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month later, September 14-15, and its eye passed directly over Bay St. Louis. A third storm went inland west of Grand Isle, LA on October 2.
Sarah wrote of her horror to Rachel on October 1. ?You have no doubt e?er this received our dear Sami?s letter giving you an account of his journey...as well as his happy escape from accident or injury during the storm, to which he was exposed on the lake, it was truly terrific you cannot form any idea of it by any description I can give you on paper, the wind was blowing most fearfully, from the north, but notwithstanding its violence was not strong enough to counteract the influence of a more awful storm out at sea, which was causing the waters from the Gulf to roll in upon us until we were almost surrounded, the waves were dashing on each side of us within eight feet of the house like a sea and in front they were inside our gate, and nearly meeting in the rear, if it had continued to rise for half an hour longer, as they had done for some time we would have been in the midst of a roaring sea. the water was higher than our fence, sometimes the tops of the palings could be seen when a wave would roll back with great force and break over some thing that would divide it. and worse than all we were all alone. Your Pa had gone to the plantation a day or tow before, and we had to try to comfort each other, all so much alarmed we were almost afraid to speak or could scarcely do so for our voices were tremulous with fear, at last after about twelve hours of suspense he came, astonished and almost confounded, he had no idea of any thing of the kind, the wind was blowing at the plantation but in the direction to remove all fear of the rising of the water, and he did not know any thing of our situation until within about two miles of this place he then had to swim his horse in several places, in water so deep he could not touch the ground.? [Sarah Jackson to Rachel Jackson Lawrence Sea Song October 1st I860].
Not being familiar with hurricanes, Sarah probably knew nothing of their counterclockwise circular motion and therefore perceived the storm that Pa and Samuel experienced as being a separate storm from the one she knew. With the eye passing over Bay St. Louis, she may have received the worst of the winds and tidal surge, whereas on the lake (probably Lake Pontchartrain) and at Mulatto Bayou, the winds would have come from the north, blowing the water out.
Even as Sarah wrote her letter, another hurricane was about to enter coastal Louisiana west of Gcandjsle. This was the third hurricane of the 1860 season; it made landfall on October 'I 2|(fend4betnete^N.
v Sarah?s letter continued, ?it was a fearful time.. .but the storms are not over, last night the wind commenced blowing again, and continued with great violence until about nine this morning it subsided a little but still looks very threatning (sic) I am very anxious to get off?. If all the other adversities had not yet convinced Sarah to leave Hancock County, she was now resolute. ?I am