TWISTER: The July 2, 1953, Era headline was eye-catching — “Twister Causes Damage in 6th Ward.” The subheadline grabbed attention — “Intense Winds Snap Trees, Wires, Level Several Structures.”

It was July 1, 1953, when a tornado swept through Bradford.

“Freakish Twister Roars Over Western Hills in East End on Heels of Thunderstorm, Lasting Only a Few Seconds; No Estimate of Damage Set”

It had been a hot day before the storm hit.

“Twisting, screaming winds of cyclonic intensity whipped across Bradford’s Sixth Ward for a few terrifying seconds at 8 o’clock last night leveling several small structures, toppling over television antennae like match sticks, snapping trees off by the dozen, knocking down wires and damaging at least two automobiles.

“No casualties were reported but residents along the half-mile route of destruction were visibly unnerved by the completely unexpected and freakish nature of the twister that roared over the western hills on the heels of a thunderstorm.”

The sawtooth path went across Seaward Avenue, the Erie Railroad tracks, the northern end of Holley Avenue, along Willis Avenue, across Linwood and Glenwood avenues, over Tunungwant Creek, and then over the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad tracks. From there, it traveled East Main Street between Hawthorne Avenue and St. Francis Drive, causing a swath of destruction.

Garage roofs were torn off, trees and television antennae were toppled, a section of tile block wall on what was then Quaker State Oil Refining Corp. bordering the tracks at Holley Avenue was torn out, and a shed was flattened. Large trees were torn from the ground, leaving buckled sidewalks in their wake. Several areas were without power.

Bradford was the only area hit with the tornado. Prior to that, the last one had been July 10, 1919, in the Fifth Ward.