The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1889-06-01
THE JoHxsrowS HORROR.
Swept Away by the Enrstin- Of Z
Gfgnrtfc Mountain Reservoir.


GarESsEUsG. Max 3s.-Ia order 90 IN
sserx.aad tbs nature OF this calamity II 1,
necessary 10 describe sse respective lcca
reservoir lies anout eighteen miles aorfh
esstaf ssansfown, and II ls the site Of sr
OH krserysl@ vhi'h D i one or TIE sceasrz o,
the Pennsylvania eansL This sheet cl
water vas formerly known ss conemaagh
sske. II II from 20 % zoo fscs above IN
levea of Jonns'cwn, being In the MoaDf
airs.
Ii is about three aud a half miles lens
and from u sniie 10 8 mic aEs. a quarter IN
Width, and in some places il IL 100 fret IN
depth. Ii hulsis more water than any Dsh1z
reservoir, natural or ARTIFICIAL in the United
stairs. The lake has been qnadfup.ed In
check by q dam 20 90 i,txss feet wide. II is
niucty ieet Ia thickness at tts base, snG
the heights 10 feet The Tap has = breadth
of over twenty feet.
Recognizing the menace whics the LAKE
presented 10 ths region below the South
Fork. the PitssbaFx Fishing Ciuh which
owned The reservoir had the dam in
spseskd ono raonsh ago BY Pennsylvania
railroad engineers. axn their inyesfAnntien
showed that nothing lsss than snsae can
vulsien ,sf ustETe woHld tear the baDier
Away and iucsen The weapon Of death.
The steady rains Of the mast forty -eish hi
hours increased the volume OF water in ali
the small munntain streams, whie. s-ere
already swelled BY lezstr rain earlier Ia
From the infurmasson obtained ~ this
time is Is evident that something of shf
nature OF q clnudharst must have been the
culininatinn of the ssruggie ct the water
against the emhankment
The dlsiiculfy OF obtaining finite infnr.
makion adds tremendously 20 the exc te-
nlenf and apprehension of The people whu
have relstsyes and friends at the scene oi
| the disaster.
IT BROKE LOOSE AND Ran RIer.
The cosfse Of the torrent isesn the
broken dana af the fcot of the lake 70
Jelsnssuws< is nsss'pss eighteen isisss, and
with the exception Of oslr paint The water
passed through narrow y~shaped valley.
Four nstleS below The dam lay the tawn
nf Soutb Fork. where the South Fork tsseiI
empIes Into the Canesnsukh river. The
town contained about ace inhabitants II
has not been heard from. but IL IL said
fur isffhs Of e hrs keen swept away.
-Four miles further down. op the Cone.
msssh river. wnsca rams parallel with The
main line ofthe Pennsyls ylsauia railroad, wuz
the town Of Mineral Point II had 500 In
habifsutz, niucty per cent ~ fhe hou<e<
, BEING On dat and cio<,f 20 the river. II
seems impossible ct this time 10 hope thai
Six miies further down was the town oi
ConeH .ueh. snd here alone there was q
| Typographical possibility Of spreading TIE
| finrss and break ng IL Of iss force II con-
tanned 1.4O) EuhsbitsEts. aud was almost
wholly sevssf-tsd.
Woodale, wi b 2 COO people, lay mile be-
low Conenaugh In q has, and enc mile
further down were Jehlistown and it, eins-
ter Of siSter towns. Cambria City and Cone
snauxh, with total fopulafion ~ II. COO
ssp made ground and stretched along the
river were the ifnmense iron works a the
Cambria frsn and steel Company, who
have <Sf210e1 invested Ia their
plant. Besidcs this theSe are fngnv
other large Industrial establishments
on the bx;sk 81 the RIVER. How badly cam.
aged they are canpos b, estimated At Ii
p m. 8 railraad man says the lnss ef III.
W. II reach husfreds and possitly uysr 4
theaespd- The report ~ the ioss nf these
towps sfsve cannot yet be confirmed
BOLIVAR, Pa. May ALA courier from
the scene IL the food Es soAnstown re-
ports the loss Of life 70 rssch leo