MITCHILL ON THE EARTHQUAKES OF 1811, 1812, AND 1813* 287 



were shaken considerably. And things suspended on nails or pins 

 swung backwards and forwards. 



Information was forwarded from Tennessee, that the earth quaked 

 so violently, as to throw down chimnies, in some places. Eighteen or 

 twenty acres of land, adjacent to Piney river, suddenly fell down, and 

 sunk so low,, that the tops of the trees were on a level with the sur- 

 rounding earth. Four other shocks were experienced on the 17th, 

 and one or more continued daily until the 30th. 



At Knoxville, the quaking of the earth on the 16th was represented 

 to have lasted more than three minutes. The rattling of the windows 

 and furniture of the houses were such as to awaken almost every 

 family. This was about two in the morning. It was followed, in half 

 an hour, by another, which continued half a minute. Between sunrise 

 and breakfast, three others were felt, of only a few seconds in duration. 

 At the end of the first and longest shock, there were, in a direction 

 due north, two flashes of light, at the interval of about a minute, very 

 much like distant lightning. 



At Columbia, in Tennessee, between two and three o'clock on the 

 morning of the 16th December, the inhabitants were suddenly alarmed 

 by a violent agitation in the earth. It was accompanied by a peculiar 

 sound, proceeding from southwest to northeast. Immediately after the 

 shock had ceased, a very large volume of something like smoke was 

 discovered to rise in the quarter whence the sound appeared to come ; 

 and pursuing nearly the same course, finally settled in the north, exhibit- 

 ing the appearance of a black cloud. The shock was computed to 

 have continued from ten to hfteen minutes. 



At Louisville, (Ken.) near the falls of Ohio, on Monday morning 

 about three o'clock, a violent shock of an earthquake was felt. It was 

 judged to have continued about three minutes. This was followed by 

 three or four others of less violence. A number of houses suffered 



