The 1936 Cordele–Greensboro tornado outbreak was a tornado outbreak that affected the
Southeastern United States
The Southeastern United States, also known as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical List of regions in the United States, region of the United States located in the eastern portion of the Southern United States and t ...
during April 1936. The
Greensboro, North Carolina
Greensboro (; ) is a city in Guilford County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 299,035; it was estimated to be 307,381 in 2024. It is the List of municipalitie ...
, and
Cordele, Georgia
Cordele is a city in and the county seat of Crisp County, Georgia. The population was 11,165 at the 2010 census, and 10,220 in 2020.
Cordele calls itself the watermelon capital of the world.
History 19th century
Cordele was incorporated on ...
, tornadoes were the deadliest spawned during the April 1–2 outbreak, which developed in three waves of tornadic activity over 14 hours, associated with the same storm system.
On the evening of April 2, 1936, the Greensboro tornado left a long path of F4 damage across the south side of Greensboro, passing through the south side of downtown. The storm began its path near High Point Road at Elam Street and continued east along Lee Street to east of Bennett College. This storm left $2 million in damage in Greensboro (1936 USD).
[''Syracuse Herald'', ]Syracuse, New York
Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States. With a population of 148,620 and a Syracuse metropolitan area, metropolitan area of 662,057, it is the fifth-most populated city and 13 ...
. April 3, 1936. It was responsible for 14 deaths and 144 injuries, standing as the second-deadliest tornado in the history of
North Carolina
North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
after a February 1884 tornado that caused 23 deaths along a path from
Rockingham to
Lillington.
Later in the week, a
second outbreak would spawn devastating tornadoes in
Waynesboro, Tennessee,
Tupelo, Mississippi
Tupelo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lee County, Mississippi, United States. Founded in 1860, the population was 37,923 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. It is the List of municipalities in Mississippi, 7th-most populous ...
, and
Gainesville, Georgia
Gainesville is a city and the county seat of Hall County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 42,296. Because of its large number of poultry processing plants, it has been calle ...
.
Tornado table
April 1
April 2
See also
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1936 Tupelo–Gainesville tornado outbreak – An even deadlier outbreak that occurred just days after this one
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List of North American tornadoes and tornado outbreaks
These are some notable tornadoes, tornado outbreaks, and tornado outbreak sequences that have occurred in North America.
#''The listing is U.S.-centric, with greater and more consistent information available for U.S. tornadoes. Some North America ...
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List of tornadoes striking downtown areas
This article is a list of tornadoes that have impacted the central business district (downtown or city center) of a large city (that is, one having at least 50,000 people, not counting suburbs or outlying communities, at the time of the storm).
...
References
Bibliography
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{{DEFAULTSORT:1936-04-01 Cordele-Greensboro Tornado Outbreak
F4, EF4 and IF4 tornadoes
20th-century tornadoes
1936 meteorology
Tornadoes in Alabama
Tornadoes in Georgia (U.S. state)
Tornadoes in South Carolina
Tornadoes in North Carolina
Concord, North Carolina
Cordele-Greensboro Tornado Outbreak
History of Greensboro, North Carolina
1936 natural disasters in the United States
Cordele-Greensboro tornado outbreak