The Pueblo Lore

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The pueblo lore

Published monthly since 1975 by

The Pueblo County Historical Society

The huge volume of floodwater, its velocity and the debris the floodwaters created and carried, destroyed numerous public, private and railroad bridges from the upper reaches of the Arkansas River and Fountain Creek drainages to Fowler, Colorado and beyond. Only one of the five railroad bridges in Pueblo survived. This photograph from the Denver Public Library collection is one of several that show crews removing debris from around wrecked railroad bridges and the wreckage being removed and/or dynamited.

June 2011 Volume 37 Number 6

INTRODUCTION Jerry Miller 1 THE GREAT PUEBLO FLOOD OF 1921 Bernard Kelly 2 LOOKING BACK—PUEBLO THROUGH THE YEARS Jeanne Hickman 10 MY MEMORIES OF THE 1921 FLOOD Hazel Korber 11 THE FLOOD FROM TOP OF THE OPERA HOUSE John A. Martin 12 FAMILY MEMORIES Jerry Miller 16 HERO OF 1921 FLOOD REMEMBERS THE LIVES HE COULD Pueblo Chieftain, March 13, 1950 17 NOT SAVE TELLS OF THE PUEBLO FLOOD The Western Star, June 24, 1921 18 TRANSCRIPTION OF HANDWRITTEN NOTE Austin G. Marsh 20 THE PUEBLO FLOOD OF 1921 Guy E. Macy 22 LETTER FROM HAZEL G. WALDRON TO HER MOTHER John Korber 29 MEMORIES OF THE 1921 FLOOD AS TOLD BY MY MOTHER Bill Crain 31 AND GRANDPARENTS MY GRANDFATHER, UNSUNG HERO Fran Reed 32 FLOOD MEMORIES Sally Kennedy Collection 33 CITY A PANORAMA OF RUIN Susan Adamich 34 FREAKS OF THE FLOOD Susan Adamich 37 THE FLOOD’S AFTERMATH Arla Achermann 38 FLOOD MEMORIES Stephanie Blatnick 39

The Pueblo County Historical Society 201 W. “ B” Street ~ Pueblo, CO 81003

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE ……………………………………….…………… June 2011

Welcome to this very special edition of the Lore, featuring the Pueblo Flood of 1921. Publications Chairman, George Williams, and the Lore Committee have outdone themselves with this issue. For them it has been a labor of love; for you, hopefully, an interesting afternoon reliving or learning about Pueblo’s “great flood.”

Regretfully, we say goodbye to our distaff leadership with the graceful retirement of President Louise Keach, Vice President Ann Gardner, and Secretary Pattee Williams. With great wailing and gnashing of teeth, they refused to perpetuate themselves in office. How- ever, these ladies did a great job over the last year and we thank them heartily. They are now succeeded by two recycled old pros – George Abel as vice president and Bob Strader as secretary. Only I come to you as a “babe in the woods,” a newcomer with no institution- al memory of Pueblo at all. I feel like an outsider looking in, but willing to try to learn. Please bear with me if I stumble along the way. -- Words from Bob

—— PUEBLO COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY 201 West “B” Street, Pueblo, CO 81003 Telephone 719-543-6772 E-Mail: [email protected] WEB PAGE www.pueblohistory.org

Many of the Societies collections and those of other local history and heritage organizations can be seen in the Southeastern Colorado Heritage Center Museum located at 201 W “B” St.

The Societies Edward Broadhead Library is located on the upper level of the Southeastern Colorado Heritage Center. Hours: 10 to 4 p.m., Tuesday through Friday, or by special arrangement.

MEMBERSHIPS: An application for membership is contained elsewhere in this edition. Memberships include 12 monthly issues of Pueblo Lore, library privileges, monthly programs, purchase discounts and related benefits.

MEETINGS: Dinner meetings and historical programs are held the 2ND Thursday of each month, Sept. through June at Rosario's Restaurant, 29th and Elizabeth. Dinner is served at 6 p.m. The program starts at 7 p.m. Dinner reservations are required.

OFFICERS: PRESIDENT: Robert W. Ogburn, 303 West Hahns Peak Road, Pueblo West, CO. (647-2084) V. PRESIDENT: George Abel, 307 Henry. Pueblo, CO 81004 (561-0995), SECRETARY: Robert Strader, 8 Queensbridge. Pueblo, CO 81001 (542-5150), TREASURER: Halcyon Mathis, 15 Sepulveda Dr. Pueblo, CO 81005 (561-1080) PAST PRESIDENT: Louise Keach, 7 Terrace Drive, Pueblo, CO 81001 (544-1315)

BOARD OF DIRECTORS: 3 year term: Ken Clark (561-2826), Allyn Middelkamp (545-9609), Peggy Willcox 564-6338 2 year term: Larry Allen (545-9587), Larry Frank (561-0619), Ann Gardner, (542-2600) Arlene Manzanares (564-5951) 1 year term: Naomi Allen (583-9009), Weston Burrer (543-7600), John Ercul, Mary Jane Voelker (561-2693), Jack Ward (546-1213)

Publications Chairman: George R. Williams, 38 Country Club Village, Pueblo CO 81008 (543-5294) Library Director: Dorothy Hammond (566-1605) I. T. Supervisor: Michael Theis (542-0442) Photograph collection: Mary Wallace (542-1652) Program Director: Jeff Arnold, 45000 Fields Road, Avondale, CO 81022 (947-3682) [email protected]

PUEBLO LORE: ISSN 0741-6598.

Production Manager: Niki Summers 252-1201 ([email protected]) Editor Emerita: Arla Aschermann 303-993-6561 (arlaasch@comcast.net) Pueblo Lore Staff: P.O. Abbott 544-8655 ([email protected]) , Ken Clark 561-282 ([email protected]), Bob Collyer 543-7211 ([email protected]), Jeanne Hickman 546-0113 ([email protected]),Dwight Hunter 423-0355 ([email protected]), Jerry Miller 560-0372 ([email protected]), Robert Ogburn 647-2084 ([email protected]), Bob Strader 542-5150 ([email protected]), Michael Theis 542-0442 ([email protected]), George R.Williams 543-5294 ([email protected])

Appropriate contributions are welcome, neatly typewritten, with sources, preferably submitted in Microsoft Word on disk, CD or e-mail attachment. Bylines: Pay in copies only. Mail to Pueblo Lore, Pueblo County Historical Society, 201 W “B” St., Pueblo CO 81003 or e-mail to any member of the Pueblo Lore staff. The Society disclaims responsibility for statements of fact or opinion made by contributors, will not accept material with obvi- ous historical errors and reserves the right to correct said errors before publication.

PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 1

Introduction

By Jerry Miller

June 2011 marks the 90th anniversary of The Great Pueblo Flood of 1921. Without question, it was the most important and dramatic event that affected Pueblo in the 20th Century, and literally put Pueblo on the map. For anyone who lived through it, the June 3, 1921 flood was something they remembered for the rest of their lives. Whether they lost loved ones, lost their homes or property, or witnessed the victims' terror and heard their screams, the memories never left them. Even those who only observed the post-flood devastation never erased the images of what they saw. Those of us whose parents, grandparents or great-grandparents were involved heard their stories many times. My own parents' remembrances are printed in this publication, along with many other first-person accounts.

This issue of The Lore, and a more comprehensive booklet that will be published soon, are de- voted to the catastrophe that killed hundreds in this city, made thousands homeless, and caused millions of dollars in property damage. Those of us who have been involved in the production of these publications have been shocked to learn how much we didn't know about the calamity that took place here so long ago. It is amazing to realize the scope of the storms and the amount of rain that fell in such a short period of time. When the terrible event occurred, some of our citizens exhibited great courage, and others were remarkably foolish, and both attributes sometimes cost them their lives. In the end, the devastation that the flood caused was exceeded by the fantastic effort to clean up the mess, to rebuild what had been destroyed, and to do everything possible to keep such a thing from happening again. Now, even after the passage of so much time, we can sympathize with those who lost so much, and we can admire their grit, determination and endur- ance to rebuild their homes, businesses, city, and their lives.

This dramatic unidentified photograph of a woman and three males standing by what is probably their wrecked home, with water and debris all-around, epitomizes what Pueblo residents experienced 90 years ago. The accounts that follow further explain the events associated with the June 3, 1921 Flood and reinforce our appreciation for those who rebuilt a devastated city and their lives. We hope you enjoy this issue and a more complete history of the 1921 Flood in the form of a booklet that will soon follow. — The Lore Production Committee 2 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

