The western sentinel. [volume] (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 1887-1926, 1893-10-19
STORM AT WILMINGTON.
THE MOST DESTRUCTIVE SINE
1883.
The Water in one Street Deep Enough
for Row Boats-The Loss Placed
at S15O,OOO.

The wind and rain storm which
visited Wilmington on the 14th inst.
proved very disastrous to the city by
the sea. The wind started in from
the southeast and held in this quarter
until about two O'Clock in the after
noon, when it gradually veered around
to the southwest, and the rest of the
gale was from this direction, the wind
blowing with diminished force after
nightfan, until 10 o'clock, when it
subsidized to almost perfect calm.
But the tide was the highest ever
known in the memory of the most an
cient resident, being sixteen inches
above the highest mark, which was
registered and recorded in 1858, which
has surpassed all previous known rec
OrdS, it is believed, since the deluge.
On the river the scene was almost
terrible in its grandeur The waves
dashed with tremendous force against
the WharVeS and sides of vessels,
throwing clouds of spray high into
the air. The tide came in with
mighty force and SWittneSS. covering
the lowlands opposite the city and
stretching in an unbrOken sea across
the rice fields, as far as the eye could
reach. The troubled stream of the
on its broad bosom an immense guam
tity of wreckage, broken gangways,
trunks OF the drifting boats, and
thousands of sticks, washed away
from the saw mills.
There was little shipping in port,
and nearly all rode the gale in safety.
The high water did considerable dam
age on Water street. All the wharves
were under water, and the floods
Of
warehouses. The city fire wharyes,
at the foot of Water street, were
washed up and the wharf on the north
side of the dock was landed bodily in
the water. The fire wharves at the
foot of Dock street and at the foot of
Prince and Chestnut streets were also
badly damaged and will cost the city
a considerable sum to rebuild. The
tide swept over Water street in many
places and the flood was deep enough
on this street from Chestnut to Null
berry for row boats to move in.
At the Cape Fear & Yadkin Valley
Railroad Wharves the flood covered
everything and some damage resulted
to goods belonging to merchants and
awaiting removal.
The Wilmington compress ware
house was flooded water standing
from to s inches deep on the fiooOr.
ucIc were GIODuU OOO UdIcS VI COUUOu
in the warehouse. all of which is dam
aged to some extent by water. At
the Champion compress the damage
was comparatively slight, only few
bales of cotton being in the water.
Telephone and telegraph and cleo
trio wires were all in a tangle, and
the superintendent of each of the
lines were out with large forces of
linemen trying to straighten out mat
tiers and get things in working order.
One of the small spires OF the First
Presbyterian church was blown down
about 3 o'clock. People were passing
when it fell, and some persons barely
missed being crushed.
At Southport the storm was much
more severe. The custom house
house building and nearly all the
wharves were washed away. Many res
licences, warehouses and other build
ings were badly damaged.
AT Ocean View all the large pavil-
lions and many cottages were either
swept away or more or less damaged
The loss there will probably reach
$4,000.
The only loss of life yet known
was reported from Sampson, where
tree fell on the house of a farmer
named Lane and crushed two of his
children to death.
The total loss of the immediate sec
tiOn of Wilmington will probably
reach S150,000.