[CONTENTS.]

[CHAPTER I.]
The Conemaugh Valley in Springtime—Johnstown and its Suburbs—Foundeda Hundred Years ago—The Cambria Iron Works—Historyof a Famous Industry—American Manufacturing EnterpriseExemplified—Making Bessemer Steel—Social and EducationalFeatures—The Busiest City of its Size in the State,[15]
[CHAPTER II.]
Conemaugh Lake—Remains of an Old-time Canal System—Used forthe Pleasure of Sportsmen—The Hunting and Fishing Club—PopularDistrust Growing into Indifference—The Old Cry of“Wolf!”—Building a Dam of Straw and Mud—Neglect Ripeninginto Fitness for a Catastrophe,[31]
[CHAPTER III.]
Dawning of the Fatal Day—Darkness and Rain—Rumors of Evil—TheWarning Voice Unheeded—A Whirlwind of Watery Death—Fateof a Faithful Telegrapher—What an Eye-Witness Saw—ASolid Wall of Water Rushing Down the Valley,[42]
[CHAPTER IV.]
The Pathway of the Torrent—Human Beings Swept away likeChaff—The Twilight of Terror—The Wreck of East Conemaugh—Annihilationof Woodvale—Locomotives Tossed about likeCockle-shells by the mighty Maelstrom,[51]
[CHAPTER V.]
“Johnstown is Annihilated”—Appearance of the Wreck—An AwfulSabbath Spectacle—A Sea of Mud and Corpses—The City in aGigantic Whirlpool—Strange Tokens of the Fury of the Flood—Scenefrom the Bridge—Sixty Acres of Débris—A Carnival ofSlaughter,[66]
[CHAPTER VI.]
Pictures of the Flood Drawn by Eye-witnesses—A Score of LocomotivesSwallowed up—Railroad Cars Swept away—Engineerswho would not Abandon their Posts—Awful Scenes from a CarWindow—A Race for Life—Victims of the Flood,[81]
[CHAPTER VII.]
Some Heroes of the Flood—The Ride of Collins Graves at WilliamsburgRecalled—John G. Parke’s Heroic Warning—Gallant Self-Sacrificeof Daniel Peyton—Mrs. Ogle, the Intrepid TelegraphOperator—Wholesale Life Saving by Miss Nina Speck,[97]
[CHAPTER VIII.]
Stories of Suffering—A Family Swept away at a Stroke—Beside aSister’s Corpse—A Bride Driven Mad—The Unidentified Dead—Couragein the Face of Death—Thanking God his Child had notSuffered—One Saved out of a Household of Thirteen—Five Savedout of Fifty-Five,[106]
[CHAPTER IX.]
Stories of Railroad Men and Travelers who were in the Midst of theCatastrophe—A Train’s Race with the Wave—Houses Crushed likeEggshells—Relics of the Dead in the Tree tops—A Night of Horrors—Fireand Flood Commingled—Lives Lost for the Sake of a Pair ofShoes,[119]
[CHAPTER X.]
Scenes in a House of Refuge—Stealing from the Dead—A ThousandBodies seen Passing over the Bridge—“Kill us or Rescue us!”—ThrillingEscapes and Agonizing Losses—Children Born amid theFlood—A Night in Alma Hall—Saved through Fear,[137]
[CHAPTER XI.]
The Flight to the Mountains—Saving a Mother and her Babe—TheHillsides Black with Refugees—An Engineer’s Story—How theDam gave away—Great Trees Snapped off like Pipe-stems by theTorrent,[147]
[CHAPTER XII.]
A Desperate Voyage—Scenes like those after a Great Battle—Motherand Babe Dead together—Praying as they Drifted toDestruction—Children Telling the Story of Death—SignificantGreetings between Friends—Prepared for any News,[154]
[CHAPTER XIII.]
Salutations in the City of the Dead—Crowds at the Morgues—EndlessTrains of Wagons with Ghastly Freight—Registering the Survivors—MindsUnsettled by the Tragedy—Horrible Fragments ofHumanity Scattered through Piles of Rubbish,[161]
[CHAPTER XIV.]
Recognizing the Dead—Food and Clothing for Destitute Survivors—Lookingfor the Lost—The Bereaved Burying their Dead—DrownedClose by a Place of Safety—A Heroic Editor—One whowould not be Comforted,[171]
[CHAPTER XV.]
A Bird’seye View of the Ruined City—Conspicuous Features of theDisaster—The Railroad Lines—Stones and Iron Tossed aboutlike Driftwood—An Army Officer’s Valuable Services in Restoringand Maintaining Order,[179]
[CHAPTER XVI.]
Clearing a Road up the Creek—Fantastic Forms of Ruin—An AbandonedLocomotive with no Rail to Run on—Iron Beams Bentlike Willow Twigs—Night in the Valley—Scenes and Sounds ofan Inferno,[188]
[CHAPTER XVII.]
Sights that Greeted Visitors—Wreckage Along the Valley—Ruins ofthe Cambria Iron Works—A Carnival of Drink—Violence andRobbery—Camping on the Hillsides—Rich and Poor alikeBenefit,[198]
[CHAPTER XVIII.]
The First Train Load of Anxious Seekers—Hoping against Hope—ManyInstances of Heroism—Victims Seen Drifting down beyondthe Reach of Help—Unavailing Efforts to Rescue the Prey of theFlood,[207]
[CHAPTER XIX.]
Newspaper Correspondents Making their Way in—The RailroadsHelpless—Hiring a Special Train—Making Desperate Speed—Firstfaces of the Flood—Through to Johnstown at Last,[216]
