The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1889-06-14
THE STORY TOLD BY MAINE MEN
Who Saw the Awful Flood Devastate
Jamestown.
What Mr.. Albert e. Freeman OF Port
land Experienced.
Narrow Escape of MIR. r. E. Smith,
Formerly of hiram.

Mr.. Albert E. Freeman of this city. who
was at Johnstown, Penn, when that region
was flooded by the bursting of the dam
above the city, arrived home yesterday af-
ternoon and was seen by PRESS reporter
at his residence 80 Brown street He told
the writer an interesting story Of his own ex-
periences at the time of the awful calamity
and during the 10 days following it that he
remained upon the scene. ION Friday, May
1st." said Mr. Freeman, 'the daysthe dam
broke, l was stopping with my brother in
law, Mr.. E. V. Barker at Coopersdale, q
place of about 700 inhabitants, located. a lit
tie over a mile below Johnstown on the Con-
emaugh river. Thursday night there must
have been very heavy rain in the mou ntains,
because when we awoke Friday NOR ming the
river was flooded and two bridges at Coop
ersdale were swept away during the night
At Johnstown and other places on the river
the water had oyerhowed the banks of the
river, entered the houses, flooding the first
floors and forcing people into the second
stories of their dwellings. Still they thought
nothing serious would happen, and were
leisurely waiting for the water to subsde.
before the dam broke. A little past O'Clock
Friday afternoon somebody shouted that
the dam had broken. We didn't believe it but
my brother-in-law and / rushed to the river
to see If the report was true. Standing on a
pier by the river which is 800 or 400 feet
wide at this place, we had not waited long
when two men cling to debris went floating
down by in the current. Then came others.
i saw men, women and
children float down by, but it was impossi-
BILE to rescue them. One woman shouted
Good bye" as she floated by clilging to
some timber. saw another woman on the
roof of house, holding fast to the ridge
pole. Suddenly, about 4 p. m, a wave
about six feet high came sweeping down the
river, and we had to run for our lives from
the pier. Coopersdale was flooded 1000 feet
from the river, several houses we're swept
away. others were toppled over, and the
water stood six to ten feet deep In two
thirds of the houses of the village Mr.
Barker's house, in which l was stopping. is
situated some distance from the river on
high ground. The water came as far as the
fence that surrounded the house, but did not
enter the building. During the 10 or 10
minutes that my brother-in-law and | stood
on the pier by the river, We saw as many as
fifty people 60 down stream clinging to de-
bris. In the lower part of Coopersdale a
man with boat rescued twenty people alive
from the river. When night came our atten-
tion was attracted by big fire in the direc-
tion of Johnstown that lighted the
region for miles around. This was the
burning debris that lodged against the
staunch stone bridge of the Pennsylvania
railroad, just below the confluence of Cone
maugh river and Stony creek. The debris
was proba ably set on fire by the upsetting of
stoves ia the houses that were swept down
the river and collected above the bridge in
an immense mass of ruin. All night the fire
ragged over a territory several acres in extent
lighting the sky. BY Saturday morning the
water had subsidized between the river banks.
Soon after daylight my nephew and | started
up the river to Woodvale. village before
the flood of about $500 population. situated
about mile above Johnstown, on the oppo-
site bank of the Conemaugh river. We went
in search OF my nephew, Mr.. Il. W. Barker
and his family, which consisted of his wife,
two children and his wife's sister and moth
er. who lived at Woodyale. Walking was
difficult because the water, when it subsidized
left a thick coating of sticky mud several
about a quarter of mile we came upon the
dead body of woman whose head was con-
siderably bruised. We did not recognize her
and hurried on. Both banks of the river
were covered with clothing and debris and
on every branch and twig their were pieces
Of cloth. clothing and debris. A little further
onswe came to more dead bodies, and soon
found both banks of the river to be strewn
with the dead. 10 passing the Cambria Iron
Works we saw some men take the dead bod
les of a woman and child from the mud of
that place. We did not meet many live peo-
pie but inquired of ali whom we passed if
they had heard of or seen any of our folks. We
passed people searching as we were doing
for friends and we saw some of them find
and bear away the dead bodies of relatives
or friends that they found and recognized.
When we passed the Pennsylvania railroad
bridge the vast field of ruins above it was
still in flames. We arrived on the bluff
above the place where Woodvaie had
once stood, but all that remained
Of what was once busy and prosperous viii
lage were the flour mill and part of the
wooden mill. Everything else was swept
clean away. One never would have known
from appearances that village had ever
stood there. Woodvale suffered more accord
ing to its size than any other place along the
river. Out of 324 houses, 295 went off with
the flood, and those that remained stood on
the bluff. My nephew and his whole family
were swept away and to this moment we
have not heard one word from them. The
last we ever heard of them was that they
were all in the house and their
house was carried down by the food Scores
of friends and acquaintances of my brother
n-law were drowned. The stone bridge of
the Pennsylvania railroad was all that saved
C0opersdae. But far the bridge the loss of
life would have been very much greater than
it was. Many people as they foated down
on the housetops, when they reached the
bridge were able to climb upon it and save
themselves. Many others were held 10 the
debris and their agonizing cries could be
ri aS ha rat a a nd w hl nnd
to death. IL is impossible for me to describe
the awful catastrophe. Only by witnessing
1t could one realize how terrible it was or
form an adequate idea of it. Not finding my
relatives / returned with my nephew to
C0opersdale and spent Saturday night there.
Sunday went up to Johnstown. By that
time all the living had been taken from the
ruins in the city. Some found quarters in
the few remaining houses on the BLUFF, but
many went to Pittsburg, which is about rs
miles distant, where they were provided
with rooms. The work of getting out the
dead began in earnest Sunday and that dav