Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1889-06-06

II
by the Waters From a
gra7a Burst Dam. saipa
THERIvER BLACK WITH CoRPSEs
D.. THE MOST APPALLING DE-
LUCE THIS COUNTRY HAS
EVER KNOWN.
-iH l0-a -- II lyl.. .'--.' ....
Rumor OF an Awful Holocaust In the
--.4'f ....- +t@. Wreekage. g-gs
gAj AZ ' .yg-----..l..-s fr..n ars
PITTSBURGH, June The most ap-
paiiing calamity this country has ever
known, IL the reports from the scene of
disaster are true, occurred last evening
at Johnston, PA. Fully i 500 persons
are said to have perished by deluge
that came roaring down upon, the
towns of the Conemaugh river, from
the great reservoir just above Johnston.
All the wires are down, bridges are
swept away, the mountain roads i'm
passable and only rneager details Of the
calamity are obtainable. But enough
is known with certainty to justify. the
statement that many hundreds of lives
resacrificed. The telegraph operator
In the Pennsylvania railroad tower at
Sang Hollow, twelve miles west of
Johnston, says he counted last night
more than 75 dead bodies float by in
the river. How many went after dark
ness came on it is impossible to say.
Eighty-five persons were counted on
driftWood floating past Florence. One
report states that only two roofs in the
whole Of Johnston remained above
water. Pennsylvania, railroad officials
aver that 200 dead bodies were counted
In the stream near the doomed town,
while several other towns on the Cone
maugh and Stony fork furnished their
score Of victims. - ''' ''''
Johnston liesin the Allegheny mount
aims, on the Pennsylvania railroad, 70
miles east of Pittsburgh. Itisa mining
and uufacturing town of some 5000
Inhabitants, The Conernague river
passes it on one side and the Stony
fork or South fork on the other, The
reservoir lies about two and half miles
northeast of the town and was one OF
the feeders of the old Pennsylvania
canal. 1t was formerly known as Cone
maugh lake. 1t was from 200 to 300
feet above the level of the town, three
and a half miles long and over mile
wide. In some. places it is 100 feet deep,
fs0,that it is really the most capaeious
reservoir in the United States. .4a,-,.f ,
"A dam from 700 to 1000, feet long, 90
feet thick and ITO feet high held in
check the vast body Of water behind it
This dam was always inspected once 0
fa0nth. SUI 4ii @}i. Ll'. i.s. Il. r#|ts .
t12It is certain that something of the
nature of a cloud burst must havt
Estruck the dam, or it could not have
been broken, as it was, regarded as ex
4 lceptionaliy strong Ill s5
4 la,s OTHER TOWNS DEVASTATED.
With exception of one point th.
water passed through a narrow V
shaped valley, -Four miles below th'
dam lay the town, ofSOuth fork, whert
the South fork itself empties into tht
IConeinague river. The town contained
1000 inhabitants.
1t has not been heard from, but ~ i.
said that four fifths fit has been swep
Iaway. s $3.50 1-esa ,.s''- .
Four miles further down on the Gone
mague river was. the town of Minera
Point. It had 800 inhabitants, 80 pc
cent of the houses being on o fiat clos
to the river. 1t seems impossible q
this time to hope that any of them hav
escaped u. u. 15 %''
4 Six miles further down was the tow
of Conemague, and here alone wa
!. there Typographical possibility of tn
spreading of the food and the breaking
of its force. It contained $500 inhabi
, tants, and must be almost wholly de
vastated. --t,,, ;s....,H ..,l. * ..s..
Woodvale, with 1000 people. lay
mile below Conemaugh in the fiat, AM
one mile further down were Johnston
and its cluster of sister towns-C -Cambri
City, Conemaugh ,borough-with q to
tai population of 10000. On mad
ground and stretched along right at tn
river verge were the immense iron
works of the Cambria IRON and Stee
tcompany, who have $5, ,000, 900 investet
in their plant. Besides this there ar
many other large industrial establish
bments On the bank of the river. ,,.44
SANG Hollow, Pa. June 1.-Th'
first reports of loss of life were entirel,
,. too low! It, is believed that at leas
1000, persons have perished. OF thes
700 on 800 were burned in, the fiery fur
Enaee at the viaduct. =, " 5''.a ,'s.'.- - -
IT, Two thousand coffins have been or
fiered for bodies already rescued.
~ SANG Hollow, Pa, June 1 AT 9:3
the first train passed New Florence east
! 1t was crowded with people from Pitts
burg aud places en- route, people WIN
> were going ttoI the scene of the disaste
with but, little hope, of finding thei
tleyed ones alive, Rich and poor wer
Ion board that train, all thinking. of bu
lone thing and that was: ." What Wi
1--we see?" ''5i ''''31 '7s E4'~+ ~ X"
~ II wasaa heartrending sight, and mo
: ta dry eye was In the train. 3ilI-~2iEsq
New FLORENCE, Pa, iJ1neG1. .-Th
number drowned 10 estimated at 4,00C
property duss about Sill 600, 600.
&c. W.. HOppenstall of Lincoln ave
: nue. east end OF Pittsburg, distinguishe'
himself by his bravery yesterday after
lnO0n. He was messenger on the mai
train which had to turn back at San
1 Hollow u As the train passed q poin
r where the water was full Of struggling
sIpe0pie, q wife and child fioated In nea
. shore. The train wasstopped and HoE
i penstall9 undfessed; jumped into tn
2 water and iatwotripsrsayed both mott
z or and childa sscI vJ-Loaa OH l.ez IA b
j JOHsNsToWN,, June 2.-When Superir
I tendent Pitcairn. tetegraphed to Pitts
! burg that Johnstown was annihilate
} he. came very near to The truth, thougl
{ he had not seen tha 'flf-f -fatefi t6wn. II