On March 18, 1925 a tornado touched down approximately three miles northwest of Ellington, Missouri, traveled across southern Illinois and finally dissipated about three miles southwest of Petersburg, Indiana. It would become known as the Tri-State Tornado.

The Tri-State Tornado still holds significant records as tracked by NOAA's National Weather Service. That single tornado holds the record for: longest continuous track on the ground (219 miles); duration (3.5 hours); the third fastest forward speed (an average of 62 mph); and the greatest number of tornado fatalities suffered by a single U.S. city (234 in Murphysboro, Illinois).

In the aftermath of the tornado, 695 people were dead and more than 2,000 were injured; 15,000 homes had been destroyed.

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