Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1901-05-25
THE RAGING CATAWBH

new record for herself this week. rhe
oldest inhabitants living along her
banks thought they had seen her do
her worst in the years gone by; but it
seems that they were mistaken. At 10
o'clock, Thursday morning, the flood
was marking the trees, at Wright's
ferry, at least four or five feet above
the great freshet of 1865.
The water commenced rising during
Monday, and continued to go up stead
lily and surely until Thursday morning.
when it reached it's extreme height.
That is the record at Wright's ferry.
At 10 o'clock a noticeable subsistence
set in, and by o'clock in the evening
the river had fallen some six or seven
feet. No one has given definite state
ment as to the highest stage reached;
but from the best information obtain
able, it must have been something like
27 or % feet.
Mr.. I. j. Costner, the ferryman, and
his family, had an exciting experience.
or more from the river, and about %
feet above low water. 1t had been arare
thing for the river to get in his yard,
and the rising water did not give him
much uneasiness at first. During We'd
nesday, however, he realized that the
flood meant business, and that if he
would keep his ferryboat he must take
care of it, AS the water rose he guided
the boat up toward his house, and by
Wednesday evening he had it to the
front door. With the water still rising,
the family went to sleep, and about 2
o'clock Thursday morning was awak-
ened by the rushing Of the flood over
the floors. BY means Of the telephone,
the neighbors were advised of the situ-
ton, after which Mr.. Costner and fam
lily, together with Mr.. and Mrs. Thom-
asson, and a family of Negroes-ten
people in all-gathered in the fiat boat,
chained it to a tree and awaited further
developments. When daylight came
they found themselves floating in wa
ter six or seven feet deep and a quar-
ter of mile from the nearest shore.
Shortly after daylight, people began
to arrive from every direction, in wag-
ons, buggies, on horseback and on foot,
until several hundred were collected.
The fiat was reached by means of a
boat, which had turned over on the
way, and the ladies, of course, were
unwilling to risk it as a means Of es-
cape. 1t was decided, therefore, to re-
main in the fiat until the water went
down, and it was about 4 o'clock on
Thursday afternoon before the party
was finally rescued. Mr.. Costner saved
one COW by floating it into the second
story of his barn; but lost another,
along with several pigs and number
of chickens by drowning. One pig
fioated down the river and came out on
Mr.. D. G. Stanton's place, mile below.
Crops along the river at Wright's fer
ry and probably far above and below,
were destroyed. Mr.. D. G. Stanton tel
ephoned Thursday afternoon, that from
about thirty bushels of wheat sown on
his place. he does not expect to harvest
more than a peck.
The Southern railway bridge across
the Catawba, seven or eight miles
above Wright's ferry. was wrecked at
about o'clock Thursday morning.
Observing the rising flood, the railroad
authorities tried to keep the bridge
steady by stringing over it a number
of box cars loaded with pig iron. The
central portion of the bridge is of iron,
and the approaches Of wood. The wood
part gave way. and one Of the box
cars that stood half on wood and half
on iron, broke half in two. One half
went into the river and the other half
remained on the iron bridge. coupled to
the other cars. The northbound vesti-
bule had passed over the bridge but
u short time before it collapsed. The
repairing of the bridge will require
several days.
Supervisor Gordon was in YorkVille
yesterday. He said that the last def
mite information he had had from the
county bridge over Catawba river. was
through Mr.. w. E. Gettys, Of Clay Hill,
who was at the bridge Thursday after
noon. The water was over the floor of
the bridge, and from all appearance
the central portion of the structure was
bowed down stream. This was the
opinion of people who saw it; but Mr..
Gordon thinks they must have been
mistaken. The approaches were badly
damaged. There was no question of
that fact.
The Southern bridge, two miles be-
low, stood the flood successfully; but
the G. c. e. N. bridge, further
down, was demolished, as was also the
South Carolina and Georgia Extension
bridge This is according to unau-
thenticated reports. The extent of the
damage to the two last named bridges
cannot be stated definitely: but it is
not probable that trains will be able
to cross either of them for another