River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1892-06-09


main standing.
Paul & Sons furniture house, four
story building, was swept away with
$50, 900 worth of stock, furniture, etc.
Reinbold's hotel and livery stable were
destroyed in few moments, and Mr..
Reinbold and two others who have not
been identified were burned to death.
These three bodies have been recov-
cred.
About half of the Third ward has
been destroyed and the fire is still do
ing its awful work in this part of tie
city. People are panic-strieken all over
town, and mothers have been running
about madly looking for their lost chill
dren. Fathers Of families are search
ing for Their children and endeavoring
to get them all together in a place of
safety.
Up to p. IN. sixty-nine bodies had
been recovered and identified, and the
death list will figure up much larger,
some placing it three or four times that
number. There are fifteen bodies at
the undertaking rooms of Drifting, Me
Cracker & Co., twenty-five at the city
hall and a number were taken to their
homes. There are still many persons
missing.
TITUsvILLE, Pa, June 6.-This city is
passing through the largest flood, at
tended with fire, together with large
loss of life, that it has ever experienced.
Though the fire is still raging, the latter
is now under control. The estimate of
actual loss will foot up betw ee
81, 1000, 600 and 81, 100000. The loss
of life win De from seventy to 200 peo-
pie, composed mostly of the working
classes. Fifteen bodies have been re.
covered. Oil creek has overfowed its
banks from the west end above the wa
ter and gasworks to the city line below
and for hours assumed the proportions
of an almost resistless flood, reaching
almost up to the line of Spring street.
Scores of cheap dwelling houses in the
lower part of the city, on Mechanic
street and vicinity, have been de-
stroyed.
Titusville gave SIS. 900 to Chicago, So
600 to the Johnstown sufferers and 81
900 20 the sonth at the time of the vel.
low-fever epidemic. also $1,000 to the
Russian relief, and has also responded
to all demands upon the public sym
pathy when oil towns have been in dis
treSS.
The scene presented by the rushing
waters surging through the lower part
of the city, as witnessed by thousands
of citizens, wa one of utter desolation.
| When morning broke hundreds of anx,
/ ious peopl e looked out of the windows or
/ stood on the roofs of the houses wait
ing for helping hand and trembling
/ for their fate. Strong and brave men
/ by means of boats and ropes succeeded
in reaching and saving those who had
| gained d position where they could hold
on till help arrived or till the waters
began to recede.
| To add to the horror of the scene,
rain fell in torrents and fire broke out
/ in the refneries at different points, and
the burning oil sweeping down the cur.
rent communicated the fire to other
manufacturing plants and estab-
/ lishments, and the destruction
was increased hundred fold. Among
/ the buildings destroyed by fire are
\ the International oil works, the Hiram
! Blow copper shop, the Rice q Robins On
| refinery, the Titusville radiator works,
the Western New York & Pennsylvania
railroad freight offices, Casperson's fur
niture works, store and residence; Jack
/ Cullen's hotel and Crescent OF. works of
! John Schwartz & Co.
Fully otre-third of the business and
residence portion of the city is a mass
of charred embers, over which the ter
rible waters still rush with undated
| fury. The streets are filed w3E
| crowds of wet, hungry, hope
less and despairing men, women
/ and children, most of whom have
/ lost loved ones and all their property.
The water still floods the streets and
the sky is still black with heavy smoke
from the burning refneries, cooper
| shops, radiator works, hotels, fur
niture factories, freight depots and
dwellings.
The big refinery and wax plant
owned by L. l.. Wood & Co. caught fire
exactly at noon, and the black smoke
/ blowing directly over the city turned
midday almost into the blackness
of night, and as the rain con-
tinued to come down in bucket
I fuls what the outcome was to be was
/ pdSS even CONJECTURE Ihc "d1ciS VI
Oil creek were rushing through the
streets in the lower part of the city
with resistless force, while from houses
and driftwood piles in the midst of the
torrent came beseeching walls and
screams of anguish from the helpless
victims.
The suddenness of the rise of the riv-
er was later explained by the intelli-
gence that the huge mill dam of
Thompson & Eldred, located at Spar
tansburg about miles from this city,
had burst. The lake made by this dam
was half mile in length by a quarter
of a mile in breadth, and the waters
thus suddenly let loose made this VAL
ley in the course of a few moments a
Afnaznn