Vicksburg in Warren County, Mississippi — The American South (East South Central)
"The 1953 Vicksburg Tornado"
Photographed by Mark Hilton, May 25, 2017
1. "The 1953 Vicksburg Tornado" Marker
Inscription.
"The 1953 Vicksburg Tornado". . On a balmy Saturday afternoon in the winter of 1953, a tornado etched a path of destruction from Vicksburg's waterfront through downtown and into a northeast residential area. The December 5th twister is to date (2006) one of only two F5 tornadoes in Mississippi history and the third deadliest in the state. The tornado claimed thirty-eight lives, including 5 children who were watching a movie in the Saenger Theater on Walnut Street and two children at the Happyland Nursery. Within an hour relief agencies were mobilized, help came from surrounding cities, and survivors and the dead were being uncovered from the debris. Scores of buildings were destroyed or were damaged beyond repair by the high winds and subsequent fires, including historically important buildings such as St. Paul Catholic Church, which had stood on Vicksburg's high bluffs since 1849. The Vicksburg Sunday Post Herald received journalism's highest award-the Pulitzer Prize-for its courage under deadline pressure. The Sunday newspaper was printed and then delivered by its carriers the morning following the tornado.,
Sponsored by , The Pat Cashman Family.
On a balmy Saturday afternoon in the winter of 1953, a tornado etched a path of destruction from Vicksburg's waterfront through downtown and into a northeast residential area.
The December 5th twister is to date (2006) one of only two F5 tornadoes in Mississippi history and the third deadliest in the state. The tornado claimed thirty-eight lives, including 5 children who were watching a movie in the Saenger Theater on Walnut Street and two children at the Happyland Nursery.
Within an hour relief agencies were mobilized, help came from surrounding cities, and survivors and the dead were being uncovered from the debris. Scores of buildings were destroyed or were damaged beyond repair by the high winds and subsequent fires, including historically important buildings such as St. Paul Catholic Church, which had stood on Vicksburg's high bluffs since 1849.
The Vicksburg Sunday Post Herald received journalism's highest award-the Pulitzer Prize-for its courage under deadline pressure. The Sunday newspaper was printed and then delivered by its carriers the morning following the tornado.
Sponsored by The Pat Cashman
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Family
Erected 2006 by the City of Vicksburg Riverfront Mural Committee.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Arts, Letters, Music • Disasters. A significant historical date for this entry is December 5, 1953.
Location. 32° 21.122′ N, 90° 53.006′ W. Marker is in Vicksburg, Mississippi, in Warren County. It is on Levee Street south of Grove Street, on the left when traveling north. The Vicksburg Riverfront Murals are located on the Yazoo Diversion Canal levee wall. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: Levee Street, Vicksburg MS 39183, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Natchez Trace Corridor and in Greater Jackson. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Deep South, in the Mississippi Delta, and in the Great River Road Region. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Credits. This page was last revised on January 24, 2022. It was originally submitted on June 4, 2017, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 830 times since then and 80 times this year. Last updated on January 22, 2022, by Carl Gordon Moore Jr. of North East, Maryland. Photos:1, 2, 3. submitted on June 4, 2017, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.
