Hurricane damage, 29 Lafayette Street, September 21, 1938
Description:
"Wakefield was hit by the tail-end of a southern hurricane during the early evening hours of Wednesday, September 21, 1938. Although the day's hard-driving rain stopped shortly after 5 p.m., the high winds picked up and battered the town, causing substantial damage and downed trees until 7 p.m. Gales were reported to be 90-100 miles per hour. During the two hours of fierce winds, several hundred trees, many over 200 years old, were uprooted and blown down, blocking streets and causing damage to homes and businesses. Town officials and workers, joined by WPA forces, worked throughout the night to clear trees from the roads. They succeeded in opening nearly all roads by 8 a.m. the following day. Three streets remained closed until the afternoon hours. Those streets were Lafayette, Bartley and Orchard Streets. This elm in front of 29 Lafayette Street, the home of William E. Jones, 'toppled over, coming to rest on the roof of the home.' Crews using hand saws climbed into the tree to remove the tree, one limb at a time. The damage also included many downed electrical wires which were repaired by the MLD. School children were given the day off by School Superintendent Willard B. Atwell because of the large number of fallen wires." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio. Image from the Wakefield Municipal Gas and Light Department annual calendar, 1993 Photo courtesy of the Jeanine Fabiano.
