Tornadoes · United States · Illinois

1975 tornadoes in Illinois

46 tornadoes touched down in Illinois in 1975, 12 percent above the average of the record for the state. They killed 2 people and injured 78.

1974 1976 The whole country in 1975

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

F040 to 72 mph
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
F173 to 112 mph
Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.
F2113 to 157 mph
Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.
F3158 to 206 mph
Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.
F4207 to 260 mph
Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.
F5261 to 318 mph
Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.
Unrated
The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.

Every tornado in Illinois in 1975

January 10 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
January 10	11:15 AM CST	F2	Saline	2.0	587			$50,000 to $500,000
January 10	11:32 AM CST	F1	Gallatin	0.1	10			$500 to $5,000

March 23 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
March 23	8:18 PM CDT	F2	Knox	1.0	80		2	$5,000 to $50,000

March 28 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
March 28	5:25 PM CDT	F0	Johnson	0.1	10

April 18 5 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Injuries	Damage
April 18	4:20 PM CDT	F1	Tazewell	0.5	50		$5,000 to $50,000
April 18	5:13 PM CDT	F0	McLean	0.2	77
April 18	6:10 PM CDT	F3	Monroe	2.0	30	1	$50,000 to $500,000
April 18	7:00 PM CDT	F1	Clinton	2.5	50		$50,000 to $500,000
April 18	7:21 PM CDT	F1	Marion	2.0	50		$50,000 to $500,000

April 29 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
April 29	6:30 PM CDT	F0	Henry	0.1	10

April 30 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
April 30	1:13 PM CDT	F0	Tazewell	0.1	10
April 30	3:17 PM CDT	F0	McLean	0.1	10

May 11 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
May 11	6:00 PM CDT	F1	Christian	0.2	50		2	$500 to $5,000

May 20 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
May 20	4:50 PM CDT	F2	Grundy	2.0	50		1	$50,000 to $500,000
May 20	11:30 PM CDT	F2	Greene	0.1	10			$50,000 to $500,000

May 24 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
May 24	4:25 PM CDT	F2	Iroquois	0.1	10			$5,000 to $50,000

May 25 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
May 25	11:25 PM CDT	F0	Woodford	0.1	10

May 26 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
May 26	1:05 AM CDT	F0	Fulton	0.1	10

May 30 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
May 30	3:40 PM CDT	F2	McLean	4.3	100			$5,000 to $50,000

June 1 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
June 1	7:20 PM CDT	F0	Logan	0.1	10			$50 to $500

June 13 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
June 13	8:30 PM CDT	F0	Warren	0.1	10			$500 to $5,000
June 13	10:28 PM CDT	F3	Fulton	6.6	1,300			$500,000 to $5 million

June 14 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
June 14	3:30 PM CDT	F2	Bureau	0.1	10			$50,000 to $500,000
June 14	3:35 PM CDT	F2	LaSalle	1.0	167			$50,000 to $500,000

June 17 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
June 17	12:54 PM CDT	F2	Cook	1.5	20			$50,000 to $500,000

June 18 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
June 18	1:00 PM CDT	F2	DeKalb	4.7	27		1	$50,000 to $500,000
June 18	1:50 PM CDT	F0	DuPage	0.1	10			$500 to $5,000

June 20 3 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Damage
June 20	1:06 PM CDT	F0	Lee	0.1	10	$50 to $500
June 20	1:30 PM CDT	F1	Lee	0.1	17	$500 to $5,000
June 20	2:15 PM CDT	F0	Lee	0.1	10	$50 to $500

June 24 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
June 24	8:08 PM CDT	F0	McDonough	0.5	17			$500 to $5,000
June 24	8:49 PM CDT	F1	Fulton	2.0	10			$500 to $5,000

July 6 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
July 6	4:10 PM CDT	F1	Marshall	0.1	10			$500 to $5,000

July 8 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
July 8	7:30 PM CDT	F2	Christian	0.1	10			$50 to $500

July 11 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
July 11	3:15 PM CDT	F0	Carroll	0.1	10			$50 to $500

July 23 3 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
July 23	5:30 PM CDT	F3	Fulton	11.1	2,630			$50,000 to $500,000
July 23	5:45 PM CDT	F3	Fulton	14.0	2,630	2	69	$5 million to $50 million
July 23	6:05 PM CDT	F0	Stark	0.5	20			$500 to $5,000

August 14 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
August 14	6:58 PM CDT	F2	Sangamon	1.0	30			$5,000 to $50,000

November 9 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
November 9	9:20 PM CST	F1	Bureau	0.1	10			$5,000 to $50,000

November 10 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
November 10	12:05 AM CST	F1	Lake	0.1	10			$5,000 to $50,000
November 10	12:08 AM CST	F2	Vermilion	0.1	10			$50,000 to $500,000

November 29 3 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Injuries	Damage
November 29	10:20 PM CST	F2	Mason	18.6	10		$50,000 to $500,000
November 29	11:16 PM CST	F1	Logan	0.1	10	1	$5,000 to $50,000
November 29	11:20 PM CST	F1	Sangamon	4.3	200	1	$50,000 to $500,000

November 30 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
November 30	12:07 AM CST	F2	Macon	5.9	10			$500,000 to $5 million

Nearby

Every tornado in Illinois since 1950 Warnings in force in Illinois The live radar over Illinois

What this means

Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.

Sources

NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.