Clarksville community reflects on change after 1999 tornado 25 years later

As Clarksville continues to rebuild from the devastating tornado that made its path through North Clarksville a month ago, residents are also recalling the destructive tornado that changed downtown Clarksville forever.

Twenty-five years ago at 3:54 a.m. on Jan. 22, 1999, Clarksville residents were woken by a tornado warning issued by The National Weather Service and NOAA Weather Radio urging residents to take cover immediately.

Twenty minutes later, at 4:15 a.m., an EF-3 tornado about 4 miles wide and 880 feet in length touched down and began its path through downtown Clarksville.

The tornado ripped through five blocks of downtown and parts of Austin Peay State University.

Although the tornado was a quarter of a century ago, the memories and emotions from that frightful day are still with the Clarksville community that experienced it.

Residents shared their reflections of that monumental day, including Clarksville City Councilperson Wanda Smith, Clarksville-Montgomery County school board member Margaret Pace, former Leaf-Chronicle reporter Jimmy Settle and Montgomery County commissioners Lisa Prichard and David Shelton.

Downtown resembled a 'a war zone'

For Councilwoman Smith, the tornado left an imprint, happening the day before her birthday.

"I heard a loud noise that sounded like a train coming, so I ran to my front door to see what it was," Smith said.

From there, she watched the funnel form before passing over her mother's house as it made its way downtown.

By the time the sun was out and people were able to leave their homes, the downtown that everyone once knew and loved was worlds away.

“The biggest standout memory of the January 1999 tornado for me, was that first cold, sunny January morning when downtown property and business owners and managers were allowed back into the area of destruction for the first time,” said Settle who was working as a reporter at the time of the tornado. “There were looks of disbelief and bewilderment.”

Law offices on what was once known as Lawyer’s Row on Third Street were destroyed. The High Street Antique Mall was completely gone.

The roofs and spires from Madison Street United Methodist Church and Trinity Episcopal Church were torn off, leaving behind rubble.

“So many historic buildings that we all loved, had crashed to the ground under the power of an unbelievable natural force,” said Settle. “They were reduced to heaping mounds of crushed and broken brick and lumber, and it all literally looked like a war zone as cliche as that may sound.”

Shelton was an employee at The Leaf-Chronicle at the time and that morning, he received a call telling him not to come into work, "The Leaf was gone."

The home of Tennessee’s oldest newspaper and the historic Montgomery County Courthouse were completely destroyed by the tornado.

“I couldn’t believe it and had to go see for myself,” Shelton said. “We had become a family at The Leaf and seeing it destroyed was difficult.”

At Austin Peay, century-old trees were lying on the ground and the roofs of buildings were missing as the Browning Building tower’s clock continued to chime.

Margaret Pace, who was acting as superintendent for CMCSS at the time road around in the car used for superintendents, which included lights flashing on top of it.

“We got to ride around where other cars couldn’t because of the lights, so I got to see a lot of the damage,” she said. “It looked like it was bombed.”

Within minutes, 124 buildings were destroyed and 562 damaged. In total, there was $72.2 million worth of damage left behind by the tornado.

“It demolished the city and that broke my heart, it broke everyone’s hearts,” Prichard said.

A community that comes together, every time

Residents remembered how quickly the community came together to help as people began rebuilding their lives.

While not the same setup efforts facilitated at Mosaic Church in December, the community was not short on getting helping hands to put the city back together.

Neighbors were helping neighbors, business owners were checking on those on the block around them, and a community came together to help clean up the mess.

Organizations were reaching out to see what and where they could go to help, regardless of the job.

“One memory I have from that day is going with other members of the Master Gardeners to help clean up,” said Pace. “Trees were down all over and there was a flock of birds lying on the ground that had to be swept up.”

Smith praised everyone who showed up to help following the 2023 tornado, just like they did in 1999.

"We are stronger together," Smith said.

A surprise to no one who knows Clarksville.

“The community came together to help, just like it did in December,” Prichard said. “It’s not a surprise though, this is what Tennessee does in times like this.”

A similar statement Shelton shared as he praised the community.

“So many have lost so much, but Clarksville always rises to the occasion. Just like they did here. And in 1999. And in 2010. And in 2020,” said Shelton.

A new downtown: Opportunity for revitalization

“There is that initial period of asking, 'What next,'” Settle said. “But in time, the community generally began to unite behind a common idea that the tornado actually created an opportunity for downtown revitalization. So everyone looked at what Clarksville was lacking, even though it was (and still is) Tennessee's fifth-largest city. Chiefly, we needed to restore downtown's retail appeal and build an entertainment center.”

A chance to rebuild downtown was both a blessing and a curse said Smith.

"A curse in the sense that downtown was destroyed, but the blessing came from the restoration of the courthouse, law firms, and other buildings that now beautify the urban area," Smith said. "There is an innovative fresh look that draws attention to the historical downtown Clarksville."

As downtown has continued to grow, Clarksville has gotten its entertainment with the development of Downtown Commons, F&M Bank Arena, restaurants and soon a Clarksville Performing Arts Center.

“Those buildings were iconic, and we won’t get them back,” Prichard said. “But with rebuilding downtown, we were able to rebuild and celebrate what is Clarksville.”

Instead, downtown Clarksville got a makeover while making sure to honor the past.

Adjacent to the Roxy Regional Theatre sits a 10,000-square-foot mural of downtown Clarksville prior to the tornado.

A new tradition was also birthed in the tragedy.

Following the tornado and clean-up efforts at APSU, the Montgomery County Master Gardeners started an annual tradition of planting flowers with students just in time for the May graduations.

“I’m thankful that no one died in the tornado,” Pace said who taught at APSU for 16 years. “It is a blessing that it was damage to buildings and not someone. My heart broke for those families who lost loved ones in December.”

This article originally appeared on Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle: Clarksville community remembers 1999 tornado, 25 years later