A silo was toppled at a farm on County Road 200 West, 1.5 miles north of State Road 144 in Bargersville on April 3, 1974.
Daily Journal Archives
News from around Johnson County as reported on April 4 in the pages of the Daily Journal and the Franklin Evening Star from the last 112 years.
On this day in 1974, most of the front page of the Daily Journal was dedicated to one of the worst tornado outbreaks in American history: the Super Outbreak of April 3-4, 1974.
Twisters cut a deadly path through 13 states in the central and southern U.S. — including Indiana — along with southern Canada. Over the course of two days, 148 twisters touched down, flattening whole towns, killing 319 and injuring hundreds more.
While tornadoes skipped over Johnson County, high water and high winds did not. The most serious damage reported in the county came in the afternoon of April 3 when what authorities described as a “possible tornado” struck in a section of County Road 200 West, 1.5 miles north of State Road 144.
The storm hit hardest at the William Erp residence on CR 200 West, where one camper trailer was demolished, and another camper overturned.
Mrs. Erp and three of her four children sought safety under a bed as high winds swirled about the frame two-story home. Part of the roof was damaged by the winds and the front porch was wrecked. She and her children were uninjured.
“It got quiet, I guess it was the quiet before the storm,” she said. “Then I heard a very hard roar — just like they describe.”
North of the Erp residence, several silos were toppled by the wind. One of the silos crashed onto a tractor at a nearby farm.
Elsewhere in the county, 1-inch hailstones and flooding were reported in New Whiteland. At the Johnson County jail, high winds broke a storm door in the jail kitchen and two windows in the garage.
Damage to telephone lines in the county was light and scattered. There was some damage to electric lines scattered throughout the county, but no major damage was reported.
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Other memorable Johnson County stories from this day
2014
A study found that 56% of restaurants in Johnson County were fast food joints.
2013
Edinburgh police arrested a man who stole vehicles and pulled a gun on a taxi driver.
1994
An Indianapolis man who allegedly fired a gun at the Johnson County Courthouse square was arrested.
