Monday marks the 90th anniversary of a tornado that leveled downtown Gainesville in 1936, killing hundreds of people.
The city was hit by three tornadoes in the morning hours of April 6, 1936. The first hit on the northeast side of the downtown square and tracked east through Brenau University’s campus and into New Holland and ultimately the East Hall area.
Two more tornadoes would later spawn on the west side of the city, eventually meeting and combining into a monstrous twister near West Academy Street that tore the downtown area apart…