America's Deadliest Twister

"This account of the deadly tornado of March 18, 1925, chronologically follows the track of the storm as it destroyed homes, farms, and businesses. Freelance writer Partlow collected the statements of eyewitnesses and victims along with news reports of the deadly and destructive effects across Missouri, Indiana, and especially southern Illinois, an area locally referred to as 'Egypt,' to create this book [which is] moving and...accurate. The book includes many black-and-white photographs and an appendix, 'Rosters of the Dead by Town.'"—CHOICE


“So few people have any understanding of this event and its aftermath. . . . It needs to become a part of the history of southern Illinois.”—Jim Brigham, longtime southern Illinois community leader and businessman, former president of the Southern Illinois University Foundation

“By all accounts, the 1925 Tri-State Tornado ranks as one of the modern era’s fiercest and most destructive weather events. . . . Geoff Partlow’s account of the disaster succeeds primarily as a window onto the enormity of physical destruction and the depth of human suffering. . . . In the final chapter . . . the author tackles some meaty historical questions. Assessing the tornado’s long-term impact, Partlow holds it responsible for the economic and demographic collapse of the southern Illinois district known informally as Egypt. . . .This calamity of tremendous proportions deserves a place in the region’s collective memory and Partlow’s readable and moving chronicle will certainly facilitate remembrance.” –Andrew Hurley, Journal of Illinois History