Do you remember the Florida fiasco and the "hanging chads" of the 2000 presidential election? In the end, the Supreme Court elected George Bush as the 43rd President of the United States, and then that fall, three hurricanes criss-crossed Florida and devastated the red districts in the state:
This year, after the election of Donald Trump, Hurricane Harvey drenched Texas with the biggest flooding disaster in our country's history, and now Irma, the most massive hurricane in history, is headed for Mar-a-lago (while yet another hurricane, Jose, churns in the Atlantic).
The only other time the United States has been hit by so many powerful hurricanes in a single year was in 1853 when multiple publishers rejected inquiries made by Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at her request) to publish his first book of poetry. In that year, Hurricanes Avie, Dosha, and Euphemia criss-crossed Pennsylvania and devastated Washerst (WAS-herst), the birthplace of Emmett Lee Dickinson.
Below left: Members of the faculty of Hobart Dickinson's Clown College and School of Mummery survey the damage to the Washerst campus of the school after Hurrican Avie. The founder of the school, Hobart Dickinson, was Emmett Lee Dickinson's uncle and the world-famous "Gurgles the Clown." Below right: Emmett Lee Dickinson's Uncle Gottlieb and Aunt Ressie were able to salvage only their attic following the damage done to their home after Hurrican Dosha.
Below left: Members of the faculty of Hobart Dickinson's Clown College and School of Mummery survey the damage to the Washerst campus of the school after Hurrican Avie. The founder of the school, Hobart Dickinson, was Emmett Lee Dickinson's uncle and the world-famous "Gurgles the Clown." Below right: Emmett Lee Dickinson's Uncle Gottlieb and Aunt Ressie were able to salvage only their attic following the damage done to their home after Hurrican Dosha.
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Below: Following Hurricanes Avie and Dosha, all that was left of Washerst was then leveled to the ground
due to Hurricane Euphemia.
due to Hurricane Euphemia.
Following the devastation in Washerst brought on by the three storms, Emmett Lee Dickinson wrote his now classic-poem "How wild the Wind" (below on the left). His poem inspired third cousin Emily to pen her poem "How slow the Wind" (below on the right).
| By Emmett Lee Dickinson: How wild the Wind – How wild the sea – How great the Weather be! | By Emily Dickinson: How slow the Wind – How slow the sea – How late their Feathers be! |
Stay safe if you're in Irma's path, and be sure to hunker down! Once the storm has passed, we'll let you know when it's safe to hunker up!
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