Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1903-06-11


warehousemen were compelled to
reach their places Of business by
means Of boats and canoes. The in
habitants took the flooding good ma
turedly, and in the true pioneer spirit
shared shelter and provisions with
those who were in need. Some of
the storekeepers slept on their coun-
tiers in order to be prepared for any
emergency, or to wait on such custo-
mers as We're provided with boats. On
awakening in the morning the sleepers
never knew whether their feet would
sink in the mud on the floor left by
the receding river or in three feet of
water, the result of an incoming flood
At the supposed height of the flood
four adventurous Des Moines men
Messrs. Hoyt Sherman, j. NJ. Griffith,
w. T. Marvin and Peter Myers-ap-
peared at the hotel in a skiff, and, ty-
ing their boat to the bannister of the
hotel stairway, climbed to the second
story and ate hearty dinner. They
were on their way to ST. Louis to
charter a steamboat for the upper Des
Moines river, as provisions were get
| ting very scarce and relief must be OBJ
tanned in some way.
A "Three-Foot Rise"
For a few days before their arrival
| Mr.. Smith had been transferring a
thousand or two bushels of corn from
Mr.. Manning's warehouse to the large
warehouse of William Butcher. The
latter then stood high and dry and be-
ing nearer the river, was more conyen-
lent for loading the corn on the boats
| e., r ,cfn 1,o1 loa,
finished on the day the voyagers arriv-
ed. The corn was spread over the
floor and the doors left open that it
might dry quickly. Before the voyag-
ers departed they reported that a
three foot rise was due some time
before morning. The owners of the
corn treated the prophecy as river
ljoke," and paid no further attention to
lit. In the morning, however, when the
superintendent visited the warehouse
to ''see how the corn was drying" he
| found that the three foot rise" had
arrived and had floated the corn out of
the open door, lodging a portion of it
in the picket fences near by, while on
tho river thousands of floating ears
were bobbing up and down in the swift
current or circling in golden eddies
near the shore. To make the loss more
aggravating corn was worth about two
dollars a bushel!
After the Flood.
"A short distance below Eddyville
there was bend in the river where
J many trees had lodged, forming boon
which caught all manner of floating
: debris. When the water subsidized suf
ficiently, every one who had lost an ar
| ticle which would float, repaired to the
drift to identify and recover theil
lost property. There were bee-hiyes
buckets, tubs, baskets, boxes. firewood
: fence rails, sidewalks, sections of pick
ct fences, gates and all manner O
household utensils There was very lit
tie wrangling Each woman recogni2
ed her tubs and the men needed not t.
be introduced to their sections 0
fences, gates and sidewalks.
On the Fourth of July Of this year
! three jolly couples went on picnic ez
cursion from Eddyville to Johannes
burg, q mile and half down the river
The waters had retired within tn
, banks, but the current was swift an
: dangerous. The going down was a
= easy task and with song and shout tn
!, destination was reached in about twel
: ty minutes. The young people the
!. had planned to meet We're there and
: pleasant afternoon was spent Th
a coming back, however, was the rub
a Two Of the young men rowed while tn
G third attempted to steer the boa
v which Zigzagged across the streal
a wherever there was a promise {
d smooth water They Rugged the shcr
s closely, taking advantage of all the e
s dies in an endeavor to make headwa,
J. After three-hours pull, during whic
n seats with the helm sman were change
y many times to the peril of the fair vo
S ayers. they reached the starting poll
it with blistered hands and thankfv
<, hearts. The grave and reverend
IS senior who related this incident, an
e said. AS l look back on the wi
;" jaunt Of fifty-one years ago, remembe
e ing the peril we were in without reali
Is ing it, would not go through the SAN
c. experience again for the best farm
Iowa"
IT Ottumwa, what there was of it
IT that early day, was built very near Il
81 river, the better to receive and freigl
Is goods on the passing steamboats,. Or
e who was there at the time says:
" I'VE had to move everything we hf
in our houses and stores to high
ground. and be quick about it. In Jun
le sometime about the middle if remel
lg Der right, every store, residence al
er warehouse on the low ground was pc
ne tally submerged. The highest poi
e. was reached about that time, and tho
X who made measurements afterwar
at found that the water was nearly tive
in Ity-three feet above the low water mar
ed We did not lose a bridge, as was !
40 ported, as we had none to lose. The
he has never been flood since to ECU
IN the flood OF 1851"
lie The Flood at keosauqua.
" To get an intelligent idea of the flo
&c at this point it is necessary that t
ot reader should have some knowledge