The Great Pueblo Flood of 1921

By Bernard Kelly

June 3, 1921, was a dark misty, rainy day area was washed out to a depth of 7 feet. in Pueblo, Colorado. The newspaper reported The storm had begun in the foothills that a cloudburst the day before had caused about 1 p.m. Friday, June 3. By 3, it had spread Dry Creek, just west of the city, to go over its over the upper and middle parts of the valley. banks, and said that two children had been Between 5 and 7 p.m. it had gathered its might drowned. Water from the rain backed up along at the lower end, near Pueblo. Main Street and seeped into doorways. People Pueblo then had a population of 40,000. talked with a mild sense of adventure about the It lay at the confluence of the Arkansas and “flood.” Fontaine Qui Bouille rivers. Residential areas It was the last day of school for me. I were north and south of the Arkansas river bed was leaving the 8th grade at St. Patrick's School but most of the business district and railroad and knew I would be entering Central high yards stood in the lowlands that had been School the next fall as a freshman. Oh, it was wrested from the streams. There had been a good to be out of school! Some friends and I flood May 30, 1894, but after that the levees enjoyed the scary news of high water in the Ar- were heightened and strengthened, bridges kansas River, but my main problem was, how raised, and the channel widened to accommo- was i going to get a new suit with long pants to date a greater runoff that ever would seem like- wear in high school next September? I still had ly. The work was completed in 1898. now, in a good suit of short pants and jacket and I knew 1921, the river was straddled by a series of my family thought this would be perfectly ade- bridges including a heavily traveled passenger, quate for next fall! vehicular and street railway span at Union Ave- West of Pueblo, heavy clouds boiled up nue. over a triangular tongue of plains country half Between 5 and 6:40 p.m., the river rose 8 surrounded by mountain ranges. Many tributar- feet in the narrow channel. At 6, the flood warn- ies of the Arkansas River rise in the mountains ing began to sound – a steam siren mounted on that bound this drainage basin. Cloudbursts the North Side water works. Its chilling wail, have cut deep channels across the prairies. We rising and falling, could be heard in all parts of call these arroyos. A dense black bank of the city. clouds lay along the top and sides of the range The Kelly house stood on a bluff over- during the morning, and about 1 p.m. it dropped looking the Denver and Rio Grande railroad down from the mountains and began to push yards. I had a love of trains bred in me early out along the prairie. Another storm descended from watching the switching operations just be- from the direction of Cripple Creek up north. low our house, and from seeing the more dis- It began to rain. By 3 p.m., the rain had tant passenger trains of four different railroads become a downpour which spread over the up- entering and leaving the Union Depot, about per and middle parts of the valley. The water half a mile away. That bluff, they told me, was came down faster than the soil could absorb it. once the south bank of the Arkansas River. It raced along the ditches and through arroyos. Now the river was contained in a narrow chan- It built up into walls often several feet high like nel about the distance of ten city blocks from sea waves about to break on a shore. us. Just west of Pueblo, 12 inches of rain Naturally everyone was excited at the were measured in a concrete box. At Teller res- scary wail of the siren, constantly warning us. ervoir, 10 inches fell after 3 p.m. At Skaguay Two of my friends and I, all of us just out of 8th reservoir near Victor, Colorado, 7 ½ inches. At grade, decided to walk across a bridge near our Penrose, 7 inches. Ten at Eight-Mile Creek, 9 at house, go down on the river levee, and follow Chandler Creek. Between 3 and 3:30 p.m., 5 the levee downtown, where we were sure there inches of rain piled up in 30 minutes on Boggs was some action! My sister and her boy friend Flats and the solid fall of water drowned a horse decided to go with us. We walked along that in an open field. At that time Boggs Flats was levee, and the water was only a foot or so down an enormous open area just west of Pueblo, from the edge. open and only sparsely inhabited. Boggs Flats I am sure you have all smelled flood wa- ranchers measured 14 inches of rain that after- ter. It has a dank, sort of sour smell, a combi- noon and night. A hard-surfaced road in the nation of plants, buildings, trees and living PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 3 creatures dissolved in silty water. As we No. 3 scheduled to go west but held up walked, we watched occasional trees bounding in Pueblo because washouts had been reported by, and being tossed in the air by the strong ahead, also was moved out of the yards in the current. When they came past the spray would hope of reaching higher ground. As the train spatter on us as we walked. I don't think we ev- started out of the depot yard it seemed much er thought of the danger. It was all too exciting. like the departure of an excursion party bent on Eventually we reached the place where the river pleasure. The cars were brilliantly lighted and crossed the main street going downtown, Union the passengers who remained on board were Avenue. There were freight cars standing on a laughing and waving to bystanders. Most of the railroad siding there, and we three boys travelers, advised of the delay, had gone up- climbed up on the cars to see the action better. town to see the flood. A kind of holiday spirit took over the We later learned that the two passenger town as if the banshee voice of the siren an- trains wound up stalled side by side near the nounced good tidings. Hundreds of Puebloans river. hurried from their homes to the river banks, The Arkansas overflowed its channel at thrilled at the sight of the angry high water. The 8:45 p.m. near Main Street. The crowd on the scene was dramatic – no doubt about that. Tree Union avenue viaduct saw the black water rac- trunks, lumber, demolished houses and the ing through the depot yards. The babble of ex- bodies of animals swept by in the muddy water. citement suddenly choked into a gasp. Like a The water whipped by perilously close to the blast of cannon, a crash of thunder came, then levee tops, but the crowd stayed on, enchanted. a fresh deluge of rain. The cloudburst which Not until 8 p.m. Did we begin to take the had pelted the plains to the west all afternoon thing seriously. By then, the stench of the flood finally had arrived over Pueblo. was overpowering. There were reports that the We were like ants under a waterfall. It river was “coming over” in places. Police drove was almost impossible to breathe. Our party of the curious from the bridges and ordered us five ran toward the south bank, which was the kids down off the boxcars. Trees hurtling down long bluff on which our house stood. We ar- the river with the speed of express trains were rived home drenched, but we were able to tell hitting the bridge railings and being tossed high the exciting story to the stay-at-homes. into the air. Water backing up into storm sew- “Bur look out there!” my father said. Out ers boiled out of manholes. The crowd began of our front window I could see a red glare. to move toward high ground, slowly at first, “That’s a fire he said.” From this point I then faster and faster. have to depend on later accounts, newspaper One such safe place was about four stories, government publications and souvenir blocks away – another bridge, or rather a via- booklets, much of this material was used for the duct, over the Union Depot yards. We started to Empire Magazine story which appeared in 1956. walk toward that place. Suddenly the lights Most of Pueblo is, and was on high went out out. All the lights. All the lights every- ground and out of reach of the flood. But also where. There was a kind of murmur from the many parts of the city were lower than the tops crowd, and we walked faster. of the levees and were quickly submerged. The “Must have got into the power compa- rampaging waters swirled on new courses, ny,” someone said. pouring around corners and down streets. Fi- There was intermittent light. An electri- nally the swift current changed to parallel the cal storm was brewing and lightning was al- normal direction of the river, west to east. most continuous. Great roars of thunder fol- At first, small objects in the city were lowed. We walked up on the viaduct and looked caught up, then larger and larger pieces. Pack- down into the Union Depot yards. ing cases, fences and lesser buildings were Two passenger trains were standing in torn away, followed by masses of wreckage the depot yards, the Rio Grande's No. 3, just in jammed together in rafts. Now larger frame from Denver, and the Missouri Pacific's east- buildings were ripped off their foundations and bound No. 14, scheduled to leave at 8:05. it was floated down the streets. Brick and stone struc- decided to move her over the Santa Fe Bridge tures crashed under the pressure, adding to the to the north side of the river and she puffed out terror. of the yards at 8:36. when No. 14 reached the Over all, the only illumination came spo- Santa Fe bridge, however, the idea of crossing radically from great jagged flashes of lighting. was abandoned. The Arkansas was pounding This permitted glimpses of appalling destruc- at the bridge flooring. tion. The scream of the frightened and the 4 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 trapped and the dying sounded through the a vacation trip. When the flood struck, she roar of the water and the crash of thunder and moved from her sleeper to a rear one which rain. seemed safer. Suddenly it began to tilt. She Suddenly the sky was an angry red. seized a curtain rod as the car went over. A Those who saw it knew fire had broken out but woman screamed for someone to save her none could leave shelter to see where. child. She was standing on a seat, holding an The water touching supplies of lime may upper berth rod with one hand and a tiny baby have begun the conflagration in a lumber yard. in the other, clear of the water. She cried out Piles of blazing timbers raced along the street that her strength was failing. tide, starting other fires. The rain glistened and Miss Demfer worked her way to the wom- bubbled like blood in the glare. an and took the baby. She held it up out of the Desperate people took refuge on roofs of swirling blackness with the strength of youth. buildings only to lose their lives when the struc- Rescuers finally came and took them out a bro- tures collapsed. Others who had delayed their ken window into a building nearby. departure from the downtown area too long Ed Harrison, another passenger, jumped were caught by the flood and dashed to death. from his coach and swam to a floating log. He The smashing of plate glass fronts in the busi- clung to it and eventually was cast up on an is- ness houses added a soprano note to the gross land far down the river. F. D. Spencer’s house sound of destruction. was torn from it foundations and floated down- On Union Avenue, buildings disintegrat- stream until it lodged on the same island in the ed in rows. The wreckage was caught up, and middle of the Arkansas River. Harrison and battered other buildings in turn. The weight of Spicer spent two night and most of two days the wheeling, floating objects carried by the marooned there. enormous thrust of the river became rams Most of the passengers and crewmen which crushed whatever obstructed their way. escaped to a coal car nearby. It began to floun- In the railroad yards, steel cars, laden der under them and they made their way to a and empty alike, were tossed aside. Wooden second coal car. This one stood fast all freight cars ripped from their trucks floated through the night. They saw a railway employee along the streets like barges. Tracks were torn start to crawl out of a smashed window, but he up, and in one place were piled eight high like was too large to get through. He fell back and giant jackstraws. was drowned. On beyond the Union Depot where the Meanwhile, Joseph E. Sprengle, manager two passenger trains were stalled, courageous of the Andrew McClelland Co. and Orrin Mad- railroaders went through the cars trying to calm dox, an employee, reported like soldiers at the the passengers. Other crews who had mar- company’s grain warehouse to see what they shaled every man they could, attempted plan could save. They were trapped inside by the after plan to save the trains and the people flood and forced to climb to the rafters. Here aboard. In the end the mad river won. they perched in complete darkness while the The lights in the cars went out as the waters rose higher and higher. The torrent tumbling water hit the battery boxes. The cars came within a food of engulfing them. began to turn over one at a time. The panic- A. J. Jackson and his wife took refuge in stricken occupants ran forward through the a tree, where he was forced to support her in train as the cars rolled over behind them. The his arms. He shouted for help again and again. flood gushed through the windows. At last his strength failed and his wife slipped Frank Ducray, the sheriff of Mesa county, from his grasp and drowned. was on one of the trains. He’d seen a 17-year At the telephone company, Mrs. Joseph old girl swept away almost within reach of his E. Prior, day chief operator, and Miss Margaret arms when heavy planks, hurtled along by the Williams, night chief operator, were marooned flood, crashed between them. He saw two wom- with 39 other girls. As long as the power held en clinging to a house as it went by. One was they phoned warnings to the citizens as rapidly singing a hymn. as they could. Then the lights on all the boards “I saw a man and his daughter, and he went out. The girls watched the flowing water was kneeling with her while she recited the and wreckage from the upstairs windows. “Now I lay me down to sleep” of her childhood. Someone started the phonograph in an effort to I saw them swept away in one another’s arms,” keep up their sprits. They could see the dark Ducray said. waves rise higher and higher, with floating ob- Miss Eleanor Demfer of St. Louis was on jects tumbling and plunging. Houses, barns, PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 5 and sheds came along, and worse of all, strug- inches more water than the flood of 1894. When gling forms of men, women and children. this storm broke, I thought that by putting flour Bryan Thedy, night wire chief, went into sacks at the back door I could hold off five feet a first floor room where the cable records and of water. By the time I got the sacks to the door, most important documents were kept. A rush of the water was rolling in the door.” waters slammed the door behind him and he About 75 persons spent the night at the was trapped. The water climbed to his armpits, Union Depot. About 20 were passengers waiting reached his neck, the weight and force of the for trains. Alex Cress, manager of the Union De- torrent resisted his frantic efforts to open the pot hotel shook his head and told a guest, “The door. He found a length of strong board, water came up so quick that when we placed pushed the door with all his might until it sacks of potatoes against the doors, they were opened a crack, and forced the board into it. Bit washed away as fast as we set them there.” by bit he wedged the door further open. At Also at the depot, B. Milton Stearns, as- length he was able to squeeze through with the sistant chief dispatcher, got a level rod and kept precious records. a log of the rise and fall of the flood throughout A big frame house slammed against the the night—the water rose 3.5 feet between 11:30 company garage, wrecking it, and then came on and 11:45 pm. It reached a high of 9.75 feet toward the brick building. Some of the girls above the floor at 11:55 pm. Because the floor knelt and prayed. Others covered their faces of the depot was known to be at the river gage with their hands. A sudden counter current top- height of 17.61 feet, it is possible to determine pled the marauding house and carried it safely from his records that the true high reached by away. They heard a man crying for help. Across the swollen river was 27.36 feet. the alley, on top of the one-story garage close W. E. Kirk, later a Denver druggist, then by they saw him. He had in some way cut a hole was managing a brand new pharmacy at Fourth through the roof and crawled up out of the wa- and Main Streets. That night he had closed his ter. The head of another man appeared through doors and was arranging patent medicines on the hole, then the second head dropped back the balcony which went entirely around the up- and was seen no more. Thedy shoved a plank per part of the store. He looked down to see wa- to the man on the roof and he was dragged into ter flowing around in the main floor and knew the higher telephone building. his escape was cut off. Kirk lost no time think- Through it all, the phonograph continued ing about it. He went to an upper window and to play---“Ja-da, lada, Jada, jin-jing-jing.” climbed out on an electric sign. He hung there V. Z. Haven, credit manager for the until some men in a rowboat rescued him. Crews-Beggs Dry Goods Company, went to his Hubert Abell, who was about to graduate store about the time when the lights went out. from school, lay on the floor at his home listen- He and his aides started carrying things up out ing to the sirens. Presently George Morrissey of the basement. The windows suddenly broke Jr. came by and said “Let’s go look at the and the fire alarms began to ring. The water flood.” They went to the Morrissey Carriage poured into the vestibule. They tried to block Company at C and South Main Streets and the flow of water with whatever was handy, but found George’s father moving office furniture it came in so fast they gave up. By the time Ha- and machines up to the second floor where the ven barred the door, the water was 3 to 4 feet Morrissey’s had an apartment. The two boys deep. helped move the heavier equipment including Something struck the plate glass and in an electric motor which they unbolted and rushed the torrent. Haven and the others ran placed in a manually operated elevator. This upstairs to the mezzanine floor and the water they then hoisted along with other valuable was right behind them. From there, like isolated gear, to the second floor level. Time passed and men and women all over town, they watched. Abell decided he better be getting home. But The velocity of the water was so great that it when he descended to the main floor he discov- picked up houses, safes, steel light poles and ered the water was already three feet deep and everything that stood in front of it. They saw a rising fast. He went back upstairs. fire raft floating down the street. The heavy rain After the lights went out the three stood was the only thing that kept the town from beat the apartment windows on the second floor ing burned up. and watched. They saw a friend across the way George Holmes of the Holmes Hardware on a narrow parapet high above the street, Company said, looking around him, “When I working an escape from one building to anoth- built this building I figured it could withstand 16 er. They saw a house come hurtling down the 6 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 street. It struck a flashing traffic light—which the south bluff the railroad yards were littered for some mysterious reason had continued to with damaged cars at every sort of angle. Near operate—and knocked it over. Then it hit the the Union Depot, masses of junk were piled up Morrissey building with such force that it as high as the floors of the Union Avenue and knocked a two score (Editor-20 foot?) hole in it. Main Street viaducts. Mud was several feet The house whirled on and crashed into the C deep in the downtown streets. There were gaps Street bridge. where buildings had been the day before. The Then they saw a boat coming, a rowboat. litter of shops and small businesses had been In it were a man, woman and baby. As the boat tossed into the streets. Dead animals were eve- passed close to the building across the street, rywhere in the flood area, all too often; human the woman reached out, apparently an attempt bodies were to be seen in the muck. to halt their headlong pace, and upset the boat. As for me, I went to my favorite perch on All three went into the angry waters. The man the hill above the railroad yards and saw a sce- somehow managed to seize the baby and throw ne that stays with me today. The railroad yard that same arm around the woman. Using his was a river. Rail cars and heavy locomotives free arm he swam toward the Morrissey build- were tossed about like building blocks. As far ing. as I could see in both directions there was A dump rake the Morrissey’s had out- wreckage and rain. side on the curb had upended in the flood and And to add to the terror, it had begun to the horse shafts protruded just a foot above the rain again, and the river water flowing through water. The man supporting his double burden the railroad yards seemed to be rising, and in- made for the shafts, miraculously caught one deed, it did rise. and was able to stop and hold himself, the There was another smaller flood the next woman and the baby. day and a third on Sunday. Abell snatched a butcher knife and ran Today there would have been radio, tele- back inside the elevator. He sliced off a piece vision, helicopters, and fast planes to bring re- of support rope—and the entire load slammed lief to the victims. In 1921 there was little drink- down into the water. Uncaring, he ran to the able water, no power, no gas, no telephone or window and tossed one end of the rope to the electric lights. Railroads and highways in every man who managed to loop it around the woman direction were washed out. Isolation was com- so the boys could pull her up and in the second plete. story window. The rescuers freed her and threw No one outside had any idea what had the rope back to the man who fastened it to the happened in Pueblo, and no one inside could baby. Again, Abell and George Morrissey began have told whether the rest of the country still to pull, but the baby became lodged under a existed. It was as though the world had come to folded awning against the side of the building— an end, and every soul still living was in limbo, under the water. waiting. George Morrissey Jr. was a large man so To this day no one has been able to say he braced himself in the window and let Abell how many died in the flood. Ralph C. Taylor, down by the ankles into the flood. Abell, his until his retirement news director of The Pueb- head completely submerged, managed to reach lo Chieftain and Star-Journal newspaper puts the baby, release it from the awning, and bring the toll of known dead at 96, with the probability it back to the window in his arms. They then that the real loss of life was far above that. rescued the man. Whole families were wiped out with no survi- Abell knew nothing of first aid, but he vors left to register fatality figures. Other ob- could see the baby was choking. Its face was servers have estimated the death toll at from almost black. He took a pocket knife and pried 156 to more than 200. the baby’s teeth apart, then took a table knife Thousands were homeless. A report and turned it in the opening to force the tiny from the Pueblo City Council states that 510 mouth further open. He reached in with his fin- dwellings were destroyed, 98 buildings were gers and pulled the child’s tongue forward. The wrecked and 61 buildings were washed away little one lived. from their foundations. Property damage was When day dawned, June 4, 1921, a scene estimated a $19,080,000 in 1921 dollars. The of the greatest desolation was disclosed to railroads suffered heavily. Of their six bridges Pueblo’s survivors. From the bluffs on the over the Arkansas River and three over Foun- south to 6th Street on the north was a sea of wa- tain Creek, only one stood intact on June 4th. ter, mud, wreckage and waste. For miles along The Missouri Pacific yard and its engine termi- PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 7 nal was cut off by a new channel and left on an Schaffner & Marx suit which was washed, island without rail connections. Two thousand cleaned and pressed and offered at a bargain rail cars in the various yards and many locomo- price by the Taub Brothers Clothing Store. I tives suffered enormous damage. paid $10 for it—and it had a jacket and long How deep did the water get? It was 14.4 pants. BK feet deep at 1st Street and Santa Fe Avenue. 13.2 feet deep at the Central Block at 2nd and Main Streets. 11.9 feet deep at the Power Com- pany office in the triangle building at 1st and Main Streets and 5.5 feet deep at the Post Office at 5th and Main Streets. My father had an office not far from the Union Depot and it was 9 feet 8 ½ inches deep there. As soon as the tide was low enough to permit wading, Abell and young Morrissey took their rescued baby toward the bluffs to seek medical help. On their way they saw another man struggling through the water to reach the same point. Suddenly he disappeared as though a giant hand had snatched him down. The two went on, gained the Main Street viaduct and turned the baby over to the police, who sped it to a hospital. Abell, a prominent Pueb- loan and head of the Abell Truck & Implement Company there today, says he never heard from or of the man, woman or baby he helped rescue. He doesn’t know their names or what became of them. But he does know the fate of the man who disappeared into the water the day after the flood. When he returned later that way he saw what had happened. There was a manhole there, uncovered. The man had been sucked down into the raging underground waters of the storm sewer. But it is indeed an ill flood which washes in no good. That summer I got a job at a warehouse, washing the mud off of tin cans of food, which were later were sold at bargain prices. I made enough to buy a flood salvaged Hart,

