Jasper County Democrat, Volume 8, Number 6, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 13 May 1905 — A. TREMENDOUS BIG RAIN. [ARTICLE]

A. TREMENDOUS BIG RAIN.

One of the Heaviest Rains in the History of the County Fell Thursday, —nuch Damage Done. One of the heaviest rainfalls that ever visited this section of the county came Thursday, and taken together with the frequent heavy rains of previous days, much damage to oats and other crops was done. The rain appears to have been quite general all through this section of the state, and the total fall for the day was over four inches. In Rensselaer sewers were choked up, cellars floeded, gardens, lawns and sidewalks in many places completely under water and considerable damage done in this way, The Chicago Bargain Store’s private sewer choked up and for a few minutes there was about eight inches of water in the basement, something that has never happened before. Along Makemseif sewer cellars and lawns were flooded and the grade at L. Strong’s place was completely covered with water to a depth of 12 to 18 inches. Northeast of the depot was a lake of water, and at several places in town residents had to wade water 12 to 18 inches in depth to reach their houses. The heaviest rain came about 2 p. m., and the water came down in bucketsful, while the gutters were raging torrents. In the country much damage was done to oats, it is thought, and no doubt thousands of acres will be completely drowned out. Fields that were planted to corn also suffered considerably from washouts, and in the country north of Rensselaer it is thought the damage to crops will be very great. The storm was accompanied by considerable lightning, bnt but at thia writing we have been able to learn of only one or two cases of damage done by same. The grade is washed out on each side of the bridge by the Gallagher ditch, on the Remington road, making it impassable. A washout is reported on the Coal road so that trains were unable to run on the LaCrosse division yesterday. At David Yeoman’s home place in Union tp., lightning struck the barn and tore out one end and part of the roof. Neil Pike, a hired hand, who was in the barn at the time, was shocked and rendered unconscious forjan hour’s time. A cow was killed at Hordeman Bros, just west of town from being struck by lightning. After the rain in the forenoon Steve Brusnahan, of near Parr, called up the Democrat and said that country thereabouts was covered with water and that he had not seen so much water there for ten years. Steve ended his talk with* an urgent request for The Democrat to tell the Iroquois ditch litigants to get together in some way and give the farmers some drainage. Since the big rain in the afternoon nothing has been heard by us from Steve, and we presume the water is over the tops of the telephone poles, and communication shut off. The river is higher than it was during the big flood three years ago, and covers the grade on both sides of the Pullins bridge, something that it has never done before, it is said. Burk’s bridge is all covered but the banisters. At Alf Donnelly’s onion farm north of town, his whole tract was inundated and the water covered the roadway.