Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1889-06-07
A TERRIBLE CALAMITY.
Thousands Of Lives Lost IN Pennsyl-
vdnio-Great Floods IN Maryland
and the District of Columbia An
Immense AMOUNT Of Property
Destroyed by tie Waters.

uhu the DtSHtCt " COtuWOCu-
Immense AMOUNT of Property
Destroyed by tie Waters.
The following details of the horrible dis
aster at Johnstown are taken from the Bal
timore Sun.
The great flood which swept through the
Conemaugh Valley in Pennsylvania or
Friday last, and which was described or
Saturday as far as the details could then be
obtained, proves to have been even more
terrible and disastrous than it was at first
represented. Although it is still impossible
to make anything like an accurate estimate
the latest information renders IL probable
that the bursting Of Conemaugh lake and
reservoir, to which the calamity was largely
due, has resulted in the loss of from 10000
to 10000 lives and in the destruction OF
many millions of dollars worth of property
Hundreds of people have been left homeless
and destitute, and active measures for their
relief have already been inaugurated.
Fifteen thousand strangers crowded the
scene of the disaster yesterday, and six hun
dred bodies have been collected. Several
vandals caught removing jewelry from the
dead bodies of women and children along
shS ii'Si "SlN pub w uChtu ny
citizens.
Conemaugh lake and reservoir was four
teen miles above Johnstown. 1t was the
property OF Il number of wealthy gentl emen
in Pittsburg, who constituted Il corporation
called the South Fork Fishing and Hunting
Club. The sheet OF water was situated in
the mountains from 200 to 300 feet above
the level OF Johnstown, was three miles in
length, from one to one and a-quarter miles
in width and in some places said to be 100
feet deep. The original lake had been quad
rupled in size by artificial means, and was
held in check by a dam from 700 to 1000
feet wide. The dam was 80 feet in thick
ness at the base, with a height of ITO feet,
and breadth of over 20 feet at the top.
The great body o. water in the lake had
been swollen by the continuous rains, and
finally swept away the immense dam which
had been built to restrain it and rushed in
Il mighty and irresistible flood upon the
country below it, growing in volume and
strength as it joined the Conemaugh creek
and the already swollen streams along which
it poured. The course of the flood led it
most OF the way through narrow V shaped
valley. -Four miles below the dam and ten
miles above Johnstown lay the town of
South Fork, at the junction of a small stream
with Conemaugh creek. 1t had a popula
ton of about one thousand four hundred.
Three miles below South Fork was Mineral
Point, cluster OF workingmen's houses
about half the size Neither OF these towns
was part of Johustown. Conemaugh, ten
miles below the lake and four miles above
Johnstown, was the largest village on the
creek between the reservoir and Johnstown.
1t is often spoken Of us part Of Johnstown,
though It's railroad station is two or three
miles up the creek from the Johnstown Sta
ton. The streets OF the two towns ran into
each other, and the space between the two
stations was well built up along the creek
Part OF the Cambria Iron and Steel Com
pany's works were at Conemaugh, and five
or six thousand OF the workingmen and
their families lived there
Between Conemaugh and Johnstown
borough was string of tenements along
the river which was called Woodvae.
Further down were Johnstown and its
cluster of sister towns. Cambria City and
Conemaugh borough, with n total popula-
ton of about 10000 Johnstown was in the
southwest part OF Cambria county, at the
forks where Stony creek and Conemaugh
creek form the Comemaugh river. 1t was
on the Pennsylvania Railroad, thirty nine
miles east of Pittsburg. The people of the
town were the employees of the Cambria
Iron and Steel Company, their families and
small storekeepers. Three quarters OF the
population lived in small frame tenement
houses on the flats by the river around the
works OF the Cambria Company. The Cam
bria Company owns almost all the land,
and the business and professional men and
the superintendent OF the company lived
on the hills away up from creeks. The
creeks become the Conemhugh river right
at the end of the town, near where the big
stone Pennsylvania RAILROAD bridge crosses
the river.
For more than year, it Is said, there had
been fears OF disaster of this character
The foundations vi the dam were considered
shaky early last spring, and increasing leak
ages were reported from time to time. The
people, it is stated, were warned oil the break
in time to have made their escape, but the
warning was not generally regarded. The
water began pouring into JOhnstOwn about
| o'clock Friday and the full volume struck
it little later, and not till then Was the
extent Of the danger appreciated. Those
who had time fled TO the high grounds, but
hundreds of people were caught in the fitts
and were buried beneath ialliny walls or
were washed away in their trail frame
houses, which were soon torn To pieces in the
fierce tide or wrecked against the railroad
bridge, where much Of the debris lodged
ana plieu up 10 great nclBnl.
The most awful elimination Of the awful
night was the roasting ol n hundred or more
persons III midlluod. The ruin OF houses,
old buildings and other structures which
swept against the ritifuad bridge caught
fire. There were crowds ui men, women
and children on the wreck, and their screams
were soon added to the awful chorus of
horror They literally roasted On the
flood. Soon alter the fire burned itself out
others were thrown against the mass There
were some MY people in sight when the
ruins suddenly parted, broke up and swept
under the bridge into pltchy darkness.
There were three stages or divisions in
the iateiul course Of the disaster-the flood
caused by heavy rains, the breaking ol II
huge lumber boom On Stony creek, and
most destructive OF all, the giving away OF
the Conemaugh lake embankment. The
flood due 10 the storm appears to have been
almost at its height at about O'Clock Fri
day afternoon. Then the lumber boom on
Stony creek was torn away, and the enor-
nous mass of logs, hurled down the stream
and over the submerged district OF the
doomed city, tore away the houses as though
they had been built of cards. While this
work of destruction was still going on there
came down the valley OF Conemaugh creek,
almost without warning, towering mass
OF rushing water from the burst embank-
ment at Conemaugh lake, which swept with
resstless force over the remaining houses
| and buried them under fathoms of water or
carried them at once down the stream.
| From Johnstown the food swept on down
the Conemaugh river to Sheridan, Sang Hol-
| low, twelve miles below Johnstown, Nine
web, Lockport and Bolivar, all of which
which were inundated.
Mr. ~ int ~ flH
| Fishing Club Hotel, came TO Johnstown this
afternoon. He says that when the dam oi
/ Conemaugh lake broke the water seemed 70
leap, scarcely touching the ground II
bounded down the valley, crashing and roar
ing, carrying everything before it. For a
mile its front seemed like a solid wall TWEEN
| ty feet high
The warning given the stricken city was
sent from South Fork village by Freight
Agent Dechert. Richard Davis ran To Pros
| pect Hill when the water raised. AS to Mr.
| Dpphartig nne0aaUa ha cave inst auch have