Clean up on North Union Avenue begins. (Pueblo Regional Library Archives) 8 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

Above: North Union Avenue under water. Note the high-water mark on the building on the left side of the photo.

Left: This aerial view shows the Arkansas River after the flood had crested. The railroad tracks were part of the Missouri Pacific’s rail yard and roundhouse that survived on an island. The buildings on the lower right are the Nuck- olls Packing Plant. The bridge in the foreground was the only railroad bridge that survived the flood.

Debris on the 300 Block of North Union Avenue. (Pueblo Regional Library Archives) PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 9

Above: Floating debris at First and Main Streets.

Right: After the flood, debris in the alley between Main and Court streets is pushed up against the buildings. The buildings on the left faced Main Street.

Below: A glimpse of the rail yard after the flood. (Pueblo Regional Library Archives) 10 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

LOOKING BACK – PUEBLO THROUGH THE YEARS

From The June 1921 The Pueblo Chieftain. Compiled by Jeanne Hickman.

(The devastating floods of early June, 1921, forever changed life in Pueblo. Detailed articles in this publication explain much about the flood’s damage and untold number of deaths.)

June 4 – Charles W. Lee is hereby appointed chairman of the Food Supply Committee. He has the authority to appoint the full committee, impose restrictions on the food supply until and inventory of the stock can be taken, and arrange cooperative agreements to insure fast shipment. June 6 –The Fountain River made its attack on the Woodcroft Hospital from the north and east. Losses include the horse barn, one stable and half the laundry building. The animals were saved. Water stood a foot deep in the kitchen and dining room and Ward 2 was damaged. Some of the patients were transported to the State Hospital. June 6 – No visitors will be permitted in Pueblo except those with urgent business and with military permits. The present local Red Cross organization can take care of local needs, but it cannot care for outsiders, no matter how worthy their intentions. June 8—Publication of The Chieftain every day since the flood of last Friday ,evening, with no light but tallow candles, no power except the arm power and foot power sort, a good portion of the time with no water and with no typesetting facilities except the old time “hand set,” has been no easy task. Although the papers were small, they contained all the most interesting flood news. June 8 – Since the first hours of the flood, the Elks Club at Sixth and Santa Fe has been the haven for thousands. It was the first emergency seat of city government and military authorities, has fed thousands during every minute of the day and it is now the headquarters of the city police department. Tables were laid at all times, and sandwiches, soup and hot coffee are available for workers, soldiers, officers and others. June 9 – Both branches of the government in Washington took action yesterday that will re- sult in instant aid to the flood sufferers. The resolution gives the Secretary of War large powers in administering relief. Lt. Col. Caples has been sent to Pueblo to work with local committees. June 9 – Cleaning up of Pueblo is well under way. Capt. Van Law of the military engineers made wonderful progress yesterday by making passage ways through the blocked streets. Six hundred men are at work under his command and three-fourths of the storm sewers are now open. More than 100 arrests have been made of men who are not working. Fourth Street has been opened to single line travel all the way to the bridge across the Arkansas. Too many sightseers still are interfering with the work. June 11 – There was a full page of ads announcing businesses which are open again. One ad stated the Department of Missing Persons was being headed up by the Knights of Columbus with Relief headquarters at the Southern Colorado Bank. June 12 – The North Side Water Board announced water is not yet safe to drink without first being boiled. The board’s trustees thanked all of its employees for performing what seemed an impossible task, the maintaining of a supply of water to the stricken city despite tremendous difficul- ties. June 13 – The most important matter of vigilance now is the reporting of the first evidence of disease or sickness to officials at the health offices at Memorial Hall. Food, milk and perishables are being inspected and labeled and water is being chlorinated. All canned good are fit for con- sumption unless they are bulging. There have been three cases of diphtheria and one of chicken pox reported. The guarding of any outbreak of disease is untiring, according to Dr. Buck of the City Health Department. June 14 – The widest sweep of water caused by the Arkansas River in Pueblo County is between North and South Avondale where the width is more than a mile and one-half. June 19 – A limited street car service may be operated by next Tuesday. PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 11

MY MEMORIES OF THE 1921 FLOOD

By Hazel Korber

William Korber, who was Fred and Elmer Korber's father, was living on West 3rd Street in June 1921. Since Fred was working a three to eleven shift at the steel works, Elmer went down from his home at 85 Block L, now Harvard Street, to get their father to come up to higher ground, but William said he had seen previous floods and they had not amounted to much so he was going to stay where he was. When Elmer saw that his dad was not moving an inch, he left and started for home over the 4th Street Bridge. The water was getting pretty high by that time so he was lucky to get to higher ground before the levee broke and let a flood of water through.

Fred worked the three to eleven shift and then stayed and worked until seven the next morning. The boss wanted him to continue working through the day but he refused because he was concerned about his father whom he had told he was going home. When Fred got home and had his breakfast, he went down and tried, to get across town but that was impossible. He later was able to get a pass to go and come and help where he was needed.

Their father was found, washed up on a bed in Pryor Furniture Store at 2nd and Main Streets. Fred was able to identify his body at an undertaking establishment on 8th Street between Main and Court Streets. William Korber was buried in the Northside Cemetery. John Korber and Pat Miller are his grandchildren.

I, Hazel Waldron Korber, was living with my aunt and her husband, Hazel and John Golight- ly, Sue Cutler's parents, at 88 Block L. I was graduating from Central High that week. On Baccalau- reate Sunday, the weekend before the flood, we had a hard hailstorm, and almost every day until the day of the flood it rained, also several days after. At 11 p.m. on Thursday, June 2, graduation night, the water was within a foot of going over the bridge. At that time the river flowed past the City Auditorium.

On the afternoon of June 3 it was raining at 2 o'clock and continued to rain the rest of the day and night. Several of the neighbors, my aunt and I decided to go down Entrando Avenue (now called West Corona Avenue) to Union and then down to the river to see the high water. It was almost 6 p.m. when we got to the bridge. The water was just about to go over the floor so we decided to leave in a hurry. We had no more than reached high ground and home when the sirens started. If I remember rightly, men drove through the streets telling people to draw all the water they could, so we filled the bath tub and all the wash tubs and pails we had.

My Uncle John was a railroader and was on a train coming from Salida, so we were very much concerned as to where he was. I don't remember the time he got in that night but his train was stopped at Swallows and the crew walked into Pueblo, so their lives were not lost.

We could see the flames from the fires at the lumber yard. Since there were no radios nor telephones in use, we did not know exactly how bad things were or whether the fire would spread to all parts of the city. The only time I remember going to see any of the damage we went down on Union Avenue to B Street. The Depot Drug was on the corner, then Fisher's Jewelry Store, Taub Bros. Men's Store and Pelta's Department Store. The department store had goods out on the sidewalk on tables to dry. You could buy something if you wanted to, but everything had an unpleasant odor so you weren't too keen on buying.

I went back to Howard, Colorado the latter part of June 1921 and stayed with my mother and grandparents until December 1922, when I married Fred Korber. I was not in Pueblo when the damage of the flood was being cleaned up and the buildings restored to the place where they could be occupied again. 12 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

THE FLOOD FROM TOP OF THE OPERA HOUSE

By John A. Martin Source: Pueblo Star-Journal (Clipping not dated but no doubt was written soon after the June 3, 1921 Flood)

