Tornadoes and Hail in Kansas, July 12, 1956

Name: Tornadoes and Hail in Kansas, July 12, 1956
Start: 1956-07-12T19:00
End: 1956-07-12T21:30
Location: Kansas

July 12, 1956 · 8 events in 6 counties and zones

5 thunderstorm wind, 2 tornado, 1 hail, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 1
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $50,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 8

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

5 thunderstorm wind, 2 tornado, 1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Marion

When: July 12, 7:00 PM CST
Where: Marion County
Measured: 65 kt (75 mph)
Coordinates: 38.280, -97.000

Tornado, Wichita

When: July 12, 7:20 PM CST
Where: Wichita County
Rating: F2
Path length: 4.5 mi
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 38.480, -101.200

Tornado, Scott

When: July 12, 7:40 PM CST
Where: Scott County
Rating: F2
Path length: 15.5 mi
Path width: 33 yd
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 38.480, -101.120

Thunderstorm Wind, Washington

When: July 12, 8:00 PM CST
Where: Washington County
Coordinates: 39.780, -97.080

Thunderstorm Wind, Washington

When: July 12, 8:00 PM CST
Where: Washington County
Coordinates: 39.780, -97.080

Thunderstorm Wind, Shawnee

When: July 12, 8:30 PM CST
Where: Shawnee County
Measured: 55 kt (63 mph)
Coordinates: 39.080, -95.580

Thunderstorm Wind, Marion

When: July 12, 9:00 PM CST
Where: Marion County
Measured: 58 kt (67 mph)
Coordinates: 38.280, -97.000

Hail, Wilson

When: July 12, 9:30 PM CST
Where: Wilson County
Measured: 2 in hail
Coordinates: 37.700, -95.680

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

Event	Date	Age	Sex	Where	Kind
Tornado, Scott	1956-07-12				Direct

What these are

Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
Tornado: A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.
Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Kansas in 1956 Every state in 1956 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Kansas, 1956

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10027691, 10027692, 10027693, 10027694, 10027695, 10027696, 10027697, 10027698.