The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1894-06-17
FIRST STREET.


Distance of submerged street.. miles
| Number OF firms affected - 254
Estimated damage. $4,000
The above estimate will, believe, be
found very substantially correct, First
street, though not as deeply flooded as
Front is to all appearances in a; very
much worse condition. This idea Is
brought about chiefly, no doubt, by the
contrast between the finer looking stores
and buildings that crowd First, and the
dismal appearance created by the flood
Most Of the Front street architecture
leans more to solidity than beauty, and
the havoc wrought in an artstically
furnished jewelfy store appeals more to
the eye than the damage to a stern
looking front Of a jobbing house. though
of course the greater loss lies with the
latter.
Beginning at Taylor street, at which
point the water now rests, we will take
a glance along First, and row down
that thoroughfare slowly The water, OF
course, gets deeper as we approach the
end of our journey past the Union
Ticket office The cobblestones-thos
eyesores and earachers that have been
the bane of many a resident Of Port
land-are badly broken up, and there
are not two stones in the whole road
that are holding together The horse
car line rails are, Of course, twisted out
of shape completely, and only serve as
a trough, where they water is shallow, to
hold the filth and garbage in the mid
die Of the road. At Yamhill street the
filth become thicker being piled up on
the sides of the culverts and smelling
to heaven" In this vicinity are several
handsome stores that show the ravages
of the flood. Forbes & Breeder, the fur
niture men, have lost to some extent by
damage to material on the ground floors
that could not be moved out in time.
Krickmans tiling and chimney furni-
ture store is badly damaged, and great
deal of beautiful decorative ware and
paneling is destroyed. Sanborn Vail's
AiiS diI StOlS Htio lciL tilS eilSCtS VI tIc
trouble, too, to no small extent. Then
come the A. d. I. Co., Feldenheimer's
tewelry store, the c. p r roilroad Office
and Handley & Haas bookstore. The c.
p. r. office is in a fearful mess. Several
tons of stuff are damaged, and whole
lot Of fine furniture and Office fixings
badly stained and demolished.
Elffum e Pendleton's hat store, the
Skidmore Drug Co., and L. C. Henrick-
sons Jewelry store are completely wash
ed out Plate glass windows are smash
ed, and in this centre of the favorite
promenade district, rise huge masses of
debris that make the spot one of the
vilest in the whole city at the present
time. Baum & Brandes' candy store
and restaurant have been invaded by
the waters and everything they have
touched is blackened and ruined. The
Gilman House lies deep in the water
with its plate windows roughly boarded
up and Its guests sitting on planks six
feet high, built over the counter Of
The office. The hotel altogether just
now looks less respectable than the
5cow Of fisherman. Every store In
his region is filthy. The slime marks
lenoting the various levels of the water
ire numerous and cover every door and
window with reeking noisome matter.
From Alder to Washington we pass
several more Of the most fashionable
business houses in the city. Woodord.
Clark & Co., the handsome Offices Of
he Southern Pacific Co., Nlcolls tall
ring establishment Gunst & Co., the
and the Merchants Ma
ional bank-all looking like shack
itores that have been without occu-
'ants for ten years.
But the greatest sights Of the whole
horoughfare are the two buildings that
'tand opposite one another at the corner
Il First and Washington streets-the
'irst National Bank and the Northern
'aciflc ticket office. A description Of
heSe places will give fair idea Of the
iavoc wrought everywhere else on the