It seemed like the crack of doom; like the raft of burning lumber against the north wall of end of the world; like that first great flood in the opera house burned as brightly and fiercely Genesis, when “the waters prevailed exceed- as tho it were oil instead of water falling upon ingly on the earth.” I have often heard the ex- it. One was impressed with an almost intelli- pression, “Hell’s broken loose,” and as I saw it gent sense of destructive fury in the elements. from the balconies and tower of the Grand It was as tho all the destructive forces of na- Opera house, that’s just what it looked like, ture had combined to vent their rage upon the when great burning rafts of lumber began to helpless city and destroy it utterly. twirl thru the streets on the fast rushing wa- And oh, the screams of the terrorized and ters. I never saw anything so sinister in my life perishing! And what a relief it was when the as that procession of burning rafts, moving screams ceased, even tho one knew that in all east on the cross streets from the King lumber probability they had ceased in death. It re- yard, rounding the corners at Main, and jam- minded me of the testimony of a survivor at the ming against buildings or going silently on senate investigation of the Titanic disaster. He their way to join the vast mass of wreckage said that for a long time after the ship went and debris into which the heart of Pueblo was down there was a terrible chorus of cries com- being converted. ing from the dark bosom of the sea, and his From the tower of the Grand Opera house voice fell to a tragic whisper as he described the flood at its height was a spectacle appal- how they gradually died out; and an icy chill ling and terrific beyond what is often given ran thru the listening crowd, for these voices man to see. No matter how safe one might feel had died out where no rescuing hand was pos- personally, he could not help being shaken to sible. his heart’s core. Over and over I said, “This is Fantastic Pranks a historic disaster; tomorrow the name of Pueblo will be known around the world.” I Sometimes a single incident will character- thought of the man in the parable who built his ize the fantastic horror of the pranks played by house upon the sands, “and the rain descend- the elements in such a catastrophe. The most ed and the floods came and the storms beat graphic incident limned on my memory was a upon that house and the house fell and great man in a straw hat among the light globes on was the fall of it.” top of the lamp post at the corner of Fourth and Main streets, with the water tugging to pull him But the Biblical parable was not adequate from his precarious perch. He was only visible to encompass the vast panorama of destruc- against the black arms of the post by his white tion engulfing the valley of Pueblo, for the straw hat and every time the lightning flashed I lightning flashed almost continuously and the would see that straw hat and exclaim: “My thunder almost continuously roared; and as God, look at that man with the straw hat on the the cap sheaf of the horror came the fires, the lamp post!” There seemed absolutely no hope last danger one would have thought of in that for him and I almost longed for the coup de seething sea of water and with a perfect deluge grace, as the French say, that would end his coming from the skies. Suddenly, in widely misery. Then a miracle happened, one of the separated parts of the city, and as if simultane- many miracles of this terrible flood which ously set by some incendiary hand, dull red would fill a book. A man in the second story glows, then leaping tongues of flame, began to corner window threw him a rope of twisted illumine the pouring skies and black maelstrom cloth, which the man in the straw hat tied to the of waters. It seemed impossible that fire could top of the lamp post and them climbed the rope live between flood and rain, and yet these fires underhand up to the window. I met this man burned fiercely for hours and threatened at one afterwards. He was a little fellow, an athlete time to destroy all that escaped the destructive who was doing stunts at the Majestic. He was maw of the flood. Indeed, the rain but seemed all shoulders, chest and arms. He was one to add zest to the fury of the flames. A great man in a thousand who could have performed PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 13 such a feat. I saw other somewhat similar res- been back East and told people that I was from cues, but the outstanding incident of the flood Pueblo they generally wanted to know how far in my memory will be the man in the straw hat that was from Denver or Colorado Springs. on the lamp post at the corner of Fourth and Well, while the flood took a good deal of Pueb- Main. lo off the map at home, it put all of it on the map abroad. Sometimes a vivid lightning flash would illumine the whole seething cauldron from Ten- Tested to the Soul derfoot Hill to the Mesa, and then Pueblo was Pueblo has been tested to the soul of it only a sheet of water with dark smudges of the and is coming thru with a spirit that could only bigger buildings dotting the surface. The be embosomed in a (the rest of the sentence wrecked and submerged city as it appeared was missing—Ed.) Hereafter when you tell a from the tower; the shouts and screams; the man in New York or Boston that you are from boats plying the streets until the awful suck of Pueblo, he will know right where that place is the currents scared even these away; the fires and will proceed to tell you why. and the burning rafts; the crash of plate glass windows as the flotsam struck them; the rapid Many of the men who have made Pueblo disappearance of the street cars beneath the what it is are still on the job and they know waters as they stood upright upon the rails; the how to do it over again and do it better. More dwellings floating in from the bottoms and than that, they have the heart. But I want to smashing against business corners; the man give credit beyond that. I take off my hat to the on the lamp post; the sullen roar of a river a military and the trucks. Nothing less than the mile wide and thirty feet deep, in the heart of military and the trucks could have exhumed Pueblo, rushing like a mountain torrent; the Pueblo from its tomb of mud and debris. The incessant thunder, lightning and rain; the utter military put chaos into order and system. They helplessness of humanity, and the interminable inspirited the people. They organized the sal- night. All was a living, waking nightmare, nev- vaging of the city. And then came the trucks, er to be forgotten. without which exhuming of the city would have appeared to be, and indeed would have been, a It is no wonder that in the first reports sent mountainous, hopeless task. out the drowned were numbered in thousands. I had no thought that the loss in life would fi- Such a disaster 20 years ago with the nally be so small. It may sound brutal to say it; agencies then at command would have been it will sound brutal to those who have lost almost irretrievable, but here the very next day loved ones; but the loss of human life, sad tho came seasoned veterans of the great war, with it was, was a minor feature of the great flood. the organization, the equipment and the effi- The wreckage and damage to the entire heart ciency of that great emergency and they at- of the city, its burial under mud and debris, tacked their task like men who knew how and was the great item in the sum total of damage. were ready. It is certainly a fine thing to live in the United States, even in a town that got hit For years after the San Francisco earth- with the biggest flood ever discharged upon quake and the fire there were blocks and the face of the earth from the heaven shoulder- blocks of high board walls camouflaging the ing slopes and peaks of the Rocky mountains. vacant sites. I dare say some of them are still standing. Pueblo will have some sites too big Pueblo’s Problem to camouflage. They do not need it. They have But Pueblo faces a mighty problem. Na- returned to nature. Not a stick remains to mark ture and geography have determined that the the clustered habitations and manifold activi- rivers and Pueblo must co-exist. It is true that ties upon which the sun set June 3, 1921. nature established the one and man estab- When the sun rose on June 4 they were under lished the other, but there is nothing accidental flowing lakes of yellow water, and when the about the location of a city like Pueblo. Natural sun set again they were under vast shoals of conditions cast the die for the first pioneer who mud. built a house upon its site, and have deter- I have talked to no visitor who after all he mined its growth, and have decreed that it shall had read was not shocked by what he actually keep on growing. The site of Pueblo is a great saw after he got here. Beyond question the natural continental cross roads. The problem flood of June 3 will take its place among Ameri- for Pueblo is to work out a plan whereby the ca’s historic natural disasters. When I have rivers and the town can live in harmony. All 14 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 thoughtful people foresaw this flood, tho per- the great laws of God which keeps human na- haps not the extent of it. There will be years, ture from getting so ornery that He will be but there will be others. That event is just as moved to send another deluge to wipe the certain as the existence of the rivers and their whole worthless brood off the face of the earth. vast drainage areas. Greater Pueblo Many solutions have been proposed. I Pueblo should not cry because it today have none, that is not one that is a cureall. A must pay the price of the greater and better great federal reclamation dam up the river Pueblo of the future. June 3 will be the most would be a blessing to the city and the valley, historic day in all the history of Pueblo; and the and worth all it costs. More adequate levees, people living in this day, passing thru this or- for both the Arkansas and Fountain, is a huge deal, making this sacrifice, bearing this burden and pressing problem, which Pueblo has not and laying the foundations of that greater the means to meet. Pueblo, will be revered by the coming genera- But the simplest and most attainable les- tions; and the mud and debris of today will be son of the flood can be stated in two words, - growing grasses and flowers; and the dark- SUBSTANTIAL CONSTRUCTION. After all, the ness and the flames and the black skies and possible volume and destructive power of the lurid lightnings, seen thru the perspective flood water at Pueblo, and the flood area, are of the years, will be a halo upon the head of limited. If the city hall had been built right this martyred day and a rainbow of promise down in the channel of the Arkansas between and security will rest upon the hills of Pueblo, the levee walls, the river would have gone spanning its valleys; and the hearts of the peo- around it. The lesson of the flood is that there ple of that day will yearn back to the people of was not enough of it to even knock down a this day and they will say, “There were giants good sound one-story brick building. It in those days.” crushed and swept away hundreds of shells and old decaying structure, but every good building stands as it did before. The flood was a great little building inspec- tor. There should be new building regulations for the flood area and hereafter Pueblo building regulations should be something more than scraps of paper to be flouted by every man who has money enough to put up some kind of a peanut hull and call it a building. No building with good foundations and first floor constructed with a view to floods need fear even such a deluge as Pueblo has just passed thru. San Francisco had to build quake-proof buildings. There is no reason why Pueblo should not rise like the Phoenix from its ashes. Chica- go, San Francisco, Gal- veston and other American cities over- whelmed by great ca- tastrophes, have built on a bigger and better scale and firmer foundation. Mark what I say, the day will come when Pueblo will be thankful for this flood. It is true we are paying the price, but that is the law of life and it is A look at North Union Avenue and Central Main Street after the Flood of 1921. a good law. It is one of (Pueblo Regional Library Archives) PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 15

Above: High water in Downtown Pueblo. Note the smoldering lumber in the left center of the photo.

Left: The Burch Tent and Awning building on the southwest corner of First Street and Santa Fe Avenue after the flood. The Marriott Hotel now occupies the site. The flood waters were 14 feet and 1 inch deep at this location. (Pueblo Regional Library Archives) 16 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

Family Memories

By Jerry Miller

My mother's eleventh birthday was six weeks away. Her mother had died only one year earlier. My mother, Kay Buccambuso, lived with her father, six brothers and two sisters in a tiny house in Peppersauce Bottoms, approximately where Midtown Shopping Center is located. In the evening, she remembered that someone pounded on their door, warning that floodwaters on the Arkansas River were approaching, and that they had to leave immediately. In darkness they walked to a friend's home on Goat Hill. On the way to safety, her father remembered that his goats had been left and he decided he had to return for them but others wisely changed his mind. My mother remembered calls in the night, people being swept away who begged to be saved. She remembered terrible lightning that illuminated the destruction. She recalled that in succeeding days they walked to the County Courthouse where the Red Cross supplied them and many others with clothes and food. Their house was knocked off the foundation but was fairly intact. It was somehow placed on a wagon and moved to Goat Hill, where she and her siblings spent the rest of their childhoods. That house, on Chester Street, is now condemned.

She had an uncle and first cousins who lived in Salt Lake City. These relatives were not able to find out if my mother's family had died in the flood, so two of the male cousins, who didn't have the money to pay for train tickets, hopped on a freight train and rode the rails to Pueblo. Ob- viously, they could not have made it all the way here because the tracks were flooded. When they arrived, by asking around, they finally found the family and after determining they were OK, they returned to Salt Lake the same way they had come.

My father, Joe Miller, was also ten-years-old, and his father had died a year before. He lived with his mother, sister and brother in a house on Bluff Street, a street that no longer exists, above and on the south side of the Arkansas. On the day of the flood he and his brother had gone to a movie, probably on Union Avenue. After, they walked across the bridge over the Arkansas and he recalled the river being almost under their feet. They stayed on the bridge for some time, watching along with others. That night the torrent came, but his home on the bluff was safe. He, too, remembered the victims screaming in the night, and the destruction that he saw the following days. His mother opened their house to as many homeless people as she could accommodate. Later, when the concrete dike was being constructed, dirt needed to build it up was taken from below their house on the bluff, undermining it. That house was also moved, to East Abriendo, across from the Colorado Supply, where it is still occupied today.

St. Archangel Michael’s Orthodox (Serbian, Russian) Church at 812 East “B” Street in the Grove after the 1921 Flood. The Colorado Fuel & Iron Company rebuilt the church at a new location up on the mesa nearer the Steel Mill at 801 West Summit Avenue. The steeple (bell tower) was moved and installed on the St. Michael’s Orthodox Christian Church, as it is known today.

PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 17

Hero of 1921 Flood Remembers the Lives He Could Not Save

Pueblo Star-Journal, March 13, 1950 From the files of John Korber

In a lifetime of serving meals to train passengers, Robert Lewis, 3008 Gilpin, Denver, will never forget the night of June 3, 1921, when the Rio Grande train on which he was working was trapped in the flooding Arkansas River at the old river crossing near Santa Fe Avenue. He became one of the unsung heroes of that night - but he remembers it not for the lives he was able to save, but for the ones he could not save.

Rio Grande No. 3 was pulling out of the Union Station yards heading for Denver, when the wall of water struck it as it started across the river bridge. On parallel tracks a Missouri Pacific train had been caught also. Lewis, with Maxwell Hughlett, now a Denver druggist, and E. W. Houston, now deceased, went from the dining car into a Pullman.

As the water started rising, the three went thru the sleeping cars arousing men and women who had retired early. They assembled them in one Pullman car which seemed more secure - it was leaning at an angle, but was anchored against a flat car on the adjoining Missouri Pacific track.

Lewis looked out of the vestibule door. The swirling water was full of debris. Flashes of lightning and burning lumber drifting among the wreckage illuminated the eerie sight. As Lewis looked he saw the engineer of the Missouri Pacific locomotive leap from the cab - he made a desperate leap for the steps of the Pullman car, but in the driving cloudburst he failed to grasp the hand rail- ing. As he sank into the water Lewis reached out and grabbed him - pulling him to safety. It was providential timing that saved the engineer's life.

Lewis saw others being tossed and battered in the flood - one was a little girl. They were beyond his reach and to get into the current, filled with crushing objects ranging from boxcars to houses would have been futile and probably would have cost Lewis his life.

In one of the coaches Lewis found an old lady. She was knitting calmly. Lewis told her of the great danger and suggested that he help her get to the Pullman where there might be more security. "She just kept right on knitting," Lewis recalls, "and she said, "If the good Lord wants me to go this way, it will be His will and I will stay here. We found her the next morning in the coach. The Lord had taken her - just her body remained."

During the night Lewis and the passengers huddled in the upper berths on the side of the car that was tilted the highest. The muddy water eddied thru the car for hours, but with the coming of daylight the rains had stopped and the flood started to recede slightly. Lewis and the other survivors kicked out Pullman windows. The group got to the top of the coaches and made their way from -car to car until they got over to the Nuckolls packing plant.

Once safe, Lewis joined in the welfare work. He was placed in charge of preparing meals after a barbecue pit was dug in back of Central high school. For 10 days he and the other two waiters were in charge of feeding refugees from that station. They had lost all of their belongings in the flood, but for 10 days he and his associates slept at the CF&I [Colorado Fuel & Iron] YMCA.

Lewis has been serving the public on rolling diners since 1908. He shifted from Fred Harvey to the Rio Grande in 1919. He has worked on diners on all of the Rio Grande trains and on all of the officials' private cars. He is looking forward to retirement within a couple of years.

He never ceases to enjoy the Rio Grande run between Pueblo and Grand Junction, because of the scenic grandeur. There is always something new Lewis enjoys pointing out to the passengers in the dining cars.

18 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

NOTE--The following information was found in the records of the Comanche County, Kansas, His- tory & Genealogy Society. The society and The Western Star newspaper are both located in Coldwater, Kansas. On March 30, 2011, the president of the society and the editor of the Western Star newspaper granted the PCHS permission to reprint the following first-person account of events associated with the June 3, 1921 Flood. We sincerely appreciate their cooperation. ------

The Western Star, June 24, 1921.

TELLS OF THE PUEBLO FLOOD

Among the thousands of the victims of the recent flood disaster in Pueblo, Colo., were Mr. and Mrs. Victor E. Rockefeller and their daughter, Marguerette, who are well known here. Mrs. Rockefeller was formerly Miss Cora Ferrin, and is a daughter of Mr. And Mrs. Arthur Ferrin of Wilmore and a sister of Mrs. Elza Holmes of this city. Mr. Rockefeller was employed for some time as a civil engineer in the construction of the Coldwater municipal water and light plant. Mrs. Rockefeller in a letter to her parents a week or so after the flood, gives a graphic description of conditions in and around Pueblo, the letter being printed in the Wilmore News of last week. We take the liberty of re- producing the letter herewith for the benefit of Western Star readers.

Mrs. Rockefeller writes:

Pueblo, Colo., June 9th.

Dear Folks: You no doubt have received word of our safety before this. Mama R. was probably most worried knowing of our location near the Fountain river and that Victor often worked nights at the power house. We couldn't get word to you before. The first few days, of course, the lines were cut off and when they did get one line through to Denver, it meant that I had to walk down town and back 10 blocks and stand in line for hours or Victor had to lay off to send the message. The need for men was so urgent that he couldn't do that, so we just had to let it go. Of course we are all stunned by what has happened. We have been through the ruins together three times and Victor of course every day and even now I cannot believe it more than a horrible dream.

Read the worst you can and believe it. I shall not try to describe it except to say the stricken district is utter dissolution. The newspaper writers with their facts cannot give you half the picture. No one can say with certainty whether 500 or 5000 lost their lives. It probably never will be known. Bodies are being brought in everyday from miles down the river. The rush of water was so terrific that hundreds must have been washed downstream and never will be found.

