History 21 The Podcast - 1.14 Anoka 1939 Tornado
Folklore held that a tornado would never strike where two rivers met. Residents of Anoka, located at the confluence of the Rum River and Mississippi River, believed their community safe until June 18, 1939, 3:17 p.m. In this episode, hear the voices of Anokans who experienced the tornado as they tell their stories of that day.
TW: severe weather, injuries, death.
Interview transcript, map of location and Peterson’s video of the aftermath available in the episode show notes.
Hosts Rebecca Desens, ACHS Executive Director, Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator and Erin McBrien, ACHS Archivist.
Map of Anoka with locations where those in the episode lived or waited out the storm
Voices on the Episode
This map of Anoka with the tornado’s path sketched gave a general idea of where the destruction was concentrated. We’ve overlayed the points in which those in the episode lived, or waited out the storm.
Philip Dejarles Home - 2821 6th Ave N
Harry Kline Medical Office - 317 Rice St.
Irma & Guy Riddler Home 2314 North Ferry St.
Masonic Lodge - 1900 Third Ave S.
Rose & Don Smith Home - 727 E Main St.
Norval Olson’s Grocery Store with Bernice Olson’s home connected- 658 E Main St.
Gladys Syring Christenson home - Branch Ave & Park St.
Ernest Syring home - 1728 Johnson & 7th Ave N.
Kenneth Lindgren home - 646 Grant St.
History 21: The Vault Extras
Listen to the full interviews on the ACHS “Tornado Tapes” recorded in 1989 for the 50th Anniversary of the Anoka Tornado. Tapes include more voices than those featured in the episode.
Anoka Armory
Aerial image of Anoka after the tornado, focusing on the corner of 4th Ave S. and Monroe St. The Anoka Armory can be seen on the image right.
American Red Cross disaster Application card for Ernest Syring’s family after his death in the 1939 Anoka Tornado.
Image of the destruction at an unknown location in Anoka, 1939.
Anoka County Library Minute
Further Reading:
Anoka County Union – Your Souvenir Bicentennial Issue (MR 070.172 ANO ANO)
These special edition newspaper made it into the Library Minute again! Unfortunately, our library doesn’t have any books about the 1939 Anoka Tornado specifically – there don’t seem to be any in print about that particular storm. However, this Bicentennial version of the Anoka County Union does contain a page with information about a number of twisters that have come through Minnesota.
The Night the Sirens Blew by Allen W. Taylor (977.6579 TAY) and sequel Hidden Revealed
Called the worst tornado outbreak ever to strike Minnesota, the May 6, 1965 Twin Cities tornado still inspires awe over 50 years later. Combining eyewitness accounts and meteorological research, this book (and its sequel, Hidden Revealed, same author and same call number) tell the story of this legendary storm and can be found in the stacks at Anoka County Library.
Suburbia’s Longest Night by Tri County Publishers (MR 977.6 SUB)
The Tri County Publisher’s publication Suburbia’s Longest Night also details the events of the May 6, 1965 tornado that tore up Fridley, Blaine, Spring Lake Park, Mounds View, Chanhassen, Minnetonka, and Golden Valley. A fascinating piece of history, this small booklet provides reports and a photographic record of this devastating series of storms.
Storm chaser Tim Samaras wasn’t a meteorologist. He didn’t attend college and used his own tools for his work. Samaras’ bravery was unparalleled, though, in his willingness to get dangerously close to massive tornadoes, revolutionizing the way meteorologists and regular people alike thought of these frightening storms. Learn about his story here.
The Tornado Scientist: Seeing Inside Severe Storms by Mary Kay Carson (J551.553 CAR)
Mary Kay Carson’s book gives an overview of storm chasing for children. Following the career of Robin Tanamachi, who studies the way tornadoes form, Carson details the life of a storm chaser, the equipment and techniques used in researching these monstrous storms, and the terrifying and fascinating work that goes into learning how they work.
Those of us who love big storms also are a huge fan of clouds. Tornadoes, for instance, often form out of wall clouds, huge, flat-bottomed clouds that stretch across the horizon. Learn more about wall clouds and other clouds in The Cloudspotter’s Guide, and find out all about the simple joy of studying the sky.
The Mercy of the Sky: The Story of a Tornado by Holly Bailey (363.3492 BAI)
The May 20th, 2013 tornado that leveled Moore, OK is personally close to my heart – I’m from Oklahoma, and I remember sitting in a chair at my friend’s record store, watching the radar and Facebook and texting friends and family back home frantically trying to make sure everyone I knew and loved was safe, and feeling quite helpless twelve and a half hours away in Saint Paul. Holly Bailey’s book covers the anxiety and terror of that day and the perspectives of the teachers, first responders, meteorologists, storm chasers, and regular people who were affected. (And in case you are curious – no one I knew was injured or killed in this storm, although a girl from my graduating class and her husband lost their home).
Adventures in Tornado Alley: The Storm Chasers by Mark Hollingshead (551.553 HOL)
While Minnesota is not covered in this book, many of its neighbors are – Tornado Alley covers Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and South Dakota, thanks to colliding cold fronts from Canada and warm fronts from the Gulf of Mexico. Hollingshead’s book is gorgeous, full of full-page photos of terrifying twisters and storm formations, and is a must-read for anyone into storm photography.
I Survived: True Stories: Tornado Terror by Lauren Tarshis (J551.553 TAR)
Part of the popular non-fiction children’s series I Survived, Tornado Terror tells the stories of survivors of two of the most devasting tornados to ever touch ground in the United States, the 1925 Tri-State Tornado and the brutal Joplin Tornado of 2011. In addition, the book includes facts about tornadoes, storm chasers, and meteorology.
Tornadoes are just one of the natural disasters featured in the Discovery Channel’s series Raging Planet. Learn about them, along with floods, hurricanes, blizzards and more in this DVD about weather phenomenon and its impact on the planet and her people.
Still probably the greatest feature film about a tornado, 1996’s Twister starring Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt (and a flying cow or two) was supposedly based on some work by the good people of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Of course, in typical Oklahoma fashion, an eerily similar tornado struck a farm in Fairfax, OK in 2010, destroying a barn and other set pieces featured in the film.