The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1889-07-24
Additional Particulars.

By a strange coincidence, at town of the
same name, under almost the same circun-
stances, the wild scenes of the food Of the
Conemaugh have been repeated.
Another mud dam has given away;
another reservoir has broken loose, and
another food has been sent down valley.
Even the stone arch bridge reappears and
plays a fatal part in this second Johnstown
story.
Nothing is lacking in the similitltde, except
the loss of life and property.
The clouds came together near Johnstown,
n. Y, at five o'clock in the afternoon. AS
they met they burst and an ocean of water
from the dams it had washed away, it
sent flood through the little valley Of the
Cayadutta. Seventy-five persons were
washed away; eight persons were killed; an
immense amount Of property was de-
sMoyed; all railroad traffic was sus-
pended The names of the victims follow:
Albert L. Coakley, aged forty-eight, glove
known resident; Willie Myers, aged sixteen,
employed at glove-making; L. r. D.
Simmons, aged forty-five, paint and
hardware merchant. Stedwell L. Bert, aged
fifteen, employed in Artizians' glove factory.
Unknown man found in stream at Fonda.
Unidentified woman and child.
The two clouds were seen at o'clock to
circle around each other for a few min
utes and then sweep together with deaf
ening crash of thunder. The place
where they met is a half barren knoll,
three miles and half northeast of Johns
town. Persons who were watching the
phenomenon say it was like dam burst in
The sky or as though the bottom had fallen
out of an aerial reservoir.
The water came down not in drops or
sheets, but fell in mass like a solid body.
At the knoll it drove trees into the earth,
fattened out space clear Of vegetation and
left other evidences of great pressure.
Then people began to come out of their
houses and to wonder at the storm and at
the size of the little creek, which runs
through the town, supplying water power to
q number Of mills and factories. They
gathered on the bridges at Main, Market
and Perry streets, and watched the flood.
The lumber hoated down and carried away
the Bridge street bridge, and then all this
hoated down and carried OFF the big two
low. The single-track bridge went next.
There was tremendous excitement when the
bridges went down. Then Levi Stephensons
lumber yard and planning mill was cleared
out. Sashes and blinds, boards and Scantlings
were swept away.
i There was big crowd on the Perry street
bridge. This bridge is of stone, single arch
OF stone and is twenty feet long and fifteen
feet wide. The people were all over the
bridge, but most Of them were crowded
against the stone coping on the eastern
side looking intently at the torrent.
There We're about forty persons on the
bridge Suddenly there was cry, and it
was seen that Simon Schrieber's big three
story skin mill on the southern side of the
bridge was tottering. The mill did not fall,
but its foundations were loosened. The
same impulse that shook the mill smashed
Stewards leather mill near by, and mass
of timbers and trees went smashing against
the Perry street bridge. The east
ern side was jammed in, its coping taken off,
and the water swept clear across the bridge.
All this happened little after o'clock Half
the people on the bridge were thrown into
the angry stream. There were awful cries
N the dark of For Gods sake help me-" 'sI
am drowning" Save me-" Happily, nearly
all were saved.
The losses by the destruction of mill prop
erty, factories, bridges, dams and other
structures in and around Johnstown is
roughly estimated at half million dollars,
and it is believed that the property destroyed
In other sections within the flooded area will
cost as much more in being restored.
l. The loss Johnstown herself will sustain by
the food will amount perhaps to Sl00 0O0