The Fremont weekly journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio) 1867-1877, 1869-10-15
THE GREAT STORM.
The Flood in Philadelphia.

The Flood in Philadelphia.
The Philadelphia Gazette of Tuesday
morning says:
A sad and serious subject presented itself
yesterday to the reporters pens; its details
as the waters subside, as drowned bodies are
recovered, as submerged warehouses and
wharves become visible, will furnish any
thing but an agreeable theme for days to
come.
The supply Of water from the fourth of
August until yesterday came in the alternate
form of feast and famine. From The date
first named until September 6 the thirsty
soil painted for rain. Even the clay became
PulVurulent and in many parts of the
country around US the cattle at times suffered
for water to slake their thirst. Scores Of
little grist mills ceased motion, and the click
of the sawmill was efEectuaIly sileneed.
The big storm that swept over New England,
that strewed its shores with wrecks, and that
uurOOfed so many buildings in Boston, gave
US only drippings from its edges. The re-
action came at last, but it came in such
volume as TO follow up with deluge the
proceeding drought.
The rains extend up into the mountains,
whence the Schuykin derives its source,
There mountains run in angry torrents at
times. The little, thread-like rilI tinkles
until 1t throws itself into the babling brook,
the brook rushes its turbid current into the
brawling stream, the creek receives the vol
ume of hundred Of them, and hundred
creeks pour their muddy flow into the over
tasked river. The heavy rains that tumble
down the hill-slopes give US freshets, not the
rains that fall near the rivers debOuchement.
The freshet of to-day is the most serious
that the schuylkill has ever known. Its
hovOc can not prove Otherwise than tre-
mendous, and all without recourse upon the
partOf the losers. With such an occurrence
in the spring of the year, with ice crashing
in great masses upon the surface of the flood,
not a dock, bridge or warehouse would
probably be left.
The view yesterday from Market street
bridge was especially striking The water
was the color of chocolate, running with the
velocity of mill race, and spinning along
upon its surface every conceivable variety
of floating objects. Sections of fences
cattle pens, stables, dog houses, trees and
timber were hurled by the crrrent many
feet above the summit of Fairmount dam.
The latter went under-or, rather, the waters
went oyer--before sunrise ysrterday morning
Every building on the banks below the dam
Is flooded. When darkness fell last evening
upon the scene, the owners of every lumber.
coal and wood yard, wharf and quay were
waiting in nervous apprehension to see to
what extent their premises would suffer.
Dwellings by scores were in water so
deep that the gurgitatiOn of the swirl was
audible as it passed under their'second floors
20 the occupants who had taken refuge On
he upper side of the boarding. The lock
If the Schuylkill Navigation Company was
As the light faded away, moth
ng of it was visible but the upper part of
he handrail that spans its bridge. The gas
works escaped serious damage. The en-
,loyes quenched the fires as the currentgrew
wider and wider, yet not so quickly as to
,revent huge volume of smoke from rising |
md spreading like great umbrella against |
he murky sky.
We were sorry to see great piles of lum-
er tumbled over and ioatsd away, beyond
Il possibility of identiR cation, even if re-
overed.
The almshouse meadows were the bottom
lake, and the water was but a few inches
sneath the spans of all the bridges, from
Iarket street to PenrOse ferry.
The cars belonging to the Pennsylvania
entraI Railroad which were tracked along
Ie banks Of the river, above Market street,
ere all flooded, many ofthem being washed
ON the rail and damaged by pieces of
lift wood which struck them. To keep
e track itself from being washed aEsy it
as anchored by placing locomotives upon
The City mills, Cook & Sons soap
'rks, Hubbard's oil refinery, MAYORS
mberyard, Van Hagen, McKeone Il ICo.s
ap works; and Laird d Co.'s oil works
ere the principal large establishments in
is locality to yield to the torrent that
TePt down great quadrangles of lumber
re child's house of splints. Blrnst
vans foundry, at Twenty-fOurth Wood
-ests, was even submerged, and damage
ne 10 the amount of about S2,5OO,
AlOngithe park the roofs of the taller boat
uses were visible when we quilted the
enc. The park drive was well under. water.
the falls the riparian taYerns are sub ]
erged, and the road so covered that the +
oPle occupying .the opposite houses are s
rched upon the bank above, with their
rniture around them, mOodily surveying
e surprising picture Captain John Dob t
ms mill, on the Wissahickon, was filed '