1927 Tornado Damage — Poplar Street and Broadway (German Press Photo)
About this photograph
A double-image press photograph documenting the devastation of the May 1927 Poplar Bluff tornado, acquired from a German press agency and distributed internationally. **Top image — Poplar Street:** A view looking along Poplar Street showing severe tornado damage. The post office is visible on the far left. Immediately to its right is a multi-story building with a vertical sign reading "BARGAIN BASEMENT." On the right, the Wright-Dalton-Bell-Anchor Store is heavily damaged, with debris extending into the street. In the far distance on the right, the Bank of Poplar Bluff building is visible. The street is covered in a thick layer of brick, wooden debris, and scattered rubble, with a few individuals standing in the center of the street amidst the destruction. **Bottom image — Broadway (4th Street):** A view along Broadway (4th Street) looking past City Hall on the left. Further down the street on the left, the collapsed roof of the Fraternal Building is visible. The collapsed Melbourne Hotel would have been immediately on the right. Debris and wood piles litter the foreground, with several people walking along the street and a line of utility poles running along the left side. The reverse of the photograph carries a German-language typewritten caption and a copyright stamp from Presse-Photo G.m.b.H. of Berlin, indicating this image was distributed to the German press for international coverage of the disaster.
Reverse Text
Transcription
Handwritten (pencil): Poplar Bluffs USA 1927? 14 Typewritten (German): EIN NEUER TORNADO IN AMERIKA. Ansicht der durch den neuen Tornado zerstörten Strassen Poplar Bluffs. Die Verwüstung wurde in weniger als fünf Minuten angerichtet Typewritten (credit block): Copyright by PRESSE-PHOTO G.m.b.H. BERLIN SW.48 Wilhelmstr. 130
Translation
Handwritten: "Poplar Bluffs USA", "1927?", "14" Typewritten: "A NEW TORNADO IN AMERICA. View of the streets of Poplar Bluffs destroyed by the new tornado. The devastation was caused in less than five minutes." Credit: Copyright by Presse-Photo G.m.b.H., Berlin SW.48, Wilhelmstr. 130
Original photograph carries a copyright notice from Presse-Photo G.m.b.H., Berlin. The rights status of this 1927 press photograph is undetermined. Digital scan courtesy of Historic Poplar Bluff.
Historical Connections
Historic Post Office
Poplar Bluff's downtown post office, built in 1914, survived the 1927 tornado but was demolished in 1975.
Wright-Dalton-Bell Anchor Department Store (Four-Story Building)
Four-story department store at Main & Poplar, expanded from earlier Wright-Dalton partnership.
Bank of Poplar Bluff
Neo-Classical bank building at 200 S. Main, cited as the best example of Neo-Classical architecture in Poplar Bluff.
City Hall (Old)
Poplar Bluff's original City Hall survived the devastating 1927 tornado.
Fraternal Opera House
A handsome brick opera house considered one of Poplar Bluff's proudest public buildings, bringing traveling theatrical companies to Southeast Missouri and later operated by I. W. Rodgers.