White and Davis clothiers, Pryor Furniture, Calkins and White, Dean and Creel, Crews-Beggs, in fact, every house or business of any size in town are heavy losers, if not total loses. White and Da- vis loss is total. They had a perfectly beautiful store and are one of the oldest houses here. Even Pryor's building is wrecked. The Santa Fe loading platform struck the corner. They are the oldest furniture store here. Dead horses and cows are found among the finery of the department stores. It's gotten on my nerves until I'm nearly crazy and we didn't suffer at all except from anxiety.

We are four or five blocks from Wood Croft hospital and the Stearns Rodgers foundry which were heavy losers in the Fountain flood. All the people in this section were ordered out on the street about 6 p.m. Saturday. Most of them went, but we stuck all ready to go until 9:30 and Victor went out on the street and learned that the crest of the Fountain flood had passed and we were safe and we went to bed but not to sleep. We were alone in the neighborhood. I helped the girl next door get her bedfast aunt up and out. Most of the people went to the Somerlid school house. Many went again Sunday night and through it all, rain and mist, with not a ray of sunshine - enough to break the spirit even in normal times.

Mr. Phythian, the construction superintendent on the new power house and Harry Wilcox, night man on Victor's gang, were in the flood all night. They hung to the steel work of the new building until they were rescued 15 hours from the time the flood struck. Wires were thrown to them from PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 19 the second story of a building and they walked out and were dragged over a bridge, mind you, in water up to their chins, both almost exhausted and teeth locked from the cold. The night's happen- ings are seared on their brains for life. Fires lit up the scene. The roar of waters and crashing of timbers, and cries of people for aid, with lightning flashing and thunder rolling, it's no wonder people thought the end of the world had come. They saw men shoot their families and then themselves. Water was 15 feet deep in the Union depot and down town in the heart of the business section it was up to the second story floor.

They are hauling the dead animals out two blocks from us, truck after truck. We've no milk because our milk man is in East Pueblo and bridges are all gone. Other dairies have lost all their horses and wagons. We have no ice because horses and wagons are wiped out. We've no telephone because while the plant might be put in shape, wires all over town are in a tangle of debris which will take days and days to untangle, poles down, wires crossed, everything chaos. We have water and lights, which we were without for several days - lights from the steel works. The men are working night and day to get the power plant in shape, forgetting all about new work. Victor went to work yesterday afternoon and got back at 8 o'clock this morning. He will go out at 5 tonight and get back some time in the night. He has a military pass which enables him to come and go any time and anywhere, but believe me, I am nervous at night. No one is allowed in the area at all after 7 p.m. without a good sound pass and there's always the fear that some guard will get excited and not wait for a man to show his reason for being out at night.

There is a soldier camp two blocks from us and a detention camp for contagious diseases and an aviation camp at Fairmount Park not far from us - airplanes flying over us continually. It's all very serious and warlike. A detachment of soldiers just marched out on Greenwood - one block west. I don't know where they were going - guns and all. We are told there are Missouri troops here.

You probably know more about what is going on than we do. The Pueblo Chieftain (without power) is getting out a little two sheet paper each day and we got a Denver paper for the first time yesterday. Pueblo has asked for Federal aid, for rebuilding and flood protection. With thousands homeless and the town at the mercy of the rivers we've got to have it or we might as well move out. Pueblo single handed could never even clean-up, let alone rebuild. It is incredible the stuff that will have to be cleaned out - millions of tons of mud and debris - not to speak of animal and human bodies. We're worrying about epidemics now. It has turned hot, disinfectants and serums are scarce and the work of cleaning up the dead bodies is so slow, it seems it would be a miracle if we escape a terrible pestilence.

We have a girl staying with Marguerette occasionally, one of a family of five children. Their home was washed away and they saved only a few clothes. She came yesterday and stayed with M. while we went down and viewed the ruins. It has a terrible fascination for everybody. There is a taxi running from 24th and Grand now. Victor has been lucky to catch rides to and from his work or it would be hard on him.

Across the corner they are washing and drying goods from the Crews-Beggs store. I don't know what it's good for - a flood sale I suppose. The clean part of town is full of stuff from the stores farmed out to be cleaned and dried. Many stores did not have anything left to be washed even. They were just flooded out, from front to back, swept clean. Just place a wood box bottom up and knock out both ends and you have the condition that exists down on Union Avenue in the stores. It really can't be exaggerated. For several days we didn't have fire protection and now without telephone word could not be gotten to the fire department so that there have been several destructive fires to add to the loss. A big lumber yard burned up the night of the first flood in a downpour of rain. Burning timbers floated all over the flood, endangering the whole business section. Victor saw a big two story rooming house burn just before dawn this morning. Marguerette celebrated her first birthday in a hilarious manner. Had a little party for lunch, fell off the bed for the first time and ended up with a flood. We shall not soon forget her first birthday. We were at the Majestic Theater the night of the flood. Lights went out about 8:30 and they tried to go on with the show with candles and flashlights. About nine o'clock they announced there was no use to continue. The manager came out and said, "The water is two blocks down the street, but if you go out quietly there is no danger." the crowd was quiet and were controlled. When we got out 20 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 the water was rushing into the alley between 3rd and 4th on Main already to the officers' knees with White and Davis already under water at 3rd and Main. We were at 4th between Main and Santa Fe. An hour later the place where we sat in the theater was six feet under water.

The water rose until it was between 6th and 7th on Main so that there was not a single business of any importance in Pueblo that wasn't injured from a few hundred to a quarter of a million dollars. All the wholesale houses, packing houses, freight and express offices, commission houses, every single thing you can name except the steel works out in Bessemer and the Baker steam motor plant out northwest. I don't see how the property damage can be overestimated. Victor and Mar- guerette are both asleep. We aren't suffering in the least - have plenty of good food. M. is taking canned milk. We are afraid to use what is available and cannot keep it without ice anyway. We even have fresh strawberries from one of the neighbors.

The following is a transcription of a handwritten note by Austin G. Marsh. He is believed to own an assay office in Pueblo as well several other places in Southern Colorado. This appears to have been written shortly after the flood.

Sirens blowing. Ed and I went down town. Crowds of people on bridges. Water almost to bridge level, came over St. Crowds kept just ahead. Got motors off floor. Ran. New suit, hung up coat and we unbelted them and set on tables fast. Heard scream out in front and saw man pick up a girl throw her onto a Ford car and ---- out of there. Dark. Could see water surging through st. ran out without coat and plunged across st. just in time ---- high ground.

Party at sister in laws. My mother, sister in law and her family. High and dry. My wife stranded on mesa.

Watched water all night. Strange sounds: collapsing buildings, 200 cars smashing together in RR yards. Screams. Lights went out.

Next morning chaos. Pepper Sauce bottoms gone. Over a foot of mud everywhere. Scoutmaster, Doctor? Trying to save people floating house. (following sentence can't be read).

Got in office everything gone. Water ---- 13 ft. high. That wasn't bolted. $2000 assay bal- ancer.

Boxing gloves all 4 hanging on nail at rear of building. Platinum crucible. 12” mud. There it was.

Death wagons, - little old carpenter near by.

No water – water wagon. No gas. No phones or telegraph. No trains or streetcars. No food. Relief train after 2 days.

510 dwellings washed away. 98 bldgs wrecked. 61 bldgs washed from foundation. 8 RR bridges destroyed. 19 million dollar damage.

PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 21

Above: This photo was taken from Victoria Avenue and shows the buildings on the east side of the intersection of D Street and South Union Avenue. All the buildings on the west side of the street were destroyed by the flood.

Right: A view of the south side of the Pueblo Union Depot after the flood. (Pueblo Regional Library Archives)

Below: This photo shows the amount of debris and mud deposited by the floodwater at the intersection of B Street and Victoria Ave. It is typical of what was deposited throughout the area.

22 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

The Pueblo Flood of 1921 By Guy E. Macy

NOTE: At the time when this was written, in 1940, Guy Macy was a teacher of history at Pueblo Junior College.

the period of the melting snow.2 No information regarding the exact date and approximate height of this flood is available. The second recorded flood of this region was that of June 11, 1864, which was caused prin- cipally by very heavy rains. The flood

The next flood of any importance occurred July 26, 1893.4 Al-though 1893 was the second driest year in a thirty-five year period, this flood was fourth in size in three-quarters of a century. The Arkansas River reached a point some ten feet lower than that of 1921. The Rocky Mountain News of July 27, 1893, said: Heavy rain at Pueblo broke the levee and did $200,000 damage. At nine o'clock in the evening of July 26, the river began to rise and rose eight feet in two hours. A saloon standing on the levee became undermined and fell into the channel. Water rushed through the break in the levee, and in ten minutes city hall was surrounded by six feet of water. The crest of the flood is said to have reached the floor of the Union Depot.

PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 23

On Second Street between Santa Fe Avenue and Main Street the water was four feet deep over the floor of the buildings. At the highest stage the water was three feet deep in the Denver and Rio Grande freight yard and kept that height from 2 A.M. to 8 A.M. on May 31. It receded slowly and by 6 A.M. June 1st had fallen only four and one-half feet. The highest was about seven feet less than that of the 1921 flood.6 During this flood the property damage amounted to over $2,000,000 and five lives were lost.

7 the City of Pueblo was widened and the levees were raised so

A view looking east at Beaver Depot, building on the left side of the tracks, shows the destruction of the Arkansas Valley Flood of 1921. Notice the bridge in the background that was washed out. (Courtesy of James Ozment and Mike Maselli. Photographed by George L. Beam) 24 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

High-water mark on Different Buildings of Pueblo: Building Location Height above Sidewalk

PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 25

Due to the confusion caused by the terrible flood, Sheriff Thomas called for volunteers to prevent looting until the State troops and rangers could arrive. By 10 A.M., Saturday. Sheriff Thomas had sworn in 1500 deputies.14 Among the first to assist the police department were the members of the Pueblo Post No. 2 of the American Legion and the members of Pueblo's unit of the National Guard. On Sunday afternoon, June 5, the State Troops arrived and Pueblo was placed under mar- tial law. The volunteers were then released to rest before they joined in the work of reconstruction. Additional troops arrived June 6th and Colonel Newlon was placed in command.15

A steel baggage car filled with food, clothing and medical supplies was sent from Chicago Monday for the relief of the Pueblo flood victims. 20 26 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

