From the Lawrence Daily Journal-World for Jan. 13, 1916:

• “The blizzard of yesterday was followed by a cold snap last night recalling conditions in 1912 in Lawrence. The mark of 20 degrees below zero, which was regarded is possible yesterday by the weather bureau, was not quite reached in Lawrence, but the minimum temperature of last night was not far short of it. The University weather record was 17 degrees below zero for the coldest part of last night…. The gas supply was shown last night to be inadequate for such weather as prevailed, and many homes in which there never before was difficulty in heating with gas were scarcely habitable. There was a rush on the coal dealers this morning…. With the University heating plant eating coal at the rate of forty to fifty tons a day, authorities at the big Kansas school are beginning to fear a coal famine unless the weather abates soon, and a hurry-up call has been placed with the state mines at Leavenworth for an additional supply.”
• “Although the matter had never been checked up to him in any formal fashion, the weather man stepped in today as arbiter between the city and the state utilities commission on the question of free gas for the city hall. He issued a temporary restraining order, did the weather man, preventing the city from using free gas or any other kind. In accordance with the decree the gas burners were jerked from under the boiler at the city hall, a half ton of coal was ordered, and the steam pipes through the building were singing this morning. The city workers were comfortably warm for the first time since yesterday morning. The only disturbing factor in the situation was that the half ton of coal was melting rapidly away and the coal dealers were so busy making deliveries of previous orders that they could not say just when they could get around to the city hall with a further supply…. The city officials are not admitting in any way that they are relinquishing their claim to free gas. They are only admitting that under present conditions they can’t get any gas at all. As the furnace at the City Hall was originally equipped for coal, the change from gas to coal was made in a short time and without difficulty…. A somewhat different condition is presented at the city library, where the only means of heating is gas. A considerable time would be required to alter the furnace to use coal. The highest degree of heat reached there yesterday by the use of gas was 63, and that temperature had not been reached at 10:30 o’clock this morning. The library attendants had to wear their wraps, and the number of readers was extremely small today.”
• “Mrs. M. Ingram of 1344 Kentucky street took off her first baby chicks this morning. They are Rhode Island reds. These are the first new chicks to appear in Lawrence in 1916, so far as anyone has reported. They chose the coldest morning of the year to make their appearance, but it is expected there will be no difficulty in prolonging their lives until they have a chance to see what the good old summer time is like.”
• “It was somewhere between 15 and 20 degrees below zero in Lawrence this morning, but the advertisement in the Journal-World yesterday announcing the sale of carpet sweepers at 98 cents each brought out purchasers for about one hundred sweepers. A $3.00 sweeper for 98 cents was such a good thing that the women would almost swim the Kaw to get it after reading the ady. in the Journal-World.”