April 10, 1945

A tornado destroyed Camp Magnolia. The camp, established near Magnolia (Columbia County) as a civilian work camp for conscientious objectors to military service, occupied the site of a former Civilian Conservation Corps camp and housed about 400 men whose religious and personal beliefs made them oppose combat duty. Their presence was resented by some local people, as evidenced by the local newspaper’s headline the day after the tornado: “God Strikes the Conchies” (“conchie” being a disparaging term for conscientious objector). After the tornado, residents of the camp were transferred to other camps in the nation.