Property Losses, June, 1921, in dollars Federal, State and County property…………………..$ 900,000 Municipal property………………………………………… 800,000 Real estate (city and town)…………………………….. 3,420,000 Personal property (city and town)……………………. 3,575,000 Farms…………………………………..…………………. 3,675,000 Irrigation Works…….…………………………………… 1,275,000 Railroads……………………………………..…………… 4,275,000 Public utilities…………………………………………...... 500,000 250 000 Total property losses $19,080,000 A report to the Pueblo City Council stated that 510 dwellings were washed away, ninety- eight buildings were wrecked and sixty-one were washed from their foundations. The loss of life in Pueblo was heavy, owing to the swift rise of the river and the unwillingness of many people to heed the flood warnings. The official list places the number of bodies recovered at seventy-eight, but many bodies that were washed down the river were never recovered. Twenty thousand, six hundred twenty-four acres of Pueblo County farm land were inundated during the flood.21 And of this area 2,540 acres were rendered unfit for cultivation. About 20,000 acres of irrigated land were affected temporarily by the destruction of reservoirs and irrigation ditches. The irrigated land that was ruined by erosion was valued at $448,350. The heaviest loss was incurred by the railroad companies as the flooded area included nearly all the extensive terminals of the railroads that enter Pueblo. So great was the damage to the railroad property not only in Pueblo, but in the surrounding territory that not a relief train could enter Pueblo for two days.22 Of the six railroad bridges over the Arkansas River and the three over the Fountain only the Santa Fe bridge to the Union Depot escaped. All the others lost one or more spans or large portions of approaches. The Missouri Pacific yard and engine terminal was cut off by a new channel and was left on an island without a rail connection. A Denver and Rio Grande train and a Missouri Pacific train were caught in the flood while trying to reach higher ground. Coaches were overturned and several lives were lost. Some 2,000 cars in the yards during the flood suffered great damage. Many were floated away and overturned or crushed by the impact or pressure of debris. The total property loss of the railroads in the city was estimated at $10,000,000. During the flood the gauging station at the Main Street bridge which was maintained by the State Engineer, was entirely destroyed.23 The area inundated was so wide, it was impossible to make discharge measurements during the peak flow. So after the flood, the United States Geologi- cal Survey determined the maximum discharge as 103,000-second feet. This amount was 63,000 second feet more than the maximum discharge during the flood of 1894, the greatest flood prior to 1921. Monday, June 7, several thousand men were put to work clearing away the wreckage and debris from the buildings and streets of the downtown section.24 The steel plant closed and its employees aided in the task of cleaning up. Bodies of horses and other animals were destroyed in order to prevent the spread of disease later. It took several weeks to clear away the wreckage from the streets of the business section of the city. Very soon after the flood had subsided, the businessmen of the Pueblo decided that something must be done to prevent another such catastrophe.25 Accordingly, a committee of twelve citizens was selected to plan and direct the work of reclamation, until such a time as a special session of the state legislature should provide an authorized plan through legal enactment. To save time this committee began to function immediately. In surveying the whole country, this committee found that the Morgan Engineering Company of Dayton, Ohio had developed a flood control plan for the Miami River after the Dayton flood of 1911 that worked very satisfactorily. The engineers of PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 27 time this committee began to function immediately. In surveying the whole country, this committee found that the Morgan Engineering Company of Dayton, Ohio had developed a flood control plan for the Miami River after the Dayton flood of 1911 that worked very satisfactorily. The engineers of this company visited Pueblo and after making a survey, presented their flood control plan with cost estimates. The estimated cost for the Flood Control Project was duly laid before the proper legislative committee at Denver, when the General Assembly was called into special session by Governor Shoup. The legislature enacted a law creating the Pueblo Conservancy District, placing the same under the jurisdiction of the District Court of Pueblo County. The court was authorized to appoint three competent businessmen of Pueblo to administer the affairs of the Pueblo Conserv- ancy District. The committee was composed of Charles W. Lee (Chairman), G. H. Nuckolls and R. G. Breckenridge. The law also called for a tax on those districts affected by the flood to build the Flood Control Project.26 It called for a bond issue of $4,509,000 and gave four years for the com- pletion of the project. The Morgan Engineering Company of Dayton, Ohio, had charge of the project work. And Platt Rogers, local contractor, was the man who really accomplished the huge task provided by the Conservancy plan. This plan called for the building of a huge barrier west of Pueblo, and the making of a new river channel about one-half mile south of the old channel. The barrier at Rock Can- yon, six miles west of the city, is constructed on the principle of pouring water out of a teakettle.27 This was built of concrete and reinforced steel. It is thirty-three feet high, eighteen feet wide at the bottom and six feet wide at the top, and is built on bedrock. The entire length of this barrier wall is 1642 feet. It took 500 carloads of cement and 2,775,000 pounds of reinforced steel to complete the barrier. There are two openings in this barrier, one for the river channel, the other for the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad. The river channel opening will allow the passage of 85,000 second feet. Should the water back up far enough, 15,000 additional second feet will pass through the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad notch. Extending for hundreds of feet on either end of this solid concrete wall are equally high dirt wing walls containing 125,000 cubic yards of dirt. The old river channel, after leaving Dry Creek at the western edge of the city, took a wide bend to the north, then cut diagonally across the city lowlands.29 Almost parallel to the old channel and about one-half mile south was a long, low bluff or cliff. It was decided that the base of this hill should be the new river channel. Accordingly a deep, wide channel was cut along the edge of the hill toward the southeast for about two and one-half miles. Along the northern bank of the new channel, a concrete levee, some two and one-half miles long, was build through the city. This levee has a sloping bank on the water side. It is thirty-two feet in height from the riverbed, fifty feet wide at the bottom, and eight feet at the top. This levee was built to last permanently. From a distance of not less than ten feet, water soaked earth and rock were dropped into forms, which rapidly dried into a concrete-like substance. Over this was placed the outer surfacing of reinforced concrete and steel over ten inches in thickness. The wall goes to rock bottom, so there is no possibility of it undermining. The new channel has a capacity for carrying five times as much water as the old channel. Part of that increased capacity is due to the fact that the present channel now runs seventeen miles per hour in flood time, while the old channel current ran only six miles per hour in time of flood. Before the project was all completed, another flood came down the Arkansas River in 1925. The project work then done, held the water back and saved the city. Few citizens knew or realized the danger that was averted by the flood prevention work. In moving the river channel, it was necessary to surmount many other obstacles. The main railroad yards of the Denver and Rio Grande Western happened to be just where the new channel was to be located.30 So a part of the conservancy job was to move the railroads. Thirty-two miles of railroad track were taken up and thirty-four miles of track were laid. Then certain sections of the electric lights, gas, telephone, telegraph, and sewage systems of the city had to be altered more or less. Underground cables were torn up and re-laid. New sewers had to be built and the power plants changed. All this huge task was accomplished without hindering the passage of a single train or inconveniencing any one using any of the public utility systems. In addition to this, the Conservancy District built seven bridges and one subway. This included the following: the upper Denver and Rio Grande Railroad bridge, the Dry Creek Railroad bridge, the lower Denver and Rio Grande Railroad bridge. West Fourth Street Viaduct, Union Avenue Via- 28 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

In addition to this, the Conservancy District built seven bridges and one subway. This included the following: the upper Denver and Rio Grande Railroad bridge, the Dry Creek Railroad bridge, the lower Denver and Rio Grande Railroad bridge. West Fourth Street Viaduct, Union Avenue Via- duct (City of Pueblo paid about one-half of this cost), Main Street Viaduct, Santa Fe Avenue bridge (it contains one span which is 280 feet long), and the Santa Fe Avenue Subway. The whole Flood Prevention Project was completed and in operation within two years from the time the project was commenced. The method of handling this project and the thoroughness with which the project work was done has cause eminent engineers from nearly all parts of the country to visit Pueblo and study the flood control system. The visiting engineers for the thorough and effi- cient work accomplished have complimented the Conservancy Board, in every case. At any rate the people of Pueblo have a feeling of security from future floods. NOTE: On the Arkansas at least.

1Pueblo Star Journal, June 4, 1921 17W. H. Parker, Pueblo’s Flood, 6. 2Water-Supply Paper, No. 487, p. 36. 18Pueblo Star Journal, June 6, 1921. 3Ibid., 37. 19Ibid. 4Ibid., 38. 20Water-Supply Paper, No. 487, p.8 5Ibid., 39. 21Water Resources, December, 1922. 6Pueblo Chieftain, June 12, 1894 22Water-Supply Paper, No. 487, p.8. 7Ibid. 23Ibid. 8Pueblo Star Journal, June 4, 1921 24Pueblo Star Journal, June 6, 1921. 9Water-Supply Paper, No. 487, p. 23 25Unpublished records of Pueblo Conservancy District. 10Pueblo Star Journal, June 4 and 5, 1921. 26Ibid. 11Ibid 27Kansas City Star, January 10, 1926 12Water Supply Paper, No. 487, p.25 28Unpublished Records, Pueblo Conservancy District. 13Pueblo Star Journal, June 4, 1921 29Ibid. 14Pueblo Star Journal, June 5, 1921 30Ibid. 15Pueblo Star Journal, June 6, 1921. 16Ibid.

(Pueblo Regional Library Archives) PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 29

Letter From Hazel G. Waldron To Her Mother

Note--Since there was no high school in Howard, Colorado, Hazel (Waldron) Korber came to Pueblo and stayed with her relatives, the family of Sue (Golightly) Cutler to complete her high school education. While here she attended President Wilson's address at the Pueblo City Auditorium. The seats had not yet been installed so the audience had to stand. Hazel graduated from Pueblo Central High School in 1921 and remembers walking down to the Mesa Junction bluff to watch the raging waters of the great Pueblo flood. On April 2, 2000 Hazel was honored as the oldest continuous member of the Calvary Baptist Church. Hazel (Waldron) Korber celebrated her 99th birthday on October 20, 2003. - John Korber

Pueblo, Colorado, June 7, 1921

Dearest Mother:

I suppose that you, like everyone else, have heard that Pueblo is swept clear off of the map but I want to tell you that the Mesa is still left here. It is real hard to describe what an evening Friday night was and no one who did not go thru it cannot understand how terrible things were. It began to rain about 3 o'clock and then at 5 it hailed. It rained all night long pouring down most all of the time. At six o'clock the whistles for high water began to blow and they blew continually until 8:30 or 9 o'clock. At 7, Prentis (Tryon), Mr. and Mrs. Johnson and I walked down to the river bridge and the water was almost up to the beams of the bridge then. Mrs. Johnson and I came home as it was raining hard and we were afraid the water would go over the bridge and up Union before we got out. We got home at 8 and then the whistles began to blow every 3 minutes – 10 high water – 3 get out of the low lands as fast as you can. They bloomed 10 then 3 from 15 after 8 until 9 when the (Water Works) house was under water. At 8:30 the lights went out and at 9 telephone connections were gone. The rain and flood were terrible and we were sure worried and frightened but when the fire began to rage down in the flood district it made things worse and we felt as if no telling when fire would break out on the hill and then we would be gone. We spent the night over at Mrs. Tryon's because we simply could not stay over here all alone. Mrs. Tryon layed down and I slept from 2:30 A. M. till 5 and Aunt H. (Hazel Golightly) did not sleep at all. At 11:30 Jason (Tryon) and I came over here and got all of the little chick- ens and brot them in the house and only lost two. At five that A.M. I went over on the hill and the water was still raging. The whole territory from 8th St. down clear over the Bluff on Block "I" was covered with water and water was clear up to the top of the depot platform. Box cars, are turned every way in the yards and a passenger train turned over right in front of the depot also one down by Nuckoll's Packing Plant and we really don't know how many lives were lost from the trains or anywhere else. Saturday morning people were found in the trees and on tops of buildings and the most of them who were rescued are now crazy. All of the buildings on South Union are completely ruined you might say. Taub’s (Men's Clothing), Fisher's (Jewelry), Pelt’s (Department Store), the Barbers are gone, nothing of the building but the 2 side walls. The Foundations of several buildings are gone and the buildings will have to be dynamited. Pryor's, Dean-Creel's, Calkins and White's are gone and furniture was found in McCarthy's undertaking Parlor. The dead from the hearse there at McCarthy's were taken out and the living from the building were put in the hearse and taken to safety that morning because they feared the building would fall any minute. The foreigners who lived down in the grove had to be driven out by the police and many of them were drowned. One Austrian shot his children then his wife and himself so as not to be drowned and he would not try to get to higher land. Every word of this is true as it has all come from re- liable people and from people who know. 30 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

Sat. Sun., and Mon. one had to get permits for everything such as food, gasoline, and coal and pass to go on the other side. Fred's father lived on West 3rd St. and yesterday he was found on 2nd St. by Pryors. He was buried this morning at 9. Fred almost knew that they would find him dead as he was blind but he said it was quite a relief to know that he was either dead or alive because he was sure worried and expected to find him dead. Fred has taken the car and is doing relief work hauling passengers from Minnequa Junction to the Stone Depot. Every man is supposed to be working and they are all cleaning the trash away alike. Mex and whites are working together in the yards there is no class distinction whatever. Saturday afternoon, Fred took me down to the Grove where Clark's Mineral Wells are and I want to tell you exactly what I saw and there is no exaggeration whatever because I saw it with my own eyes. Many houses were washed clear from their foundations others were partly washed away and pictures were still on the walls and the light wires and globes were still hanging. Box cars from the yards were scattered all thru the streets also houses were turned in many different ways filling one street completely and only could it be told that it was a street by the light poles. Water was on both sides of Santa Fe Avenue the river on one side and still water on the other. Large light wires and rails were found across the streets. The most pitiful sight was to see the foreigners going down and carrying out of those wet houses their few belongings and they were very few.

Cars of all descriptions were seen turned over in the mud, jammed up against the houses and in every way imaginable.

(Thurs. Jun 9, 1921). Yesterday Fred Korber and I went over thru town and on the North Side. The water only done damage up to 6th St. on Main but the streets west of that were not damaged. The Pueblo Store and Crews-Beggs had the dry goods out in the street to dry. These goods have been given to the Red Cross to be washed up for the refugees. Pryor's Furniture Store which was on 2" and Main, the whole corner from the top to the bottom is washed away. Cal- kins-White and Dean-Creel's Furniture Stores are completely washed out – only the building. White and Davis Building is washed partly away and then all of the goods there are ruined. That which I saw down in the business district was horrible enough but to me it seems that the Grove is the worst. Whether it is because I walked thru the Grove and rode thru town I don't know but it is all certainly horrible.

Last eve when all was quiet and everyone asleep a large clap of thunder woke the whole neighborhood. This was about 11 o'clock. It thundered and lightninged for 2 hours with every little rain. About 1:30 the Rangers rode by and fired their guns several times. At 20 minutes till 2 Fred went by in the car and yelled that 77 Block L (144 Harvard) was on fire. You can imagine how everyone hurried and got dressed. It certainly was horrible to think that we all might be burned out up on the Mesa but luckily there was no wind and no other house caught on fire. Ken- nedy's (80 Block L) were beginning to move out and Fay got up on top of the house and had water there ready to put out the first spark that would fall on the house. At 3:30 the danger was over and people began to go back to bed. I tell you that when we go to bed at night that we don't know whether we will get up in the morning with a home or all of us alive or not. Yesterday was the first day that we have had any paper since last Friday night and we got the Chieftain and Tues. Denver Post when we were over town. We got the telegram yesterday and when we told Fred about it he says “I wish they would write.” So you see he is real interested. We have lights now from the steel works and expect to have gas in a few days from there also. I sure hope so as we haven't a bit of coal. Fred ordered coal for us Monday thru the Steel Works but it has not come yet so we have had to borrow. Well, Mama, I hope you are safe and don't worry about us for we will get along the best we can. Lots of love from us all. PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 31

Your loving daughter, Hazel G. Waldron 88 Block L Pueblo, Colorado P.S. Pa Golightly sent me $5 for graduation present and I got a card from Aunt Ida.

(The following is a note written by Hazel Korber much later:)

My mother, Mrs. Edna Waldron and her niece, Sue Golightly (Cutler) and her employer Mr. Archie Alexander of Howard, Colo. had been in Pueblo for my graduation from Central High School June 2 nd 1921.

They left Pueblo about 2 p.m. June 3rd to return to Howard driving a maroon Moon car. It was raining when they arrived in Canon and just west of Canon a bridge across the highway was covered with water. My mother and Sue went up on the hill side while Mr. Alex- ander turned the car around and they went back to Canon and spent the night at the Strath- more Hotel. The next day they were able to go on to Howard. - Hazel Waldron Korber

Memories Of The 1921 Flood As Told By My Mother And Grandparents

By Bill Crain

My mother and my grandparents watched the Arkansas River flood as it flowed past my grandparents home place. Their home was on a hill, north of the river, and about half a mile east of the present Pueblo Boulevard. I remember them talking about the heavy rain which must have extend- ed upstream to Canon City, or beyond. From their house the river was not visible, however the outhouse and the chicken coop were out on the edge of the hill. I guess someone must have had to visit one of those structures and observed the high water. I do not recall them saying anything about listing to a radio or even in fact if they had a radio at the time.

