Could Batavia shake, rattle and roll? History says 'yes'.(Neighbor)(Batavia)

0 Comments | Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, IL), October, 2006

Byline: Sammi King When the earthquake hit Hawaii last weekend, my first thought was, at least we don't have to deal with that in the Midwest. OK, maybe we have minor quakes, but 6.8 on the Richter scale? Could it happen here? According to an 1895 edition of the Batavia Herald, it did happen here.

A quake with the same magnitude hit the Midwest on a day when people were expecting a bit of a scare, but not an earthquake. A 6.8 quake hit at 5:07 a.m. on Halloween. The quake was strong enough to awaken many throughout the Midwest. Although the epicenter was in Charleston, Mo., the earthquake was felt from Pittsburgh to Topeka, and from New Orleans to Minneapolis. In Chicago, the earthquake knocked out all of the 12,000 telephone switches. That caused quite...