Back in 1870 on this date, a Milwaukee scientist named Increase Lapham of the signal service (the original version of the weather service) issued the very first storm warning. It wasn't overly specific but it was a start. In it he related, "high winds all day yesterday at Cheyenne and Omaha; a very high wind this morning at Omaha; a barometer falling and thermometer rising at Chicago, Detroit, Toledo, Cleveland, Buffalo, and Rochester; high winds probable along the Lakes."
Needless to say warnings are an obsession today, especially with thunderstorms where they are given out like candy. I think its gotten a bit out of hand personally but in general the process works and has saved countless lives.
By the way, old Mr. Lapham was a self taught naturalist and scientist. In 1850 he urged the "establishment of an observatory where forecasts could be collected a the lake ports" to help save lives on the Great Lakes.
In 1860 and 1861, Lapham worked with an Iowa boy from Dubuque, Dr. Asa Horr to make a series of simultaneous observations three times a day to prove that storms could be tracked from west to east. The diagrams of these generated strong public interest in the ability to predict storms. The rest is history!
JUST A BUCK A MONTH...
That's all it takes from you to help make TSwails one of the best, most unique, and reliable weather sites in the Midwest. We hope that you will consider a voluntary subscription of $12 dollars a year (3 cents per day). That allows me to stay free of the corporate world and pour my energy into doing what I do best, forecasting the weather! We hope you see the value and hard work that goes into the site everyday. You support in any way is sincerely appreciated. Thanks and roll weather. To donate click on the secure green box below
