Tennessee, 1965

Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in Tennessee, March 17, 1965

March 17, 1965 · 11 events in 10 counties and zones

7 tornado, 4 thunderstorm wind, 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
0
Injuries
3
Property damage
$783,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
11

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

7 tornado, 4 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Giles

When
March 17, 7:30 AM CST
Where
Giles County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
7 yd
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
35.330, -87.020

Tornado, Warren

When
March 17, 8:00 AM CST
Where
Warren County
Rating
F1
Path length
1 mi
Path width
33 yd
Injuries
1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
35.700, -85.800

Tornado, Lawrence

When
March 17, 8:20 AM CST
Where
Lawrence County
Rating
F2
Path length
2 mi
Path width
50 yd
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
35.230, -87.330

Thunderstorm Wind, Lawrence

When
March 17, 8:20 AM CST
Where
Lawrence County
Coordinates
35.280, -87.280

Tornado, Wilson

When
March 17, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Wilson County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
7 yd
Property damage
$3,000
Coordinates
36.120, -86.420

Tornado, White

When
March 17, 9:30 AM CST
Where
White County
Rating
F1
Path length
2 mi
Path width
73 yd
Injuries
2 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
35.830, -85.530

Thunderstorm Wind, Bedford

When
March 17, 10:00 AM CST
Where
Bedford County
Coordinates
35.500, -86.500

Tornado, Morgan

When
March 17, 11:00 AM CST
Where
Morgan County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
7 yd
Property damage
$3,000
Coordinates
36.100, -84.600

Thunderstorm Wind, Hickman

When
March 17, 11:00 AM CST
Where
Hickman County
Coordinates
35.780, -87.500

Tornado, Loudon

When
March 17, 11:47 AM CST
Where
Loudon County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
7 yd
Property damage
$3,000
Coordinates
35.630, -84.250

Thunderstorm Wind, Putnam

When
March 17, 12:00 PM CST
Where
Putnam County
Coordinates
36.200, -85.500

What these are

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.
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.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Tennessee in 1965Every state in 1965This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Tennessee, 1965

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: 10127515, 10127516, 10126167, 10126168, 10126169, 10126170, 10126171, 10126172, 10126173, 10126174, 10126175.