I remember them saying about how the river was up to its banks and that trees and small buildings could be seen going by. As the river rose it apparently eroded the banks and took out trees, cattle or wood sheds, railroad telegraph poles and lines, corral fences and whatever was in the river bottoms, close to the river.

My grandparents home place was located about a mile and a half upstream from “town” where the major destruction occurred. I cannot help but think that the debris that my mother and her parents observed floating down towards town played a part in forming blockage which in turn caused bridges to be washed out and the river to jump its banks. As more debris gathered, and the river kept on rising, the majority of Pueblo’s business district and rail yards suffered heavy damage.

My grandparents farmed in the river bottom near where the Pueblo Board of Water Works water treatment plant is now located. The river was all over their fields but other than leaving trees, sandbars and some other debris no significant amount of land was lost or damaged during the flood. My grandparents and mom’s maiden name was Donley.

32 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

My Grandfather, Unsung Hero

By Fran Reed

This picture appeared in the Pueblo Chieftain on October 5, 2008. It was labeled “water workers”. The man sitting on the sitting on the left side of the bench in bib overalls and cap is my grandfather, John Nittinger. The Chieftain had the picture because they had interviewed my aunt, Martha Church when the old water building was being torn down and a new one was being built to replace it. My aunt told the Chieftain the story she had often told to me and my sisters of my grandfather and how he was a hero of the 1921 flood.

My grandfather was a water engineer for the Board of Water Works. He always worked the “swing” or afternoon shift. One of his duties was to sound this whistle whenever there was a fire. According to my aunt, “Two blasts meant there was a fire.” “One blast meant it was over.” My aunt said that she remembered as a young girl visiting her dad at work and seeing him pull the lev- er. She said, “You could hear it all over town.”

On June 3, 1921 when Pueblo started flooding, my grandfather refused to evacuate the pump- ing plant located at Fourth St. and Grand Ave. He stayed there all that night sounding the alarm, signaling for everyone to go to higher ground. According to the Chieftain’s flood extra of June 4, 1921, “The police immediately had the fire whistle blown warning people of the approaching flood. The whistle was blown every fifteen minutes…”

My grandfather had rheumatoid arthritis. He walked with a cane because both knees were crip- pled. He continued to blow the whistle until the water reached his waist. He then climbed to the highest point he could reach in the building and hung his arms over a pipe close to the ceiling and hung there until he was rescued the next day by men in a row boat.

Because all communications to the east side of Pueblo were down, the rest of my grandfather’s family had no knowledge of his safety. His family, including my father who was the youngest of seven, had left their home on Pueblo’s lower east side and fled to the old Bradford School for safety. It was days later before communications were restored and my grandfather was able to contact his family and they would know that he had survived.

My grandfather died seven years later, more that twenty years before I was born. I never knew him, only stories of him. My aunt told the Chieftain, “I know he was a hero. I’m sure he saved many lives, but he didn’t make a big deal about it. He wasn’t that type of person.” PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 33

Flood Memories

Photos courtesy of Sally Kennedy Collection

Sally Kennedy’s grandfather Frank E. Allison Sr. was a truck driver for the Ridenaur Bakery and Grocery Company at the time of the 1921 Flood. The Ridenaur building was located on the southwest corner of Lampkin and “D” Street which is two blocks west of Union Avenue and directly south of the Black Hills Energy Company’s buildings and storage areas. The former Ridenaur building still stands and has been converted into housing units.

The floodwaters and the lack of bridge over Fountain Creek did not permit Frank Ellison to return to his pregnant wife Elsie C. Allison, or their home at 830 East 8th Street for several days which caused both great concerns. After checking his family’s welfare and a short rest, Frank Alli- son returned to work and participated in the massive clean up effort that was required to remove the mud and debris deposited by the floodwaters. The selected photographs that follow, and others filed in the PCHS library were taken by Charles E Rose who operated a photography studio at 323 Victoria Ave. They are copies of those in Sally Kennedy’s family records.

Twelve men are shown clearing the area in front of the Ri- This is a northeast view of eight men clearing the area adja- denaur loading docks. Unfortunately none of them are iden- cent to the Ridenaur loading docks. None of them are identi- tified. fied. It would be interesting to know why a boiler is standing nearby. Did it come from the Ridenaur building? Or is it like several other boilers and large tanks show in 1921 Flood photograhs that were dislodged from their original location and deposited elsewhere by the floodwaters?

This photo shows members of the Ridenaur staff and trucks alongside the building prior to June 3, 1921. Frank Allison is the man with his foot on the step of the truck. The roof Two men are shown standing on a 19___ Nash Truck which over the loading docks can be seen on the right side of the was used to clean up the flood debris. The man on the right building. Note the interesting shape of the building’s win- is Frank Allison. The name of the other man is not known. dows. The truck license number is 1921 3-780.

34 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 City A Panorama of Ruin

Source: The New York Times, June 5, 1921. Submitted by Susan Adamich

COLORADO SPRINGS, Col., June 4.----The devastation wrought by fire and flood at Pueblo last night is terrible. Mr. Railsback, now special agent of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway at Pueblo. made his way to Colorado Springs at 2 o’clock this afternoon by special Santa Fe motor car in an effort to get into communication with La Junta over the Union Pacific wires to order a special relief train to the scene of the disaster. “Hundreds of lives were lost and millions of dollars in property were destroyed,” said Mr. Railsback. “The main business district of the city is gutted by fire and water and it will probably never will be known how many hundreds of people perished. “The entire residence districts in several of the lowlands were completely wiped out. I spent the entire night with hundreds of others rescuing women and little children from the flood and my mind is so befuddled that I can hardly talk about the thing. It was horrible beyond description. “I saw several cheap frame rooming houses topple over and plunge into the raging torrent, each filled with screaming women and children. The scene was sickening.” Mr. Railsback said at one time there was fifteen feet of water rushing through the Santa Fe yards. He declared the yards were completely destroyed. To add the horror if the flood, fires started all over the city, not only in the business districts, but in many residence sections. The largest business houses of the city, including the big banks, Crews-Beggs store, the White & Davis store, Straub’s trunk factory, the King lumber yard and many others were wrecked by fire, according to Mr. Railsback. The river broke over its banks near the State Insane Asylum and soon there was a raging torrent from the high cliffs to the west of the union depot to Seventh Street.

View Ruin from Airplane. DENVER, June 4.---An airplane view of the Pueblo flood disaster was brought to Denver late today by William A. Kimsey, pilot, who flew to Pueblo with staff correspondents of the Associated Press and the Rocky Mountain News. After circling above the stricken city to make an accurate appraisal of the havoc wrought by the flood, Kimsey and his passengers landed in the outskirts of Pueblo, the first persons from the outside world to reach the scene of the catastrophe. Following his return to Denver after a daring flight, much of which was accomplished through low-hanging clouds which obscured the earth completely at times, Kimsey detailed the conditions at Pueblo as he saw them and learned from refugees who flocked about his plane after he landed at the State Fair Grounds. “From an altitude of about 1,000 feet,” said Kimsey, “the business district of Pueblo looked like a sea of mud and water. The district, which I know well from other flights over the city, was hardly recognizable on account of vast piles of debris. “The railroad station stood out as an island in a lake, but the tracks were completely submerged, and cars could be seen floating about. The waters of the Arkansas were backed up on the right bank for what appeared to be several blocks, and the approximate vicinity of the Vail Hotel was submerged.

Flood Cut City in Half. “All of the outlying districts of the lowlands appeared utterly devastated and for miles around there was nothing but a vast expanse of mud, dotted here and there by houses perched at some odd angle. “I didn’t leave my plane after I landed in the city, but a number of residents told me of the horrible conditions and verified my aerial observations. They said that there had been no chance to start a search for the dead and the missing yet, but that the police lines were being formed fairly well and the panic and wanton destruction by looters was getting more controllable. “Between Pueblo and Colorado Springs all of the bridges as far as I could observe were PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 35 washed out and the flooded city was entirely cut off to the north. Although I did not go south of Pueblo, I could not see any bridges in commission in any direction out of the city. “When we got to Pueblo the city was cut right in half by the flood and it appeared impossible for those on one bank of the Arkansas to reach those on the other, a situation which the refugees told me was creating great consternation. When I was leaving I was told that one of the viaducts connecting the two main parts of the city would soon be in commission, relieving the confusion.” In describing the flight from Denver to Pueblo, which was successfully accomplished in spite of adverse flying weather, Kimsey said: Several times on the way down we were lost in the clouds, but flew ahead on the chance there would be a hole and we had good luck. The only towns we sighted on the down trip were Castle Rock, Monument and Fountain. “At Fountain the tracks were under water and a passenger train seemed to be partially turned over.” Kimsey said the roads between Denver and Colorado Springs were open. However everything around Pueblo looked like a no-man’s land.

Special to The New York Times. COLORADO SPRINGS, Col., June 4.---The entire business district of Pueblo is inundated and the residence sections of the city are flooded, according to Ford C. Frick of Colorado Springs, who returned here at 2 o’clock this afternoon after an airplane flight to the stricken city. Frick reported he was unable to land because of the weather conditions. From an altitude of 1000 feet above the city ne said he could see smoldering ruins of burned buildings, floating debris of all descriptions, and boats and rafts plying here and there in the flooded streets and alleys. The southern portion of the city, Frick said, did not appear to have suffered any considera- ble damage, but people were rushing back and forth in the streets and motor cars were scurrying in all directions.

Railroad yard damage.

36 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

Right: Shown in the background is the badly damaged Pyror Furniture and Carpet Store on the southwest corner of 2nd and Main Street. The Western National Bank, in the Amherst Building on the northwest corner of 2nd and Main, is also shown. North of it is the Calkins and White Fur- niture Store and a street- car with a lot of flood debris on it.

Left: Two ladies in Salvation Army uniforms are shown standing by tables set with plates and utensils to feed refugees. Smoke can be seen coming from the stoves used to heat the water needed to wash the dishes and utensils used by the refugees. Storage and supply boxes are stacked nearby.

Below: This photo shows three women with children seated near the Salvation Army’s headquarters tent. A man on crutch- es and a number of other men are lined up to eat.

PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 37

FREAKS OF THE FLOOD

By Susan Adamich

Flood freaks innumerable are everywhere to be seen in the city and out of it east, west and north, while recounting of heroic acts would require volumes to record. Here are a few of the strange things seen and heard in a thirty minutes wading.

A body in a casket ready for shipment had been placed on a truck in front of the Union De- pot baggage room. Men who placed it there stated that when the flood came the box with the casket in it was floated away. From upstairs windows it was watched to circle about in the swirling flood, traveling in all directions, and when the water subsided it was returned and left resting on the very truck from which it was taken

On the wall in the grocery store of Frank M. Smith, 208 S. Union, which was cleaned of both its ends and all its goods, an automobile wrench barely hanging on a peg, and two light globes were left just as they were, the flood filled and covered the building.

A Rio Grande box car went sidewise completely thru a brick apartment house 100 feet wide on A street, and caused the structure to collapse.

A freight car at Third and Elizabeth streets was carried to Santa Fe avenue a block and a half distant, and the trucks were deposited at First and Main.

A 3,000 pound safe was carried 200 feet from the Morrisey Carriage emporium office, and the Forbush Coal company’s safe was carried across Union avenue.

A five-ton steel box at the gas works was moved and broke the steel pipe connections.

Several frame houses, some of them two story’s, were pushed into the front of Main street department stores, carrying iron trolley poles with them.

A big steam boiler was carried to a point in front of the city hall and left standing straight on one end.

At Nelson’s big furniture store, great stoves and ranges were carried thru the length of the building and out the demolished show front, while directly in the path of the torrent an immense china cabinet filled and covered with glass and other delicate wares was left unharmed, not an arti- cle being broken.

At the Whiton Mortuary in the stone Labor Temple, a body in a steel casket was swirled out and carried to the Pueblo plant of the A. S. and R. company, a distance of more than a mile and in the place from which it was taken were deposited two dairy wagons, two dead horses, a pile of household goods fifteen feet high, a cooking range and eighteen inches of mud. In the same establishment another human body in a wooden casket simply floated about the building and even the lining remained perfectly dry.

