Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1900-11-07
AMERICAN cATAsTRoPREs.
We Are Great Even In Our Disasters Of Fire
and Flood.


The greatest conf1agrations which the
United States has ever had were the
one In Chicago in 1871, in which $751;
900, 900 of property was destroyed; the
fire In Boston in 1872, in which the
damage was So, ,OOO. .OO0; and the blaze in
New York in 1886, in which 800 ware
houses were destroyed and the damage
was $3O,OO0.000. AS the population of
New York at that time was only ESQ.,
900, or about like that Of Newark, N.
J., now, the loss was severer proper
tionately than one many times larger
would be In 1900. Chicago's fire, though
and Chicago had a population Of only
q little over 100000 at the time-was
the most destructive which ever occur
red anywhere in the world, with the
possible exception Of that in Moscow In
1912. Chicago's certainly exceeded the
damage at the conflagrs tion in London
which is called the Great Fire, which
occurred in 1885.
Johnstown, Pa, in 1889, furnished the
most destructive of the floods (Johns-
towns being from bursting reservoir)
Of the United States until that at Gal
weston on September 8, 1900. The loss
of property Of Johnstown was approx
mately $10,O00,0 900, and the loss Of life
was 2,15O The destruction at Calves
ton was over 5000 in life and about
$50, 900, 900 in property. The bursting Of
q reservoir in Mill river valley in Mas
sachusetts in 1874 destroyed several lit
tie villages and drowned $50 persons.
Floods on the Mississippi have fire.
quently destroyed from $5,0OO,OO0 to
SIC, 900, 900 Of property at time. and
more than once drowned from 1000
to 1,5O0 people.
The most destructive tornado which
ever hit a large city in the United
States, was that which destroyed 400
lives and $10,0OO,OO0 in property In
st. Louis in 1896. Louisville, the second
largest city ever struck in the United
States by a tornado, lost 100 lives and
$500, 900 of property in 1890. A tornado
ravaged the coast of Georgia and South
Carolina in 1893, which destroyed 1000
lives and $2,OOO,000 Of property. The
most remarkable collection Of lorna
does which ever visited the United
States at any one time was on Febru-
ary 8, 1884, which afflicted Virginia,
North Carolina, South Carolina, Geor-
gia, Mississippi, Tennessee. Kentucky
and Illinois, so distinct storms being
traced on that day in those states, In
which 1000 persons were killed and 15,-
900 buildings destroyed.
Charleston, S. c., in 1886, had the Sc
verest earthquake ever experienced IN
a city in the United States. In which
the destruction of life was so and that
Of property :sOOO,OOO. New Madrid,
Mo-, and the lower Mississippi valley
had a series Of earthquake shocks in
1911, which destroyed many villages:
but the aggregate losses were not as
great, owing to the region being sparse
ly peopled, and most of 1t having no
people at all, as in Charleston.
The coast Of the Atlantic and the
Gulf Of Mexico has had many hurrt-
canes and a few tidal waves. but none
of them approached in destructiveness
that which has just occurred &C Gal
weston. With characteristic American
courage, elasticity and adaptibility,
however, the afflicted communities
quickly recovered from the effects Of
these disasters. New York more than
doubled in population in the IL years