In New London, Conn., high waters pushed a five-masted ship, Marsala,into a warehouse and started a fire that demolished a quarter-mile section of the citys business district. ATHENIA, NJSept. She was right. Westerly, a bastion of quiet old wealth, never quite regained its prestige after the Great 1938 Hurricane. Also, it's well researched with a "Historical Notes" section at the end that's informative and the research is never heavy-handed within the text. West with Giraffes, a novel by Lynda Rutledge, gripped my attention from beginning to end. The three older kids were in school and my mom had to get them out to go home. At one point in the novel, Old Man stops at the zoo in Little Rock, Arkansas, for the night to procure some medication for Girls wounded leg. Riley Jones is hired to handle the giraffes and get them across the country. Oct. 25, 2022 4:50 AM PT In October 1938 the first breeding pair of giraffes arrived at the San Diego Zoo from east Africa. Lofty and Patches. San Diego Zoo: 100 Years. The stormblew down so many trees that paper mills processed them for nine years. For instance, there were amazing oral histories just about the 1938 hurricane that the giraffes were caught in before landing in New York was the worst until Hurricane Sandy in 2012. It was some time before they found out. In Hartford, the river reached 35.4 feet, 19.4 feet above flood stage. The damage was horrific. Location: Urban Jungle. The story begins with a centenarian named Woodrow Wilson Woody Nickel sitting in his nursing home watching a TV documentary on the near extinction of giraffes and other endangered species in Africa. On September 21, 1938, one of the most destructive and powerful hurricanes in recorded history struck Long Island and Southern New England. In 1938, America was looking for a feel-good tale to help them through the threat of Hitler in Europe and the continuing Great Depression. I remember hearing my dad talk about this and how it affected the trees. The Northern Kraft Paper Mill in Howland, Maine. The dead filled funeral homes. For commercial or non-profit use, please contact Image Sales. Perhaps the most astounding story of the storm comes from the Moore family of Westerly, R.I. As the storm grew stronger, the familytried to evacuate their beachfront home, but could not. From the Archives: In 1958 interview 18-year-old Raquel had heart set on professional acting career, From the Archives: San Diego Air & Space Museum opened 60 years ago, From the Archives: Advice for Valentines parties from 1923, From the Archives: Rare Lincoln photograph came to light in San Diego in 1937, From the Archives: War on wild drivers waged in San Diego 100 years ago, From the Archives: The Nagano Olympic Games opened 25 years ago, From the Archives: A view of La Mesa 125 years ago, Protest held after medical examiner rules inmates death a homicide, Romanian citizen arrested on suspicion of stealing more than $5M in COVID relief funds, Two women suffer major injuries after head-on collision in Lake Murray-area, Man suffers major injuries after car hits ice patch on road, overturns in Ramona, San Diego Roman Catholic diocese facing yet another lawsuit now from its own insurance company. In 1947, the mill still used wood cut from trees downed by the Great 1938 hurricane. As soon as Smith had apprised Belle Benchley of the giraffes poor condition, Benchley contacted Dr. Charles Schroeder from the Bronx Zoo to assess her condition. body.custom-background { background-color: #505050; } Worley, Karen E. 2016. Realizing that punching all the TVs in the world wouldnt save the giraffes, he set out to document his story of how two giraffes changed his life forever. Thank you again. 1944. mastro's downtown los angeles opening date. Real estate developers wiped out many of the orchards that the hurricane [], [] for 103 years, until 1958. Melanie says: In 1938, two giraffes bound for the San Diego zoo survived a hurricane at sea and a cross-country trip by truck. Advice from the sidelines urged him to try ham and eggs. To view this image, visit the Archives Research Room on the 4th floor at the Society Headquarters building in Madison, WI. Volume 1: The Founding Era, 19161953. With thanks to The Great Hurricane: 1938 by Cherie Burns. With Woody behind the wheel, true to the actual events, the giraffe truck stopped regularly at auto camps under appropriate trees with the top of the crates open to let Boy and Girl reach up and browse. float: right; San Diego, CA: Zoological Society of San Diego. Two giraffes miraculously survive a hurricane while crossing the Atlantic and end up in New York. The Great New England Hurricane of 1938 was one of the most destructive and powerful storms ever to strike southern New England. Theories of Everything with Curt Jaimungal, https://www.thetiebar.com/?utm_campaign=BowtieLove&utm_medium=YouTube&utm_source=LanceGeiger, https://www.facebook.com/TheHistoryGuyYT/, https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4sEmXUuWIFlxRIFBRV6VXQ?sub_confirmation=1, https://teespring.com/stores/the-history-guy. Use the links below to plan your visit to the Society's Archives. font-weight: 600; As very few images of the actual event are available in the Public Domain, images of similar objects and events are used for illustration. They are inside a large wooden crate on the back of the truck which is in a building. Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), his wish for giraffes at the National Zoo, https://uboat.net/allies/merchants/ship/3298.html, https://library.sandiegozoo.org/sdzg-history-timeline/#1930, http://timeline.sandiegozoo100.org/1930/1930-3/, https://www.sandiegozoo100.org/100-animals/lofty-and-patches, https://www.sandiegozoowildlifealliance.org/timeline/1938/1938/, https://issuu.com/sdzglobal/docs/march_zn. abbvie ceo richard gonzalez wife; how far is haddonfield, illinois from chicago It touched me more deeply than anything Ive read in years!! . i loved the idea of the story, a road trip from new york to california with two young giraffes, the only part of the book that is non-fiction. Sixty years ago this week, the San Diego AeroSpace Museumrenamed the San Diego Air & Space Museum in 2006opened to the public in Balboa Park. Perhaps you will fall in love with those giraffes and enjoy the adventures of Old Man and Woody as much as I did. : https://thehistoryguyguild.locals.com/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheHistoryGuyYT/Please send suggestions for future episodes: Suggestions@TheHistoryGuy.net. img.pf-button-img + .pf-button-text { Stone stairs from a washed away house stood on Atlantic Ave through the 80s. Non censuram. The 1938 New England Hurricane made landfall near Bellport on Long Island, New York, and again near Milford and New Haven, Connecticut. At 8:15 pm electric power went out and with it the fire . . Sometimes the men even stopped under appropriate food trees and let Lofty and Patchesstretch stretch their necks up for an afternoon snack. . Thank you for this! Images of America Series. Erosion from the Great 1938 hurricane. https://thehistoryguyguild.locals.com/. Tall Blondes: A Book about Giraffes. She had red curls all over her head, a fiery halo of raging waves she surely battled into submission every morning, and she was wearing trousersthe first woman Id ever seen doing so in real life. Just when Woody thought this crazy girl had stopped following them, the green Packard would come roaring into view. 1938 hurricane giraffes In 1938, the merchant steamer SS Robin Goodfellow was caught in the Great New England Hurricane. The storm hit seven days after I was born in Northampton, Mass. But Charley Smith couldnt start the journey to San Diego just yet. This fictional tale is based on the true story and was so beautifully written that it will be remembered for a long time. The giraffes arrival made the front page of The San Diego Union, Oct. 25, 1938. } The drama is a bit formulaic, as is the dialogue, and sometimes it's a bit sentimental, but it works, so who cares. Getting to see a giraffe in 1938 was a pretty rare occasion. Authors Channel Summit. Wonderful to see the photos and learn the history! They never have kept house together before, and just o make sure they do not kick the daylights out of each otherand make the Zoos $7500 investment worth no more than the current quotation on dead giraffesthe animals were shown to separate apartments for the time being. .printfriendly a, .printfriendly a:link, .printfriendly a:visited, .printfriendly a:hover, .printfriendly a:active { Hitler is threatening Europe, and world-weary Americans long for wonder. I would give this book ten stars if possible. Lynda Rutledge, a lifelong animal lover, has had the joy of petting baby rhinos, snorkeling with endangered turtles, and strolling with a tower of giraffes as a freelance journalist while winning awards for her fiction. In 1938, the merchant steamer SS Robin Goodfellow was caught in the Great New England Hurricane. They find it in two giraffes who miraculously survive a hurricane while crossing the Atlantic. On the other side of the pond, Hitler was invading Eastern Europe, so the combined stress of world events and personal troubles were briefly assuaged by the sight of the traveling giraffes. Itwashed away railroad tracks, sent bridges downstream and downed electrical wires, leaving some New Englanders without electricity for weeks. Looks like a granny, dresses like a schoolmarm, swears like a sailor, and still charms snooty zoo galoots with their fancy educations. Rutledge even includes reference to Benchleys encounter with an escaped baboon. Reporters in the cities and towns theywent through wrote amusing anecdotes about seeing them on the road, the giraffes peering out of their tall windows at the scenery and cars around them. On. The 1938 hurricane was the worst natural disaster in American history a gale that wreaked more death and havoc than either the great Chicago fire or the San Francisco earthquake. According to Benchley, they were one of the few breeding pairs in captivity. Yesterday at 12:30 Eddie drove the truck through the gates at San Diego zoological gardens and all hands followed it to the mesa where the citys big crane was waiting and the camels were wondering what the heck. If you liked. She used a set [], [] known as Apple Valley. Apple growing reached its peak in Smithfield during the 1930s, but the Great Hurricane of 1938 wiped out many trees. Making The History Guy takes time, effort, and equipment. justify-content: center; 1938 hurricane giraffes. I want to confirm my idea that Woody was the father of little Augie, who was the one who received his foot locker after his death with the porcelain gifaffe. Boston: Little, Brown and Co. Croke, Vicki. Photo courtesy Boston Public Library, Leslie Jones Collection. Photo courtesy Boston Public Library, Leslie Jones Collection. To see newsreel footage of the Great 1938 Hurricane, click here. West with Giraffes is an endearing, and also heart-rending piece of historical fiction. I absolutely loved this book. Non censuram.Please send suggestions for future episodes: Suggestions@TheHistoryGuy.netThe