At a one-story garage on Union avenue, a man climbed to the steel girders supporting the ceiling and there was drowned. He had wrapped his legs and arms about the rods and his pocket flash light was shining full in his face when the body was discovered

A fair-sized frame house, in the 1100 block on West Eight street,was carried ¾ of a mile to Black’s garage on Victoria avenue, and smashed in the side of the garage. When the flood waters subsided a bottle of milk, a bottle of wine, and an egg were in perfect condition on the dining room table, and a phonograph was unharmed. 38 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

THE FLOOD'S AFTERMATH By Arla Aschermann

The horror of Pueblo's greatest catastro- again, and electricity was expected to be availa- phe, the big Flood of 1921, has been told many ble in about a week. Several steam shovel out- times. Recently, however, we came across re- fits were loading mud on flat cars to be hauled ports in a June 11, 1921 Pueblo Chief-tain be- out of the city by train. Plank roads had been longing to Mr. and Mrs. Orville Rouch of Pueblo, built in some places to accommodate motor of how, eight days after the inundation, the city trucks, and temporary bridges now spanned the was literally picking its way out of the mire and St. Charles River and Salt Creek - most other proceeding to go on about its business. bridges in the area were at least passable. "Symbolic letters of reclamation" were G-1, G-2, United States Army personnel were eve- G-3, and G-4, the paper reported - -Government, rywhere. Wagon trains, cavalry troops, railway Gasoline, Grit and Go. Temporary offices for a supply trains, great processions of heavy army variety of purposes had been set up in the Con- trucks, strings of horses and mules city blocks gress Hotel, the Elks Club and other places. long; supplies, equipment, rations, hay, medical On the north side of the Arkansas the supplies, all kinds of equipment, tools, and Salvation Army had a tent city for refugees. utensils, tents and hospital outfits - everything Headquarters were in the basement of the Elks' that would be included in a military expedition building at 5th and Santa Fe. Adjutant Margaret was there, including physicians and surgeons, Sheldon, "who slung the first doughnut for the engineers, sanitationists and other experts. Un- American doughboys in the trenches in France cle Sam was running the city, according to the in 1917," was in charge of cooking food at the report, in an expert manner. Eight acres of sal- camp. On the south side were .two more refu- vaged goods were spread out in Mineral Palace gee tent cities; one was on Northern Avenue at Park: rugs, clothing, furniture, "a veritable kalei- the entrance to the Minnequa Steel Works, doscope of color." where the American Legion was helping out Not to be denied, however, were the 48 and camp personnel was being taken care of by bodies arranged in morgues around town, and the Knights of Columbus. The Red Cross and the approximately 100 persons listed as still the military forces were furnishing supplies and missing in the paper, which made the safe arri- equipment. val home of 50 celebrating Centennial High Health conditions in the city were gener- School students very sweet. ally "fair," except for some dysentery in the ref- Two days earlier, after six days of anx- ugee and construction camps. The health de- ious waiting, the party of students which was partment was urging the use of oranges, lem- marooned in Colorado Springs while on a "one- ons and grapefruit "as a fever preventative" - day" picnic had arrived back home by train. lemons were held to be "a great necessity un- They had left town Friday morning in automo- der present poor water conditions." The Califor- biles to spend the day at Bruin Inn, a resort at nia Fruit Growers' Exchange had diverted a car the top of Cheyenne Canon. Soon after their ar- of lemons to S. W. Pressey perishable food ad- rival at the Inn a rain storm set in that lasted ministrator for distribution to those in need, and well into the next day. The small creek running the City of San Francisco, remembering her down the mountainside near the Inn soon be- own disaster in 1906, was sending money and came a raging torrent carrying with it large supplies through the Red Cross. boulders which made crossing it almost impos- Commissioner of Public Safety sible. By evening a report came that a bridge Studzinski had ordered two motor sprinkler below had gone out. Neverthless, several of the wagons to deliver "medicated drinking water" party attempted a descent but turned back. to residents of the city and had also requisi- There was nothing to do but to stay the night at tioned six horse-drawn wagons from Mayor Bai- the Inn, which was not prepared for such an oc- ley of Denver. Limited rail service had been re- casion. The girls and the chaperones were sup- stored, and ten carloads of Manitou mineral wa- plied with cushions from the cars and the boys ter in bulk were to arrive that day for free distri- spent the night as best they could on hard bution. Formaldehyde was being sprinkled board benches. around water holes and gutters of the flooded The next morning they found the path- district, "greatly improving the former obnox- way down impassable so decided to try to get ious odor." Gas mains were mostly functioning down to Colorado Springs and the train by PUEBLO LORE — June 2011 — 39 walking down the Cripple Creek Shortline The party at last arrived in Colorado tracks. They made it, but not without a few Springs, where they found they could not go on thrills. At one point a huge landslide rushed because of washouts on the auto highway and down without warning, almost on top of the par- the railroads. The marooned picnickers were ty. It filled one of the railroad passes for approx- well taken care of by citizens of the Springs un- imately 150 feet at a depth of about 20 feet. Just til they were able to return home. before reaching the Springs they had to clam- ber down a long, steep, wet sand bank and wade through the flooded mountain stream. They finally reached the Dixieland, a summer resort in Stratton Park and learned for the first time definite news regarding the situation in Pueblo, although they had received news of a flood warning the night before when they had tried to reach their parents by phone.

The following story was written by Stephenie Blatnick, born in 1905 and died in 1986. She would have been 16 years old at the time of the flood. Our home was located in a place known as the Grove. It was a neighborhood where many Slovenians settled upon their arrival from Austria. There were also other nationalities. Mr. Wildebor resided in a big two story house across from Clark's Well. Mrs. Woods, the col- ored lady, was our very nice neighbor. Mr. Clemens had the tobacco and candy shop on the corner. We lived in the nine hundred block on East “B” Street. Our Italian friends lived on San- ta Fe Avenue, which was completely washed away the night of the flood. There were several homes left, closer to the bluff where the Railroad tracks were. They seemed to be a little more protected. I remember very clearly the morning of June 3, 1921. When I crossed the Santa Fe avenue bridge on my way to town, the river was low and just as clear as a mountain stream. That evening at about 6 o'clock, a fire siren started, and we heard that a wall of water was coming down the Arkansas River. We didn't pay much attention to it. We thought it was just a ru- mor. At 7'30 PM our lights went out, so Mama got ready and went upstairs to bed. My brother came running into the house and told Mama to get dressed, and get out of the house. He said he had just been at the Rio Grande yard and the depot was flooded. So we started toward the bluff - which was only a block from home. When we got to the alley in back of our house the water was up to my knees. There were no box-cars on the track. We did find a cattle car with a door open. So we climbed aboard. Then it started to rain. The cattle car only had a few boards on top - so we really got soaked. About 1 AM a man with a lamp came by. He said he was a switchman. He was so sur- prised to hear women's voices. He told us that the freight train always had a caboose and that they had a coal stove in it. He invited us to go down there. You have no idea how happy we were to get inside where there was a fire going. My Mother, two sisters and I never did forget what that kind railroader did for us. At dawn – when it began to get lighter - the water must have been about 4 feet deep. We could see boxes and debris floating down. We waited 'till about ten AM, then worked our way down – from one house to another 'till we finally reached our place. Our home was pushed off the foundation and back against a building. A part of the wall was pulled off of the living and dining rooms. There was no furniture left on the first floor. The upstairs, was intact, but the house stood at an angle. When we got up there we all got sea- sick. We moved into a house up on Routt Avenue and would walk down to the old house every day. We would dig around to see if any of our belongings were in the mud. Talk about mud – you have no idea what a terrible odor there was. About a week after the flood I got a sore throat. I was taken in an ambulance to the Army Hospital. The hospital was brought down from Denver and placed at Mineral Palace Park. We were told that the state was expecting an epidemic. However, there were just a few patients. In a couple of days I was taken to St. Mary Hospital. 40 — PUEBLO LORE — June 2011

Pueblo County Historical Society ~ Board of Directors Meeting April 2, 2011

The meeting was called to order by President Louise Keach at 9:31 a.m. There were 20 Board members present. Excused Absences: Dwight Hunter and Jeff Arnold.

The minutes were corrected and a motion was made and seconded to accept as corrected. The motion passed unanimously. The Treasurer’s reports were corrected as presented, a motion to accept the corrected reports was made, seconded and passed. Halcyon Mathis, Treasurer, again reiterated her need for an assistant to maintain and print the labels each month. Weston Burrer volunteered to pick up the CD that contains the membership labels from the accountant and review the steps necessary for the Society to print the labels. They are in MS Word and need to go to Excel to be put in the various zip codes. Halcyon also reported that Alerio is charging us sales tax and she doesn’t know who to contact or how to get it dropped since we are a 501(c-3) non-profit. Louise will work on finding out answers.

Communications: PBR CEO, Jim Haworth and his wife will tour the PCHS museum displays and Library on April 5th. Two letters of support were written for the City Hall and BHS Mine Rescue Car preservation projects. Thank You notes were received from Rosemount for our $50 donation to the June Rose Walk, and the Downtown Assoc. thanked the PCHS and the SCHC for the luncheon/meeting the PCHS spon- sored. An invitation from the Beulah Historical Society to participate in their August Arts & Craft show was read. Committee Reports: Collections: Naomi Allen reported the wedding garments are back. Ken Clark finished the PCHS inventory report on them. Library: The Lore Index is on CDs; all high schools, colleges and libraries have received a copy. Various high school annuals are needed to fill in years we don’t have. To purchase copies of each year’s annuals and keep the collection current would cost $500 yearly. The Board decided not to purchase the yearbooks. Technology: Mike Theis reported that Alerio took notes on things which need to be done as they promised. The network which will enable the volunteers to work at home now works, he said. Photos: Mary Wallace reported she needs volunteers to work on Wednesdays and Fridays to do documenting. Publications: George Abel reported the storage boxes for the Rizer maps have been delivered and they can proceed with the plan of preserving, cataloging them on the computer, and placing them in storage. State Fair Archives: Allyn Middelkamp reported they are all sorted and the Rawlings Library got the grant to put on disks. May Program: Jeff Arnold will do the program on the subject of his new book, Albert Ellingwood. SCHC: Mary Wallace reported their annual meeting had about 40 people in attendance. There was a meeting of the organizations making up the SCHS and the report that the City wants the RR office space (one source of needed income to SCHC) was dis- cussed. The SCHC By-Laws incorrectly state that the PCHS Broadhead Library is run by the SCHC, They have nothing to do with the PCHS Broadhead Library.

Unfinished Business: CHS Grant: Weston Burrer has sent everything to the Colorado Historical Society and we should be receiving the final check. Volunteer Luncheon: 68 invitations went out; Victoria’s Deli will be catering in the Conference Room at SCHC. Nominating Committee: Allyn reported he has the slate filled. Preservation Awards: At the May dinner meeting we will present Historic Preservation Awards to: Dr. Jonathan Rees; Mike Thomason, Dr. Adolph Padula and Mary Wallace.

New Business: A motion was made, seconded and passed that the By-Laws be changed to read: A nom- inee must be a member in good standing and remain so during the length of his/her term. This change will be voted on at the May 14, 2011 meeting.

Naomi Allen donated a copy of Dr. Jonathan Rees book to the Edward Broadhead Library.

Meeting adjourned at 11 a.m.

Respectfully submitted, Pattee Williams, Secretary.

Notes ...... Announcements ...... June 2011

Nacogdoches, TX Claudia & Jon Zadra MEMBERSHIP RENEWALS Sharon & Gary Thompson (As of May 15, 2011) Colorado Springs, CO Regular memberships Kathie & Everett White Janet & Ray Williams HISTORIC PRESERVATION Single Westminster, CO AWARDS Kaareen Arriaga Mrs. Cheryl Williams At the May dinner meeting of Freckles Bustos Encinitas, CA PCHS, the following people Dorothy Day JoAnne & George Williams were presented with 2011’s Edna Davenport Lorraine & Robert Woods Historic Preservation Awards: Barbara Denny Claudia & Jon Zadra Dr. Adolph Padula Stanley Erjavec Mr. Jonathon Rees Karen Kellogg Fain Supporting Mr. Mike Thomason Aurora, CO Jean & Norman Butorac Mrs. Mary Wallace Eileen Gose Kate Kelly Stephanie Cardwell (Holliday) Los Angeles, CA Colorado Springs, CO Barbara & Ernest Welch Jim Hall The Southeastern Livermore, CA Sponsor Beverley Lederer L. E. Gant Colorado Heritage Martin Levar La Junta, CO Center Museum Gerald Mullins is open Tuesday through Redell Reed NEW MEMBERSHIPS Margaret Weiler Smith Saturday from 10:00 A.M. to (As of May 15, 2011) 4:00 P.M. Price of admission Colorado Springs, CO Dale Stoker is $4.00 except for Heritage Single Center members who are James Sudduth S. M. Archuleta John Ward Judy Ashton admitted free of charge. Redondo Beach, CA Scharee Atchison Memberships are available Richard Williams Colorado Springs, CO for $20 per year. Telephone

Mary Barringer 295-1517 Family Baton Ridge, LA Beryl & Wallace Crozier Susan Bokelmann Corpus Christi, TX Jupiter, FL June Fleischman & Sherry Kaski Edward Broadhead Marie Hearn Barbara Kendall Nancy & Norman Froelich Library Commerce City, C) Your home for books on Betty & Jack Harbert Judy Lewis Terry Hart southwestern history Beaverton, OR 201 West “B” Street Martha Hayes Emma Marascola Brenda & J. Mark Koch Bill Mattoon Hours, 10:00 – 4:00 Neola & Rodney Lewis Jim Viles Tues. – Fri. Dianne & Allyn Middelkamp Englewood, CO Telephone 719-543-6772 Dr. & Mrs. Harvey Phelps VOLUNTEERS NEEDED Eddie Jean & Robert Quillen Family Grand Junction, CO Sally & Wesley Boucher Virginia Rupp Shannon & Timothy McCown Rodney Seal

Supporting

Carol & John Belcher Carol & Robert Tollefson Donation

CALENDAR --- Saturday, June 4 9:30 A.M. Board Meeting at the Heritage Center. --- Thursday, June 9 6:00 P.M. Dinner meeting at Rosario’s Restaurant --- Friday, June 24 11:00 A.M. Pueblo Lore planning meeting at the Heritage Center.

Non-Profit Org. Pueblo County Historical Society U.S. Postage Paid 201 W. “B” Street Pueblo, CO. Permit No. 218 Pueblo, Colorado 81003

Address Service Requested

Place Address Label Here

Several years ago, the Pueblo County Historical Society received permission to have the City Engineering Depart- ment transfer the elevation of the 1921 Flood high-water mark, that is painted on a door frame on the east side of the Memorial Hall stage to the Union Avenue side of City Hall. The Society then had a line showing that level with the words, 1921 FLOOD DEPTH, under it sandblasted into he stone wall. (Photo courtesy of John Wark.)