The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-06-04
WATER IS FALLING
In Both Little and Big Arkan-
SaS Rivers
CHISHOLM CREEK ON ATEAR
Northeast Part of Town Has
Trouble With Water

The water in the Big Arkansas river has
fallen twelve inches at Douglas avenue
and the Little Arkansas river has fallen
fourteen inches at Thirteenth street. Ii IS
believed that practically all danger Of
the city being flooded from the Little
Arkansas river south of Seventeenth
street is passed. unless heavy rains come,
which is regarded as hardly probable.
The food situation has changed to the
northeast part OF town and the people
north of Murdoch avenue and east of
Lawrence were put on the anxious seat
yesterday. Little river. although falling.
has continued TO pour an ever increasing
stream over its banks at Sullivan's dam.
and this water has added to the water
already in Chisholm creek, and the stu
alton in the extreme northeast part of
the city became alarming yesterday,
especially about the packing houses and
the railroad yards in that part of town.
The amount Of water flowing beside the
Santa Fe tracks increased throughout the
night and all yesterday morning.
The water is kept backing up into the
packing house yards and flowed into TIE
cellars. but pumps were put TO work and
were able TO keep the water from rising in
the floors
The railroads had the greatest difficulty.
The natural flow of the water was check
ed by the grades Of The roads and the
water was forced back. The small bridges
built TO drain the water were thus made
10 Withstand a terrible pressure from the
water held back by the grades. The
small draining streams were running bank
full before the Little river water was
added and Chisholm creek was over its
hanks in a number of DIaceS
Shortly before dinner yesterday break
was discovered through the Rock Island
tracks in the North End, and the water
was running down Washington avenue.
The cutters along the street We're cleared
out and the break was repaired so that
only a limited amount of water was
allowed to pass through This water ran
south as far as Central avenue and thence
east. Some was carried away by the
sewers. For a time it looked like a great
portion of the city would be flooded. but
the dykes built along the railroad tracks
held and prevented the water coming
south.
The railroad companies had big gangs
of men at work protecting their tracks
and the city kept a considerable number
of men working in that territory. Rock
and sandbags were piled along the grades
to protect them being washed away.
There is a large territory north OF
Thirteenth street and east of Washing
ton avenue that is partially inundated.
The water Is not very deep and the cur
rent is not strong enough 10 make any
great damage further than the muddy
water standing on the growing plants and
lawns and allowing the sediment to col
lect. A few families have been forced to
move out by the water rising high
enough to get into the lower floors Of
their homes, but these cases are very
rare and are only to be found in the
lowest lands along Chisholm creek
The water in Chisholm creek rose stead
lily yesterday morning. but during the
a r1-rnoou was reported stationery. At s
O'Clock last night 1t had fallen an inch.
and at midnight the water was falling
rapidly.