History Guy: History Deserves to Be Remembered is the place to find short snippets of forgotten history from five to fifteen minutes long. As the giraffes were rolling out of sight, Woody runs as fast as he can through the flooded streets, passing dozens of reporters, and eventually steals a motorcycle to keep up with the truck bound for the quarantine facility. Get help and learn more about the design. Photo courtesy NOAA/NWS. This was on his retirement day. Peter Haden / WLRN. It took a week to restore power in Provincetown, and 200 men spent a week trying to open the roads to Newport, R.I. Horseneck beach was changed forever!!! Woodrow Wilson Nickel is a 17-year old boy who left his home in TX during the dust bowl to live with his relative. On board the ship were some unique passengers: two Giraffes. Lofty and Patches lived at the San Diego Zoo for nearly 30 years. The first giraffes could be seen in Central Park in 1872 and in Philadelphia in 1874, and the first baby giraffe in captivity was born in Cincinnati in 1889. A Cherry & Webb employee drowned during the Hurricane of 1938 while trying to rescue the stores furs in the Providence stores [], [] waves in the hopes ofreaching the Pendleton, an oil tanker that had snapped in two during the fierce storm. Eighty-mile-an-hour winds lashed the coast and the torrential downpour caused rivers and streams to overflow. As one of the most costly hurricanes to hit the U.S. mainland, Cleaning up timber damaged by the Great 1938 Hurricane, How the 1st Storm Chasers Saved New England From the 1944 Great Atlantic Hurricane - New England Historical Society, Flashback Photos: When Downtown Department Stores Spelled Christmas - New England Historical Society, The Heroic Rescue of the Pendleton Crew, 1952 - New England Historical Society, 6 Hollywood Stars Buried in New England - New England Historical Society, Six Historic Apple Orchards - New England Historical Society, Six Historic Post Offices - New England Historical Society, Six Autumn Paintings of New England (And How They Look Today) - New England Historical Society, Six New England Ghost Towns - New England Historical Society, Six Breathtaking National Natural Landmarks - New England Historical Society, The High Tide Storm of 1723 Strands Puritans in Their Meeting Houses - New England Historical Society, The Portland Gale of 1898, and the Cat that Saved a Life - New England Historical Society, Hurricane Carol, So Deadly Her Name Was Retired - New England Historical Society, The Great September Gale of 1815 - New England Historical Society, Four Days in May: The 1942 Rhode Island Forest Fires - New England Historical Society, Hercules Had It Easy Compared to the Great 1938 Hurricane Tree Cleanup - New England Historical Society, Sept-21, 1938: The Most Powerful Hurricane in New England History Today Past, In Search of the Roosevelt Outhouse in New England - New England Historical Society. The AMC breached the contract once, after the Great Hurricane of 1938 required downed trees to be [], [] Snow called the High Tide Storm of 1723 one of the big four New England storms. All Wildlife. 100 Years of the San Diego Zoo. Hitler is threatening Europe, and world-weary Americans long for wonder. What happened on that ship during the storm is almost too crazy to be true. Giraffes, rhinos, and more! and ocean . Vol. The image should not be significantly altered through conventional or electronic means. San Diego Zoo. 2 vols. .printfriendly { A very rewarding read. Weakened by age, racing against a clock, hallucinating, writing long hand, I could not believe that a writer would include details about billboards, flying birds, the physical look of hotels and camp grounds. 27 febrero, 2023 . What follows is a twelve-day road trip in a custom truck to become Southern California's first giraffes. The first part of their journey involved sailingaboard a ship from Africa. No images or content are primarily intended to shock and disgust. Estimates vary, but at least 400 people died that day andmaybe as many as 800. SUBJECTS Animals Clothing and dress Hats Automobile industry and trade Indoor photography Men Zoos Delivery of goods Signs and symbols Automobiles Transportation Trucks How to Purchase a Copy Buy The Image For commercial or non-profit use, please contact Image Sales. I remember water lines painted on telco poles along the Merrimack river. Around 60 people died on Long Island - 29 of them at or near Westhampton Beach. I absolutely loved this book! It is history that deserves your help! They survived, although the female was injured. Orphaned during the Dust Bowl, he found his way to New York to work for a distant cousin. According to the National Weather Service,a storm surge of 12 to 15 feet destroyed most coastal homes, yacht clubs and marinas on Narragansett Bay. That isn't much compared to what Hurricane Harvey did to Houston last month, dumping up to 50 inches of rain, but our hills and narrow valleys channel the water, producing much . It's harder to imagine hauling two of them across the United States during the Dust Bowl. Good story line well written. There is no real bluffing and nothing underhanded between Charley Smith and me nor is there between any of us; we are all working for one end, here in the Zoo, though perhaps by different methods. In The Zoo. Our giraffe habitat lets you get amazingly close to these tremendously tall creatures. [], [] From the New England Historical Society: [], [] 1938 New England Hurricane upended the outhouse at the Israel Putnam farm, and no one seems to have restored it.