The Wichita city eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1872-1883, 1881-05-05
TIE GREAT MISSOURI FLOOD.


The unprecedented food that has for days
rolled down the mad Missouri devastating
thousand miles Of valley, destroying homes,
and almost vuinins towns and cities, has at
last a,atcd 90 far IS the Missouri river and
its valley are coscerned. But the same un-
goycrnabe and unrestrained volume Of boil
Ing. scething water now goes down the low
er Mississippi. That it win there carry death
and destruction we have little doubt.
During the food Kansas suffered but little
comparatively, although the disaster will
cost her many thousands of dollars. Twenty
eight towns and cities were at one time last
week flooded between Yankton and Kansas
City.
The following account of the waters, taken
from the dispatches the day that they had
reached the highest point at Atchison and
Kansas City, will give something Of an idea
Of the situation:
ATCHIsoN, April 2s.-Thc water I'm the
Missouri is now twenty-threc feet above low
water mark, and has been at 4 stand-stiii
since morning. There is little change in the
situation. All Of the inhabitcnts of East
Atchison, except half dozen families, and
numbering about a thousand people, have
been driven out by the food. Most of them
have taken refuge in this city, and others are
occupying box-cars, furnished By the Chica-
90 and Pacific roads
farmer named +. Hutchison, living OIL
| the Missouri river opposite here, lost eight
thousand dollars worth of cattle and horses.
The only portion Of East Atchison above
| water is that around the two pork packing
houses, including the main business houses
| of the town, and the celers Of these are food
ed. Goodcll's elevator is in danger. 1t con-
tains 6,000 bushels Of wheat. The railway
continues blocked and our only eastern con-
nection is by the Atchison, Topeka 4 Santa
Fc road around to Topeka. The Kansas
roads are, of course, running as usual, cx-
| cept the Atchison & Nebraska road, which is
submerged or washed away north Of the city.
Very great destruction Of property is report
cd in the bottom lands above this city, both
| Oh the Kansas and Missouri sides.
KANSAS CITY, Apri! 2S.-This has been a
DAY Of great excitement in Kansas City. The
water in tie Missouri continued to rise
throughout the night and day, and is still
rising. Al O'Clock this morning the dyke
raised along the Missouri river in froat Of
the bottoms gave way in the neighbOrho0d
called Heli'S Half-Acrc, and torrent poured
through, driving the people from their homes
in great terror. All efforts to stay The flood
were vain and within an hour a large district
was inundated TO the depth Of from four to
| ten feet.
At noon a torrent began to pour over Ninth
street, submerging mother district as large
as the first, and driving the terror-strcken
| inhabitants be re it. The water backing
up the Kaw rS rsubmerged large part Of
the stock-yard and the surrounding district
inhabited by the families of the employees of
Fowler Bros. paeking-honse, and surround
ing their large boarding houses.
The water stands several feet deep in a
large number of stores on Union avenue and
james street and covers the street railway on
these streets for five or six squares.
In the neighbor.iood kno an as ArmoI.'ialc.
across the Kaw river from this point, large
number Of colorcd families were surprised
by the food and at least five persons were
drowned. The water rushed over the DOOM
ed town so rapidly that the inhabitants could
only flee for their lives without being able to
remove any part Of their household goods.
Fully 800 families were thus thrown out OF
their houses in an incredibly short time, and
are now encampei on the high grounds
around Armstrong, with strong probability
that their houses viii sc down the stream.
II would take columns Of newspaper space
to describe the situation as it now exists, to-
gether with 4 list Of the serious damage in
flictcd. At least G,0o9 people are driven from
| their homes ami the approaches to the high
| grounds OF the main portion Of the city pre-
sents strange appearance: piles OF house,
hold goods, with crowds Of dazed refugees
from the flood, appearing on every hand
| The water now extends on the north side Of
West Ninth street from the Union elevator
to James street. That thoroughfa,c is full Of
water on the south side of Ninth.
| The locality between Liberty and Ewing
streets is flooded and growing worse every
hour. The street ears run with great diff
Guilty, the wafer being up to the floors Of the
ears. Tie street are filed with wagons mov-
ing goods from the threatened localities, and
all vehicles Of every description are pressed
into service.
| In East Kansas City 4 similar state of af-
fairs exist, rendering homeless, for time At
least, thousand PEG lc. Thousands of feet
Of lumber have been carried away, and piles
of sand secured from the river during the
winter, have been washed into the current
| a
delay in the large building operations OF the
city for 4 long time. Elevator \, owned by
Vaughan & Co., is i'll imminent dongcr. The
water laps the building on the Missouri river
side, and on the soath side large body OF
water is running. a gang Of men and teams
are nj work banking up the building. There
are iorty thousand bushels Of grain in the
elevator. and il the food does not speedily
su5sidc the loss at this elevator will be very
large.
While Il iow-5osi was bringing overs barge
loaded with household goods from Harlem,
to-day, the barge sank and the cargo is tc-
tai loss. On the barge We're two men who
were rescued with great difficulty. In a
trunk which was los; with the goods was
3l.5U0. The total loss by the accident is
about $1,000. The height of the water at .
| p. IN. was twenty-siy feet six inches above
low water mark, with a rise during the day
| OF nine inches.
| COUNCIL BLUFFS, April 2S.-The trainson
| six of the eight railroad lines terminating
| here now reach the Union depot and make
| all connections, west. north, south anu east,
| as before the aool, except the transfer by
| the Union rnciic Of ever, tling over it, tenn
porary bridge across the washcd-out track.
| All the Chicago aud st. Louis trains save the
Chicago Il Northwestern, and the Kansas
City trains, departed this evening from the
union depot, on time, after receiving their
passengers and baggage from the Union Pa
along satisfactorily and IS usual. The river
is falling very fast at thi, point.
Mr.. Sol. Miller editor Of the Troy Chief,
sends the following description OF the lie
siructive work of the food in Duniplian
county, Kansas:
Doniphan county. being bordercd on three
sides by the Missouri river. is OF course get
ting her ful! share of the Hood. From White
Cloud to Doniphan the bottoms are all over
flowed The inhabitants are all out OF the
bottoms between White Cloud anu Iowa
Point, and OF the lower portion of White
Cloud. Al the spare houses and the church
es OF the latter place are filled with refi-
gees.
At Iowa Point The water is up 10 the win