Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1895-04-19

the buildings at the Fort Dummer farm,
badly damaging the contents Of the house.
This time the water only reached the
buildings. The railroad tracks on the
meadows south of here were submerged in
1852 and badly washed out. 'The freshet
of 1869, which affected the Milestone and
small streams rather than the river, still
holds the record for property wrecking.
The damage at that time in Brattleboro
alone was something like $4,000, and
there was hardly town in the county but
had demolished bridges and buildings
and roads washed out. This week the
people back from the river towns saw moth
ing of freshet. The rains of last week
swept away the snow, and the rain which
fell Sunday and Monday was absorbed by
the earth The Milestone was no higher
than is often the case, and the same is true
of all other streams in this county. Itwas
the tributaries far to the north which
raised the Connecticut.
The freshet was the one absorbing topic
Monday, and hundreds OF people lined the
river and railroad banks to gaze upon a
wild turgid stream swollen to gigantic pro
portions.
The story of the freshet in our own state
and in Maine, New Hampshire and Massa-
chusetts is told on page two.
The rain which began falling Saturday
continued with only slight interruptions
until Monday night. The water was
thought TO be quite high Sunday afternoon,
but it was foot lower than the week be-
/ fore, when the cellars of the barns on the
island were filled. The water had over
| flowed a large part of the island Monday
! morning and by s o'clock was beginning to
flow upon the ball ground for the first time
in years. Its rise was steady and rapid
throughout the day. Between noon and q
o'clock there was a difference of eight
! inches to foot. At this time the water
covered the island completely with the eX-
ception of the high strip on the west side
/ (Which was not submerged in '62), and the
elevated road. In some places the water
lacked only few inches of flowing over
the road. The water swept in currents be-
tween the houses on the island, filled C..
H. Grants granite works to a depth
of several feet, surrounded and flowed
through the barns, filled the basement
floors of Chas. Ebbighausen and Herman
Rhodes houses on the New Hampshire
side to the depth of sveral feet, and cover
ed the road from the Little river bridge to
the Thomas house.
The condition Monday evening at I
o'clock was such as to cause great anxiety.
The water was then at its highest. The
Little river bridge was giving indications
of weakening, The bank south of the
west abutment of the main bridge was cav
ing in. The water was within two feet Of
the floor of the bridge. A slight rise more
meant great loss. But during the nigh
the waters began falling. They were still
at freshet pitch Tuesday morning, but i
was evident that the worst was over anC
by Tuesday night there had been fall o
many inches. Since then the river ha
been gradually shrinking to its natura
pitch 1t was 20 feet above low waite
mark Monday.
Signs were placed at this end of tn
bridge Monday afternoon warning peopl
not to go upon the structure, as there wa
danger. Notwithstanding the warnin
many crossed to the island TO see the con
ditiOn there.
Two or three families living in shantie
at the south end of the railroad yard move
their goods to high ground, as the watt