September 21st will forever live in Stratford’s history as a day of death and destruction. While Stratford escaped the utter devastation that swept Rhode Island on September 21st, 1938, we still experienced, and mourned, our losses.
By all accounts, September of 1938 had been a very strange month in New England. It had been extraordinarily warm. City dwellers were extending their summer vacations on Long Island due to the weather. All over the east coast of New England, residents and guests were basking in the extended summer season.
The warmth in Stratford was accompanied by five days of rain preceding September 21st. The National Weather Service had been monitoring hurricane activity in the Atlantic, but until it was too late, the Service felt that the approaching hurricane was nothing much to become excited about. Most coastal residents were completely unprepared for the force and rapidity of the rains and winds that struck on September 21st. Late that afternoon, winds died completely and the sun beamed down from a bright blue sky.
State Representative Helen Lewis and her husband, LeRoy, were at home on their island in the Thimble Islands when the hurricane struck, washing them and their cottage away. Their daughter, Cait, 26, was rescued from Long Island Sound and was reported in fair condition.
Mrs. Lewis was a legend in Stratford, and in the State of Connecticut. She was the first woman elected to the State House of Representatives from the Town of Stratford. At the time of her passing, she had just been nominated by the State Republican Party as the party’s candidate for Secretary of State. Had she survived, she likely would have become Connecticut’s first female Secretary of State.
Helen Lewis “was born in Meriden and after her marriage in 1910 came to live in Stratford. At first she and her husband resided in the old Plant homestead at the corner of Elm and Broad Streets…Always desirous of owning an old house, the couple purchased the home at Main Street and South Parade” (West Broad Street today) which was built by William Samuel Johnson. (From The Stratford News, September 23, 1938, hurricane edition).
Stratford also lost two men: Paul Castelot died attempting to prevent a boat from drifting away; and, Charles Krolinowski died of injuries he suffered when his roof crashed down. Lordship Beach, where Peggy’s Restaurant had stood, was entirely washed away. Cottages at Long Beach and Short Beach were destroyed. Eight inches of water were on the floor of the Sikorsky Airplane factory, causing the plant to shut down. There was extensive boat damage at the Pootatuck and Housatonic Boat Clubs.
The Public Works Department was busy for days clearing the 1,500 trees felled by the storm. They worked through the night to open as many roads as possible. Electricity was restored rapidly to the center of town. It took several more weeks to restore electrical power throughout town, and to complete storm cleanup. Telephone service was restored within hours. William Petzolt was vigilant at Stratford Point Lighthouse, ensuring his backup kerosene lamp remained lit until electrical power was restored. Even without any electrical power, The Stratford News managed to print out their “hurricane edition”.
The Hurricane of 1938 forever altered the way we forecast, and prepared for, hurricanes.
