Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1921-11-25
SILETZ
slLETZ RIVER RAISES HAVOC


We have had another great flood.
1t commenced raining Friday night,
November 18th, accompanied with a
strong Southwestern wind and by Sun
day evening the Siletz river had raised
30 feet above low water mark. 1t did
not only rain but poured down. Some
persons that kept tab on the water
said on Sunday the water raised eight
feet to the hour. All day Sunday the
drift came down in a continuous
stream. By night on Sunday four
bridges were swept away that span
the SiletZ river. Among them the
steel bridge across the Siletz on the
Market road, from Siletz to Toledo.
This bridge cost the county $1,000.
The other three bridges were wooden
and cost about $500 each. The Or
ton bridge went cut and the two
bridges on the road to the Lower
Farm. This leaves the Hamar bridge
and the cable bridge at the Upper
Farm still standing. Siletz is now
completely shut out from the outside
world, both by telephone and roads.
The only way We have now to get out
Is by canoe or row boat and we have
no lumber to build ferry boat The
Collins sawmill was also swept away
entailing i loss of about $4,000. AZ
We write the lightning and sharp
claps of thunder that roll and rever-
berate along The coast, makes one
think OF the big guns in the great
battles OF the World War The old
Indians say the Sah-ha-Lee Tyee is
sullen. The Great Spirit is mad be.
cause the people are so wicked and use
so much moonshine that they are be-
ing punished for it. Several families
living on the low lands had to leave
NHNAA W hCNP ilOllI Utlub uTOW
ed. One family, Mrs. Ed Case ana
four children-one a babe OF week
old-came near being drowned, bu.
were rescued in time and taken to a
place Of safety. Oscar Wood lost
about one hundred chickens. He is
somewhat discouraged in the chicken
business. 1t has been reported that
the big dam in the Siletz basin broke
loose and let tina. great body of water
and logs come down the river. 1t was
this hugh quantity of water that cov-
cred two sections of land, some places
the water was said to be twenty feet
deep and this great body of water
coming down the river so rapidly
caused the river to rise by leaps and
bounds. Only one other time in the
history OF the Reservation did the
water raise so high and that was the
winter OF 1883. Then the water rose
two feet higher than it did now. The
cause was big slide that came into
the river two miles above the Upper
farm and damned the river up so
that when it broke over it came down
In such torrents as to sweep every
thing before it. Great trees two or
three hundred feet long were picked
up by the roaring waters and tossed
about like feathers. On that day
there was only one bridge across the
Siletz river and that was built by the
government. A big tree came down
with long roots that stuck upin the
cir and knocked the bridge out like so
many straws. The rise in the river
at that time was about two or three
feet higher than ii was now. A. C.
Crawford lost thirty two head of cat.
tie in the flood. Some OF them were
fine dairy cows. A great loss to be
sure. The total loss in this part of
the County is estimated at about
$4,000.
n