The origin of the word blizzard in the sense of a severe snowstorm remains somewhat mysterious. Several towns in the upper Midwest have been mentioned over the years as the source of the word blizzard, including Marshall. According to Arthur P. Rose’s 1912 History of Lyon County, “there is evidence that the word, blizzard, was coined in Marshall during the memorable storm of January, 1873”. The Lyon County News of March 2, 1883 reported:

“The word blizzard was first used in Marshall, Minnesota by an American settler, now residing in Iowa. It was in the storm of 1873, at Charles H. Whitney’s hotel, and the man was Deacon Seth Knowles, who was a settler of Lyon County near this village. The deacon was a fine German scholar, and while discussing the terrible storm raging without one speaker said no word could express its severity, whereupon the deacon said: ‘It’s a blitzartig!’ So the great storm of 1873 was locally known, and with recurring storms the term spread through the state. The deacon knew what he was talking about and adapted the term to the terrors of the storm. A German witnessing one of these overpowering storms would say: ‘Der Sturm kommt blitzartig,’ which, translated into English would be: ‘The storm comes lighting-like.’ The transition from blitzartig to blizzard is natural and easy, while no word could better describe the oncoming snow and wind storm, and certainly there is no English word to fill the bill. The newness of the term and its pronunciation led the deacon to step to the counter of the hotel and write the word for the benefit of his friends.”

As mentioned above, several towns in the upper Midwest have been mentioned over the years as the source of the word blizzard. One researcher credits the source of blizzard to Estherville, Iowa, where the word was first used in their newspaper in 1870, so 13 years before the Lyon County News story and 3 years before the storm of 1873. Other sources claim the word blizzard was used to describe the winter storms before 1870, with one article using the word dates back to 1829 in Virginia. The exact origin of who coined the word blizzard may never be known for sure, but the definition has not changed and it is German in origin. While the word blizzard may or may not have been coined in Marshall, the newspaper article of March 2, 1883, does describe the intensity winter storms can play. In any case, the newspaper article from 1883 is a very interesting read, and it is a part of Marshall’s history.

The stereograph photograph featured this week was taken in Marshall in 1880 after the Oct. 15 snowstorm. The Lyon County Historical Society (LCHS) is a non-profit, member-supported organization. LCHS operates the Lyon County Museum at 301 W Lyon St in Marshall. The museum is open! For hours and more information, visit our website: www.lyoncomuseum.org, call: 507-537-6580, email: director@lyoncomuseum.org, or check our Facebook page.