Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1920-03-30
UP TO FLOOD STAGE
Wisconsin River on a Spring
Rampage-Highest Water
for a Number of Years

down in torrents and when, by chance
the sun came out, the temperature
was such that the SHOWS in the woods
further north continued to melt and
/ the result was gradual rise in The
/ Wisconsin until it has overlooked its
banks and by Friday, reached food
stage. The ice in the river north COM
/ menced to move Thursday and being
very thick and solid, it was menace
/ 10 dams, bridges and dams along the
river.
| A large ice jam formed about a mile
up the river from the falls bridge on
Thursday night which backed up the
water, giving some trouble at the con-
crete plant and overlooking low lands
generally. A jam also became very
formidable just above the Leahy and
Beebe bridge. A crew of men tried to
break this jam by the use of dynamite.
Conditions became so dangerous that
the bridge was closed to traffic and
travel of any kind. On Friday after
noon the jam broke and came down
against the bridge with great force
and tore out about 100 feet of the CEN
ter of the bridge. The mass of tim
bers and debris together with the ice,
moved down and grave fears were
had for the bridge crossing to the
west side from the island. The cur
, rent runs into the west end of the
bridge and if all had passed that way
there would have been a jam formed
against the bridge and as it was a
kind Providence steered it to the CEN
ter of the river and all passed over
Big Bull Falls doing no damage
This bridge has cost the city much
money. 1t is a wooden affair with
stone piers at intervals and arched
tlmbers to hold up the spans. 1t has
been wiped out several times and
nearly every year some parts have
Deen moved out of place. 1t is about
time this city build whatever bridges
IL constructs across the river in a dur
able way. Our city fathers, with Ma
yor Herman Marquardt at the head
set good example when the concrete
bridge was built over the falls.
The peak of the rise was reached
on Friday. The st. Paul tracks which
runs down the east bank of the diver
TO the saw mills, passing through an
opening at the east end of the guard
lock. were covered with six or
- 81 AAASAACo VI WdICl anu the Openings
had to be closed with timbers and
and sand banked up against the same
10 keep Shlngle street from being
washed out. Crews of men were set
to work reinforcing the dams at the
Wisconsin Valley Electric Company's
plant and it looked as if the water
was destined to keep on going up.
but in the afternoon of Friday it COM
menced to fall until it had receded by
Saturday about foot but more rain
commenced to fall Sunday morning
and with it was thunder and lightning
and the fall was very heavy all the
morning and the river again COM
menced to raise until it again reached
the flood stage-10 feet above low
water mark
Since Sunday the weather has been
cold and the river has been falling.
1t has fallen a foot since yesterday.
Unless there should be heavy rains
within the next few days, all danger
of a destructive flood is past.
Notes
The cereal mills have been shut
down for a week owing to the high
water.
The Wausau Paper mills at Bro
kaW had to close down for few days.
The Barker and Stewart Island was
nearly under water.
Nothing in Wausau was in any dan
ger. The only fear was that some of
the dams above might give way
Train service between Wausau and
Merrill has been interfered with on
account of wash outs.
All kinds of rumors were prevalent
Sunday: That the big dam at Toma-
hawk had gone out; that a tremedous
jam had formed up at the heights
which was backing up the water over
the surrounding country and doing
much damage; that a jam had formed
up above the Merrill dam which was
liable to break loose and take out the
dam up there.
True, there were ice jams forming
continually along the river, but they
broke continually without causing
damage.
The Marathon paper mills plant at
RothSchild was closed also the Wau-
sau Paper Mills plant at Brokaw and
the crews set to work to break the
jams of ice. At Rothschild they get
the benefit of the Eau Claire and Big
Rib rivers and they are still up to
flood stage. This can be said of all
the streams about Wausau Parts of
the road between Wausau and Mosinee
are under water. but no bad washouts
are recorded up to this time.
Over at the cereal mills a Golfer
dam was constructed across the rail-
road track which runs to the mill.
This was done as a precautionary
measure; the water had not reached
the tracks within a foot up to Sun
day morning.
A train loaded with logs was run
on to the bridge which crosses on to
the Barker and Stewart island from
the north end of Clarke island