Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1892-05-14
SUBME
Towns and Farming Lands In the Illinois
Valley Under Water - An Enormous
Amount of Damage Results.


Amount of Damage Results.
OTTAWA, ILL.,, May 0.-The streets OF
this city are rivers, the public parks
lakes of water and mud and private
grounds buried beneath acres of water.
This is the evidence left by one of the
most strpendous transforms and cloud
bursts that have passed over
the Illinois and Fox river valleys
in fifty years. The terrific floods
of Monday and Tuesday, pre-
cipitating oceans of water upon this
territory, were but as pigmies to giants
in comparison to the awful downpour
of waters Wednesday night.
For four hours the storm beat upon
the residences and the streets
and the factories with remorseless
fury, and wh"r dawn broke Of
tawa, Marseilles, Utica, Peru and
La Sale, with nearly every
foot of the intervening farm
ing lands and roads, were great
lake of mud and water. Not a street
nor an alley nor a residence lot in the
four cities escaped. Perhaps the
greatest share of damage fell upon OF
tawa and La Sale. In Ottawa
the glass factory district, contain
ing five huge glass factories, a
pot mill and the powerhouse and
car barns of the electric street
railway, was buried beneath from to
12 feet of water. None of the factor
les will be able to operate for week.
1t is almost an impossibility to approx
innate the damages to these five cities,
| but it can safely be said to be not less
than S1,500,OO0.
Along the Illinois river, which raised
to a height of 22 feet above low water
mark, the Pioneer Fireproof Constrnc-
tiou Company's great plant, the Victor
rolling mills, the Porter hay carrier
shops and Sanders Brothers planning
mills were several feet under water.
Besides this damage to the factories,
the residences located in the aats
and in the glassworSs' district are
badly damaged, and on the south side
of the Illinois river thousands of dollars
worth of beautiful lawns and parked
streets are wrecked.
La Sale is an island in a waste of
waters, the immense floods gathering
volume from every creek and stream
along the Illinois river The condi-
tions in residence and business districts
are the same as in Ottawa and the
damage will reach 100000.
AT Peru Water street and the
business portion of the town was
badly damaged and the lower part
of the town is under water, residence
and business property being buried be-
meath hundreds of tons of water. The
Peru rolling mills are also under water
and the damage is very heavy, being
not less than S350,00o.
At Marseilles the entire eastern end
| of the city, known as the "old town."
| has been afoat all day and hundreds of
| people We're driven from their homes.
| The loss to the manufacturing district
| through the ruin of the race and the
new power gates and the breaking of
| the lower levee is very heavy, and may
cause the suspension of all the paper
and wood mills for month. The loss
to the little city in this case will foot up
total of $500, 600.
The great Utica cement works are
under water, and Urica's damage will
amount to 100000 or about that sum.
Besides the damages to the cities the
Rock Island railroad tracks are washed
out in half dozen places between Mar
seilles and Utica, total of near
ly 1000 feet having been de-
stroyed. The road will not be
able to move trains for two and pos
sibly three days. The Covel creek
bridge of the Chicago, Burlington Il
Quincy is gone, preventing trains from
entering Streator. The Illinois & Mich.
| igan canal is damaged and broken in
Many places between Ottawa and La
Sale, and navigation will be impossible
below Ottawa.
JOLIET, H., May 6.-Not since
August, 1864, has there been so extcn.
sive flood in Joliet as that of the
present. Rain began falling at 10 o'clock
| Wednesday, and increased with inces
SAINT lightning and thunder. At9o'clocl
Thursday morning workmcn at Hyde's
mill, near the upper dam, telephoned
to the police station that they
feared the dam would go out, in which
case the middle portion of the city
would be placed under water. Police
men and tiremen started out to war;
the thousands of persons to get to the
bluffs, and in less than half an houl
hundreds of homes were left empty
and citizens living high and dry
had plenty of visitors. The water
ran over the bank of the canal above
Hydc's mill before many could leave
their homes, and these were taken on,
by men in carriages and wagons
AT Lockport the water held full sway
flooding the lowlands and causing havoc
among the mills. The paper MILL the
wire mill, the oatmeal and -four mill.
and other industrial plants are under
water, and many of the homes within
reach of the flood have been vacated
DEs MONIES, Ia, May g. Con
tinuous rains in Iowa for the
last week have resulted in higl
water and great damage to railroads
About the only lines in Iowa that hav,
not suffered are the Northwestern anc
the Burlington. Travel by wagon i.
impossible on account of the condition
r