February 11, 1959 (Wednesday) Logansport Pharos Tribune, page 1
Worst Flood Since 1943
RIVER NEARS 19-FT. CREST
The worst Logansport flood disaster since 1943 appeared to be nearing an end Wednesday noon as the Wabash River remained virtually stationary for a period of several hours just below the 19-foot mark. Local authorities were hopeful that the river had reached its crest after climbing less than two-tenths of a foot since 7 a.m.
Thirty-two Logansport homes had been evacuated with the help of Logansport National Guardsmen Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. Both the National Guard armory and the vehicle storage building were half full of appliances and furniture of all kinds removed from flooded homes in the south and west parts of the city. Working cooperatively with the Cass county sheriff's department, city and state police, the twenty National Guardsmen and two officers headed by Lt. John Fillmore spent the entire night on flood duty and were still hard at work Wednesday.
Scores of homes in Logansport were without heat Wednesday as their basements began filling with water from overflowing sewers. The Washington grade school, closed Tuesday when water backed up beside the building, remained closed Wednesday. The Eighteenth Street Bridge remained the only link connecting the Southside with the main part of the city Wednesday after high water closed both the Cicott street and Third street bridges to automobile traffic. This created a traffic jam on Eighteenth Street and at one time cars were lined up a half mile on U.S. highway 35 and all of the way to Seventeenth Street in the other direction. Many people were late for work Wednesday morning due to the traffic tie-up.
Fears were expressed for the safety of the Eighteenth street bridge because of the heavy load of traffic, and orders finally were given to limit the traffic to one way. Six cars were permitted to travel over the bridge at one time, with the last car handing a flag to the officers on duty so traffic could move in the opposite direction. By Wednesday morning most of the streets on the south side were closed to traffic, along with West Wabash avenue, Front, West Melbourne, Wilkinson, West Broadway, First street off Market, Third street at the underpass, all of Biddle's j island, and Market street west of Cicott. As a result it was necessary to reroute traffic on U. S. 24, U. S. 35, and State Rt. 29 and 25 through the city.
Despite the fact that Goose Creek overflowed, sending the water across Cicott at the turn of State Rt. 25 into Logansport, some motorists were foolhardy enough to try getting through the icy water. As a result National Guardsmen had to push some cars and even trucks which stalled there. Guardsmen also rescued a carload of young people in a car which stalled in front of Berkshire's. Three trucks were being used by the Guard on a round-robin basis, plowing through water four and a half feet deep to reach some of the flooded homes. Each truck was manned by a driver and four men. While two of the trucks were out evacuating homes in the flood zone, the third was having its brakes thawed out at the armory. This was necessary to keep the brakes on the 2% ton trucks from going out completely. Some people in the flood area waited too long to call for help. At 613 Bartlett Street for example, Guardsmen found the water too deep even for their big trucks to get through. They were driving through the icy water up to the floor boards of the trucks and many of the Guardsmen were wet from head to foot by the time they had finished loading appliances and furniture on the trucks.
Although they had a mobile unit with a two-day radio in use, the radio went out of commission during the morning, hampering the communications between the men and the armory. Approximately 300 Logansport telephones also were put out of order at midnight in the Melbourne and Helm street area when water seeped into a cracked phone cable under Front street. Linemen had the necessary repairs made by 6 a.m. The business district began to feel the effects of the flood Wednesday as the water spread across Broadway and Second Street in front of the W-S-E Motor Sales, and it also spread across Market Street at First street. The dripping vehicles which went through the water spread a layer of ice for a distance of several blocks in both directions, adding to the hazards of motorists. At Georgetown, the situation remained unchanged, with all of the 100 residents of the village evacuated except for the six men left behind to guard against possible looting of the flooded area. Water also was around cottages at Miami Bend, Guardsmen having moved two families out there with the help of the local Radar unit. Ice was reported gorged again below Georgetown as more kept coming down the river with the flood waters. The water at Georgetown was reported six feet deep.
February 12, 1949 Logansport Pharos Tribune (above)
February 14, 1959 (Saturday) Logansport Press page 1
Clarence Quillen, city electric line foreman who took part in rescue work at Georgetown, wonders what became of a light truck that he saw swept away by the ice Tuesday morning. Quillen said he was on the north bank of the river above Georgetown when the ice broke and jammed again and sent water and, ice over the banks.
Across the river a light truck was on a low spot in the road. As the surge came, the truck driver jumped out and ran for high ground nearby. The ice overwhelmed the truck, which Quillen believes was pulled into the river. In any event, he knows the driver got out but he never saw the truck again. The incident being across the river, he is curious as to who the man was who had the narrow escape, and if the truck has been seen since.
Catfish Found In Basement Of Store
A small catfish that got washed back into a sewer pipe came to an untimely end in a down town basement. Water which backed into the basement under the Chas. Young & Son appliance store at 315 Fourth street, was pumped out yesterday to reveal the misplaced catfish.
Gorge ln The Eel East Of Adamsboro
Eel river, it turns out, is not clear of ice by any means. Above Adamsboro the ice is still jammed and gorged. Several islands there impede free flow of the ice and it has forced water onto farms of Charles Bennett on the south bank, and land on the north. At one time, a mile of the river road was under water, Bennett said, and his home was marooned for three days. The ice that came down and forced out the mass above Tenth street dam was from the river below the present jam, which could be moved by ice from above there. However, no damage is likely from this ice. By the time it gets moving, it should go out freely.
No Sightseers for Georgetown
Sightseers will be kept out of Georgetown today and Sunday. Sheriff L.0.Hall said last night that spectators have been interfering with residents moving back. Some inquisitive strangers have even walked through homes. The north approach to the town will be blocked off at the Crooked Creek Bridge, just north of the town. The Georgetown Bridge will be blocked off at the south end. The north river road will be blocked at the second overhead west of Logansport, where the road meets US 24. No one not living in the area, or having business there, will be allowed in. Cass Co. Civil Defense police will man the blockades, the sheriff said.
Wabash Under 13 Ft. Late Last Evening
The Wabash River reading at 10 o'clock last night was 12.40, a drop from 14.22 at 7 a.m. The river hit 19.75 late Wednesday night.
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