953, the warning systems we are familiar with today did not exist and the tornado took many in town by surprise. The tornado touched down on the Southeast
side of Knox City and avoided the downtown area. Damage was estimated at $600,000 (over $5 million in 2012 dollars), 25 people injured, and 17 fatalities. Eye
witness accounts described bodies hanging from trees. Walter was killed when his house collapsed.
(Courtesy of I.B. Alexander)
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