The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1889-06-19
The Flood Mt JOhHtOwn.

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town, in PENNSYLVANIA, is the most
disastrous, so far as loss of life is con-
cerned, that has occurred in either Eu-
rope or America for nearly three cell
turies.
There have been floods and floods
since the deluge. 1t has been no I'm
common thing to look for reports OF
overiows in the Valley of the Nile,
with great loss of life. Nor do floods
in India cause any great surprise, for
the frequency with which the Ganges
and other rivers of India break their
bounds is well known. The same is
true of the rivers of China, and was
once true of those of Spain. In the
olden times the breaking of dikes in
Holland carried desolation into MANY
thousand families.
But since James sat on the throne
of England there has been no such
horror known as that caused by the
floods in Southwestern Pennsylvania,
with the exception of one in Africa
and one in China, although even IN
our own country the Mississippi and
many smaller streams have played
very serious pranks with the people
who happened to live near their banks.
Probably the most disastrous Euro
pean flood on record within the last
five hundred years was caused by the
failure Of the dixie in Holland IN lo3O:
A general inundation followed and
40O, 900 persons are said to have been
drowned. The greatest following this
was the floods in Catalonia i'll 1917,
when $4,000 persons lost their lives.
BY such records as can be got at 1t
would seem that the JOhnstown trage-
dy is second only to that in Catalonia,
272 years ago.
There have, however, been some big
floods during the present century, both
i'm this and in other countries, that
were damaging enough in their way.
It was but shortly after the opening of
the century, in December, 1902, that
the River Liffey broke its bounds and
did a vast amount of damage in the
city of Dublin. 1t was even earlier in
the same year that Lorea, 4 city in
Spain, was destroyed by the bursting
of a reservoir, which inundated twen-
ty leagues and drowned more than
1000 persons.
In 1911 the Danube overfowed at q
point near Pesth, and swept away
tweDty-four villages and their lnhabl,,
tants, and these floods were followed
by others almost as disastrous IN the
summer of 1918, when whole villages
in Austria-Hnngary and Poland We're
swept away. In September OF 1878
the Danube rose and swept away
corps of Turkish troops, 1000 strong,
who were encamped on an island IN
the river, near Winder. During the
same year 5000 men and women were
drowned in Silesia, and 1000 in Po-
land.
From here the record is easily fol-
lowed.
In 1916, in January, there were sew
eral floods at Strabane, Ireland, caused
by the melting of the snow on the
mountains. In the same year the rlV-
er Vistula overfiowed and destroyed
10000 head of cattle and 1000 houses,
besides numerous lives. During 1873
there was flood in the fen Counties in
England, when 5000 acres of land
were inundated. In 1880 there were
great floods in Vein, and in 1888 came
the great overfows in China, when
1000 persons were drowned in Canton
alone. In 1910 Lyons, Marseilles and
other towns in France were partly sub
merged by break in the banks of the
river Rhone. And so the list goes.
Here is something like the chronology
cal order in which various floods Oc-
Cured:
1916. Overflow of the river Loire in
the West and Southwest of France.
Damage, $20,O00,000. The Loire rose
20 feet in one night.
1919. Mayhem Orleans flooded
by the inundation of the Mississippi.
1852. Floods at Holmfirth in Febru-
ary. Overflow Of the Rhine and
Rhone in September. City of Ham,
burg flooded by the Elbe.
1856. Floods in the South of France.
1862. Forty thousand acres in Hol-
land submerged. foundations III
France.
1864. Rradfield reservoir, England,
burst, March II; 250 persons drowned.
1866. Septembce-Great inunda-
tions i'm the South of France. Novem-
ber---Cireat floods in Lancashire, York
shire and Derbyshire, England. Mills
were carried away, mines were flood
ed, railroads were torn up and many
lives were lost.
1869. January-Cork, Dublin and
other Irish cities We're flooded and
much suffering was caused.
1870. Rome was inundated ana
many lives were lost. The King was
Obliged to relieve the sufferers with
money.
1877. In October there We're great
floods in Northern Italy and thousand
of persons at Mantau, Fcrrara and
other towns were left homeless.
1874. The banks of the Thames
River were swept and many lives were
aost. May 1G, the reservoir near
northampton, Mass, burst much III
the same manner as did that above
.Johnstown. Mill River Valley was
swept by the Iood, and IA persons lost
their lives. July 2l, watcrspout
.burst,d at Eur ka, Nevada, and many
dives were lost. July 2G, @N persons
were drowned in Pitlsburg and Allie
sshany 10y the rising Of the rivers i'll
Western Pennsylvania.
1873. By the rising of the river Ga
rome IN France. portion OF Toulouse
was destroyed in June, and ,otHl llVes
were lost. From July until Novem,-
her of the same year England anu
Wales suffered from heavy floods.
During the same period some 1000
x,srsons were left homeless III India by
the same causes.
1s,6. March-Severe floods in
france and Holland. December
Floods in England.
1877. New Years Day the water
,yerhowed the piers at Dover, Follie-