Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1870-10-08


and had furnished shelter end 1000 10
many a wsyfsrer in pas, generations, par
lcuIarly among The iiinerancy oil the
Methodist Church, 10 whom |! was al'
ways home of welcome.
At Harper, Ferry
the scene is truly appalling, and entirely
beyond description, but we will endeavor
TO make ID a summary Of The terrible IN
cidenls Of Friday nigh. and Saturday
morning, and the immense loss Of life and
propsrly a, this poial. Leaving BaIu-
more on the accommodation train Friday
afternoon, where we had been on business
| for several days, we REACHED Weverion
little before eight o'clock a. night. where
we learned that The lressliDg and bridges
on the w. g. p. r. r. above The Ferry
had been swep. sway. end several houses
had gone down The .Urging stream. Nov
ing on cautiously towards he Ferry, We
found the river one angry sea OF rolling
waves, the low-pslb on The canal entirely
oblilera,sd, the walters coming up 10 the
very railroad track. In short lime we
arrived a, HE Potomac bridge, and al
though no, entirely sure Of its safety. VEN
tured across and gained the Harper's Fer.
~ SIDE. Here we were in dilemma.
The angry ,orren, had doojed Shenando-
all street and cut off communication with
the mainland, and was rising rapidly eve
Iy minute. but no sine was to be lost.
and so we plunged into the stream and
wsded across, which would have been an
impossibIliy an hour later. We remain
ed in the Ferry until about 2 o'clock in
the murning, and the sights and sounds
we saw and heard there We shall never
forget. Poor women and children were
on the streets who had just escaped wa.
terry grave, and every few minutes low
rumble would be heard, the startling sig.
nal that one Of their once hs0py homes
had sunk beneath the waters together
with all their earthly possessions, or
perhaps containing loved kindred and
friends, whose dying walls could be heard
on the midnight air. A, intervals all
through The night buildings were being
swept away. AT one time We heard four
fall in less than five minutes.
The Loss of LIFE and Property
at This poin, and vicinity was greater
than anywhere else within the scope Of
The food.
The principal damage by the deluge in
the Shenandoah al Harper's Ferry. may
be summed up as follows Houses en-
tirely notwithstanding TO Mrs. Mary
Nunnamaker. Mis- Martin. occupied by
James Sieadnan, ).Mrs. CorneIios Sipes,
(6ne dweI'ing.) Mr.. Charles L. Hop
woods slors, two small houses, Zone &C.
cupiel by DR.. lIsrigrove,) house belong
ing 10 Mr.. Ralph Cleveland. Michael
ooran's grocery. besides several smaller
dwellings aud other houses. Houses
badly damaged-belon2ing to Mr.. Dan
iel Ames. occupied by Mrs. Furtney, who
was rescued by Mr.. Ames after the wa
ter had risen TO the second story MIR.
Thomas Matthews. Mrs. Mstihews and
two children rescued just in time TO es-
cape drowning; large brick house. owned
and occupied by Mr.. Fitzpatrick. suPsr-
inienden, OF con. tesction Of the SheRan-
doah Valley road, The family escaping
from windows by rope bridges; the bQuse
OF James Wigging,on Mrs. Graham's
millinery Store: house belonging 10 the
estate OF Col. +. Lncss. and occupied by
VIM. l.. Little, shoemaker; two houses
belonging TO Mr.. Michael Quinn Mr..
Bernard McCsbe's large brick dwelling,
end also that Of Mr.. B. F. LcIsenring
Joseph Msnuel's Blacksmith shop de-
shoyed and residence badly injured; the
large planning mill Of Wernwsy & Gan
non. at Shenandoah City, and large brick
dwelIiog adjacent, in which five fsmilies
(22 persons) had taken refuge. were
swep, away, and every soul persisted
the Touring mill Of ChiIds. McCr.igh, e.
Co., large machine shop and twenty
dwellings owned by the same fire, were
damaged 10 the extent Of $250,00O.
Thiny.three persons living between
Shenandoah City and the mouth Of the
river are known to have persisted. as fol-
lows: Benj.min Bslemsn, his wife and
five children; James Bsteman, wife and
four children; Adam Balemsn; lleston
Myers. wife end three children John
Brady; Beckie Harris, colored; (all OF
these had gathered into the large brick
house before slIuded to y Mrs Over'ou,
daughter and granlchilJ; Mrs. Shipe,
Samuel huff and Mrs. Eliza Carroll;
daughter OF Harry Rusk, eolored, and her
Child Mr.. Lewis, -four merchant, resid.
ing six miles above, whose body has
been found; also an unknown colored
woman. whose body was found in the
roots Of sycamore tree. Mr.. James
Shipe, who lived en- Hers Island, was
with his wife cut OF from escape, snd as
one building would 60 down he would
swim with her 10 another, un-
til finally she was drowned, snd he
reached the shore on Sunday morning en-
,irely naked.
In nearly all instances the furniture in
the houses destroyed or damaged was
slmos. wholly ruined. The disric,
echool house and Presbyterian church at
Hsrper's Ferry were badly injured.
The B. & o. r. r. Company.
lose heavily, the whole OF the hes,ling
and ,he bridges from Ilarper's Ferry to
Shenandoah City being swep, away. 1t
is supposed that it will take al least
month 10 repair The damages and resume