The county record. [volume] (Kingstree, S.C.) 1885-1975, 1897-04-15
THRILLING DESCRIPTION

w. j. BRYAN.
THRILLING DESCRIPTION
or the Drowning Of Three Mon Sin Milse
From aresnvile.
GREENvnLE, April 6.-The Saluda
River is within its banks again, after
being on a boom Monday night and
this morning, during which three men
were drowned and one mule and two
horses perished. Three more men
miraculously escaped death after be-
ing considerably bruised, and thou.
sands of dollars worth OF bridges
were swept away. The dead are John
Freeman, white, of Pickens County;
Jackson Byrd, colored, of Pickens
County; Babe Gillespie, colored Of
Greenville County. The wounded
are: Claude Hood, William Green
and Mr.. McDade. all white, of Pelzer.
This river has decided reputation for
turbulence and violence, and many
drownings and hair-breadth escapes
are related of its former sprees. It
was fifteen feet above normal at mid
night before the last and was out of its
banks hundreds OF yards on both
sides. surging and sweeping by at
terrific speed and frowning and threat
ening with eddies everywhere. Ris-
ing as it does in the mountains, the
Saluda, above all other streams here
abouts, is particularly violent after
heavy rains. The great incline of its
bed and the hilly character of its banks
gives it remarkable speed and volume.
It came within three inches yesterday
OF smashing all previous records.
The drowning scene was at the Cox
Bridge, within six miles of this city.
One of the victims was John Free.
man, well.to do Pickens farmer and
man OF family. he perished in the
presence of about fifty persons gath
cred on the Pickens and Greenville
banks. The bridge is large covered
wooden structure and its floor is thir-.
teen feet above the normal heighth of
the river. The two abutments are
substantially CONSTRUCTED of granite,
filled in to the banks with earth. The
men who perished were driving from
Greenville. The water was rushing
over both earthen abutments, about
two feet deep on the Pickens side.
The water was about q foot and half
above the floor and six inches more
would have sent the whole structure
whirling down the river.
The party crossed the bridge in safe.
ty. JEFF Davis. colored. in the two
horse wagon with Mr.. freeman, and
Bryan was in cart in front. Bryan
crossed the overf1owed abdumept with
ease, but as the wagon reached the
Pickens end of the bridge, the mule,
the lefthand animal of the team,
doubted the propriety of going over
the abutment and backed. The lash
was applied and then the horse, which
was on the left, stepped into q hole
about eight.inches deep. The mule
shied and carried the horse with him
q few feet down the embankment OF
the abutment on his side, which was
downstream. The negro jumped out
and fed to the bank. Mr.. Freeman
got into water about waist deep and
went to his team and attempted to lead
them back on the embankment. But
the animals were excited and, rearing
up, struck Mr.. freeman in the face
and sent him under the water and
down the stream into water about ten
feet deep. The team was swept after
him. About fifty feet from the scene
of the first trouble Mr.. Freeman seized
a tree and grabbed his horses bride
again, and in the struggle went under
the second time. The horse got away,
and Mr.. Freeman went under the Last
time. In few minutes Jackson Byrd
and Babe Gillespie were drowned In
the same way as Freeman, their teams
going off the bridge. Heroic efforts
to save them were futile.
The men wounded were hurt by the
falling of the Pelzsr bridge. The new
$l2, 600 iron bridge over the Saluda
River at Pelzer was swept from its
piers on Monday night. The loss is
$4,000. The bridge was to have been
accepted by the county supervisor on
Satur lay. Ths loss falls upon Con-
tractor J. 81. Whitner, of Tennessee.
The three white men named above,
who were trying to save the bridge.
were swept overheard by the food Of
water as the bridge went down and
narrowly escaped being crushed in
the wreckage. The fall of the bridge
was due to the undermining of the
masonry pier on the Anderson side,
within few hundred feet of the main
building of the Pelzsr Cotton Mills,
and about fifty feet below their dam:
This bridge has been the subject OF
much controversy as to whether Green
vile should pay one-half the cost OF
its construction. It was claimed that
Greenville was helping to divert trade
from her own machines toward those
in Pelzer. A new span and pier will
have to be built.
Leaving Low Lands.
LEAyENswoRTH, April S.-The river
is within five feet of the flood OF 1881
| l LII ~;,;,r cfao6ilu having c0rna