The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1881-04-14
DEVASTATING FLOOD,
Tho Missouri on the Rampage. Terrible In.
undation and Loss Of Property at Omaha
YanktOn, VermilliOn and Iandan.

UnuAtAVA AQU 1AJ68 VI 8IO0cEtY 0t Om20G,
Yankton, Vermillion and Handan.
The unprecedented rise in the Mis-.
souri, river has resulted in the de-
struction of a vast amount Of property
at Omaha and other Nebraska and
Dakota points. At Omaha, on April
8, the river was about twenty -one
feet above low water mark, the high
est rise ever known there. It was
about two feet and half higher than
the April rise of 1875, and the June
rise of 1877. Everything on the levee
was flooded, and the lowlands on the
the east side Of the river were flooded
for miles. The river was two or
three miles wide here. There was
about two feet of water in the Omaha
smelling works, and two strong cur
rents running through the establish.
ment. Two hundred men were tenn
porarily out on account of stoppage of
works. During the forenoon the
water rose very rapidly and soon
flooded all the Union Pacific shops,
some ten or twelve large buildings, to
the depth of from six to twelve inches,
and work was entirely suspended
1900 men temporarily thrown out of
employment.
At Sioux City the river reached its
highest point since the country has
been settled. There are several hun
dred homeless people being taken care
of in Sioux City, among them being
the entire population of Covington,
located opposite Sioux City, who
abandoned their submerged town on
a steamer which was sent to their re-
lief. Forty.five ho-ses were DESTROYED
at Vermilion, but no lives lost. Meek
ling was destroyed all except the ele-
vator ard one dwelling, in which are
| 1000 people.
At Council Bluffs the entire lower
| part of the city was under water
A telegram dated Yankton, April
S, says: The damage to Steamboat,
railroads and private property by ice
g0rges in this city has been fearful.
Steamers at the lcvee were carried
inland, and now lie on the railroad
! track. The steamer Peniah struck
me railroad machine shops and com.
pletely wrecked them. The boat is
now on She prairie about a mile from
the channel. The government ware.
houses are destroyed and many of
the goods stored in them carried away.
Rescuing parties report great suffer
ing and obstruction among the settlers
on the bottom lands between Yankton
and Ver;alllisn. A number of hor~es
at Yankton were moved from their
| coundaticrs, and some carried off.
The Gen. Terry has arrived from
Chateau creek, and is the only one Of
the fleet escaping without damage.
A Kansas City telegram says: A
house standing on the bank of the
Missouri river near Parkville, occu-
! pied by woman named Cordell and
three children, was swept into the
; stream by the current cutting into the
! bank. After floating down the river
about seven miles, the house was dis
covered by two young hunters named
Birch and Ford, from Kansas City,
who put out for it in a skiff, cut hole
in the roof, the only part Of the build
ing above water, rescued the terrified
inmates and took them back to Park:
| vile.
F. NJ. Smith, gentleman living at
i Vermilion, says that the place has not
been so badly wrecked as has been
reported. The depot, stores, hotels
and nearly all the residences still
stand. The Dakota Republican office
, is wrecked and floated off. The St.
Nicholas hotel has been moved from
its foundation. The Carl Jensen
house and three others, with numer-
Gus barns and other outbuildings,
have been floated off. The water ran
so strong through the main street that
it was impossible to row boat. Sew
eral OF the business men nearly lost
their lives in trying to save goods
from their stores. but had to give up
the job. Lee & Prentis saved about
half of their goods before the rise
grew too high. Reeves & King and
J. A. Grange about the same. Lunde
sayed nothing, nor did any Of the hard
ware or drug dealers get out any
goods. The county records were saved
by swinging the boat in which they
were, with rope to the bluff below.
From the bluff back of Vermillion,
flags of distress could be seen at farm.
houses all over the bottom lands west
of town. Near Meckling q number
Of people could be seen with glass
On the roof of a corn crib. At Neck.
ling. on comparatively high bottom.
land, the water seems to be halt. way
up the windows of the lower floor,
Mr.. Smith says that it IS impossible
that any stock on the bottom west of
Vermillion can have lived. He thinks
too, that when the flood weakens so
that boats can be got through, many
drowned people will be found in the
flooded country, both above and be-
low the town.
Dufing the flood church came down
the river and lodged on the lower
part Of Green island. Itwas evidently
Of strong timbers and came down in
dignified, majestic sort of way, as
though it was used to that sort of
thing. 1t had steeple, and in the
steeple was bell, and as the building
rocked with the current or jostled
by the ice. the bell would
toll. Over the crash of the ice and
the roar of the flood could be heard
the deep, monotonous clang of the
bell, and sight and sound were alike
awe.inspiring. Where the church
came frem no one seemed to know for
certainty, though it is surmised it
came from Frankfort, where there
was chapel which had been erected
for Indian worship. Some thought it
was the mission church at Santee
agency, but others say that the ground
on which that church stands is so
high that it is not possible that the
water could float it off.
A dispatch dated Elk Point, Dakota,
April 8 says: For several days the
women and children had been leaving
Elk Point, and when the news came
Of the breaking of the gorge there
was general exodus, and by Tuesday
night fully two-thirds of the women
and children had been removed to
points of safety. Fortlandville is
overfowing with people, and the cit