[CHAPTER XX.]
The Work of the Reporters—Strange Chronicles of Heroism and ofWoe—Deadly Work of the Telegraph Wires—A Baby’s StrangeVoyage—Prayer wonderfully Answered—Steam against Torrent,[228]
[CHAPTER XXI.]
Human Ghouls and Vampires on the Scene—A Short Shrift forMarauders—Vigilance Committees Enforcing Order—Plunderers ofthe Dead Relentlessly Dispatched—Outbursts of Righteous Indignation,[238]
[CHAPTER XXII.]
The Cry for Help and the Nation’s Answer—President Harrison’sEloquent and Effective Appeal—Governor Beaver’s Message—AProclamation by the Governor of New York—Action of the Commissionerof Pensions—Help from over the Sea,[249]
[CHAPTER XXIII.]
The American Heart and Purse Opened Wide—A Flood of Goldagainst the Flood of Water—Contributions from every Part of theCountry, in Sums Large and Small,[265]
[CHAPTER XXIV.]
Benefactions of Philadelphia—Organization of Charity—Train loadsof Food and Clothing—Generous spirit of Convicts in the Penitentiary—Contributionsfrom over the Sea—Queen Victoria’s sympathy—Letterfrom Florence Nightingale,[281]
[CHAPTER XXV.]
Raising a Great Relief Fund in New York—Where the Money camefrom—Churches, Theatres and Prisons join in the good work—Morethan One Hundred Thousand Dollars a Day—A few Namesfrom the Great Roll of Honor,[292]
[CHAPTER XXVI.]
Breaking up the Ruins and Burying the Dead—Innumerable Funerals—TheUse of Dynamite—The Holocaust at the Bridge—The CambriaIron Works—Pulling out Trees with Locomotives,[299]
[CHAPTER XXVII.]
Caring for the Sufferers—Noble Work of Miss Clara Barton and the RedCross Society—A Peep into a Hospital—Finding Homes for the Orphans—JohnstownGenerous in its Woe—A Benevolent Eating House,[309]
[CHAPTER XXVIII.]
Recovering from the Blow—The Voice of the Locomotive Heardagain—Scenes Day by Day amid the Ruins and at the Morgue—StrangeSalvage from the Flood—A Family of Little Children,[319]
[CHAPTER XXIX.]
The City Filled with Life Again—Work and Bustle on Every Hand—RailroadTrains Coming In—Pathetic Meetings of Friends—PersistentUse of Dynamite to Break Up the Masses of Wreckage—TheDaily Record of Work Amid the Dead,[341]
[CHAPTER XXX.]
Scenes at the Relief Stations—The Grand Army of the Republic inCommand—Imposing Scenes at the Railroad Station—Cars Loadedwith Goods for the Relief of the Destitute,[353]
[CHAPTER XXXI.]
General Hastings’ Headquarters—Duties of the Military Staff—AFlood of Telegrams of Inquiry Pouring In—Getting the Post-officeto Work Again—Wholesale Embalming—The Morgue in the PresbyterianChurch—The Record of the Unknown Dead—A CommemorativeNewspaper Club,[358]
[CHAPTER XXXII.]
A Cross between a Military and a Mining Camp—Work of the ArmyEngineers—Equipping Constables—Pressure on the Telegraph Lines—Photographersnot Encouraged—Sight-seers Turned Away—StrangeUses for Coffins,[370]
[CHAPTER XXXIII.]
Sunday Amid the Ruins—Services in One Church and in the OpenAir—The Miracle at the Church of the Immaculate Conception—FewWomen and Children Seen—Disastrous Work of Dynamite—AHappy Family in the Wreck,[378]
[CHAPTER XXXIV.]
Plans for the Future of Johnstown—The City to be Rebuilt on a FinerScale than Ever Before—A Real Estate Boom Looked For—Enlargingthe Conemaugh—Views of Capitalists,[387]
[CHAPTER XXXV.]
Well-known People who Narrowly Escaped the Flood—Mrs. Halford’sExperience—Mrs. Childs Storm bound—Tales Related byTravelers—A Theatrical Company’s Plight,[393]
[CHAPTER XXXVI.]
The Ubiquitous Reporter Getting There—Desperate Traveling througha Storm-swept Country—Special Trains and Special Teams—ClimbingAcross the Mountains—Rest for the Weary in a Hay Mow,[402]
[CHAPTER XXXVII.]
The Reporter’s Life at Johnstown—Nothing to Eat, but Much to Do—KindlyRemembrances of a Kindly Friend—Driven from Bed byRats—Three Hours of Sleep in Seventy-two—A Picturesque Group,[410]
[CHAPTER XXXVIII.]
Williamsport’s Great Losses—Flooded with Thirty-four Feet of Water—Hundredsof Millions of Feet of Lumber Swept Away—Loss ofLife—Incidents of Rescue and of Death—The Story of GarretCrouse and his Gray Horse,[421]
[CHAPTER XXXIX.]
The Juniata Valley Ravaged by the Storm—Losses at Tyrone, Huntingdonand Lewistown—Destruction at Lock Haven—A Baby’sVoyage Down Stream—Romantic Story of a Wedding,[435]
[CHAPTER XL.]
The Floods along the Potomac—The National Capital Submerged—ATerrible Record in Maryland—Gettysburg a Sufferer—Tidingsof Devastation from Many Points in Several States,[444]

[LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.]

PAGE
Map of the Deluged Conemaugh District,[1]
Johnstown as Left by the Flood,[19]
Ruins of Johnstown Viewed from Prospect Hill[37]
General View of the Ruins, Looking up Stony Creek,[55]
Ruins, Showing the Path of the Flood,[73]
Typical Scene in Johnstown,[91]
Johnstown—View Corner of Main and Clinton Streets,[109]
View on Clinton Street, Johnstown,[127]
Main and Clinton Streets, Looking Southwest,[145]
Ruins, corner of Clinton and Main Streets,[163]
Ruins, from Site of the Hulburt House,[181]
The Débris above the Pennsylvania Railroad Bridge,[199]
Ruins of the Cambria Iron Works,[217]
Ruins of the Cambria Iron Company’s Store,[235]
Third Street, Williamsport, Pa., During the Flood,[253]
Wreck of the Iron Bridge at Williamsport, Pa.,[271]
Wreck of the Lumber Yards at Williamsport, Pa.,[289]
250,000,000 Feet of Logs Afloat in the Susquehanna,[307]
Last Trains in and out of Harrisburg,[325]
Columbia, Pa., under the Flood,[343]
Pennsylvania Avenue at Sixth Street, Washington, D. C.,[361]
Seventh Street, Washington, D. C., in the Flood,[379]
Fourteenth Street, Washington, D. C., in the Flood,[397]
The Flood in Washington, D. C., Opposite Harris’s Theatre,[415]

[CHAPTER I.]

Springtime in the mountains. Graceful slopes and frowning precipices robed in darkest green of hemlock and spruce. Open fields here and there verdant with young grass and springing grain, or moist and brown beneath the plow for the planting time. Hedgerow and underwood fragrant with honeysuckle and wild blackberry bloom; violets and geraniums purpling the forest floor. Conemaugh creek and Stony creek dash and plunge and foam along their rocky channels to where they unite their waters and form the Conemaugh river, hastening down to the Ohio, to the Mississippi, to the Mexican Gulf. Trout and pickerel and bass flash their bronze and silver armor in the sparkling shallows of the streams and in the sombre and placid depths of the lake up yonder behind the old mud dam. Along the valley of the Conemaugh are ranged villages, towns, cities: Conemaugh, Johnstown, Cambria, Sang Hollow, Nineveh, and others, happy and prosperous. Conemaugh nestles at the very foot of the Alleghenies; all railroad trains eastward bound stop there to catch their breath before beginning the long climb up to Altoona. Sang Hollow nestles by the river amid almost tropical luxuriance of vegetation; yon little wooded islet in mid-stream a favorite haunt of fishermen. Nineveh is rich in bog iron and coal, and the whirr of the mill-wheel is heard. Johnstown, between the two creeks at their junction, is the queen city of the valley. On either side the creek, and beyond, the steep mountain sides; behind, the narrow valley reaching twenty miles back to the lake; before, the Conemaugh river just beginning its romantic course. Broken hillsides streaked with torrents encompass it. Just a century ago was Johnstown founded by one Joseph Johns, a German settler. Before then its beauteous site was occupied by an Indian village, Kickenapawling. Below this was the head of navigation on the Conemaugh. Hither came the wagoners of the Alleghenies, with huge wains piled high with merchandise from seaboard cities, and placed it on flat-bottomed boats and started it down the river-way to the western markets. The merchandise came up from Philadelphia and Baltimore by river, too; up the Susquehanna and Juniata, to the eastern foot-hills, and there was a great portage from the Juniata to the Conemaugh; the Kittanning Trail, then the Frankstown Turnpike. Later came the great trunk railroad whose express trains now go roaring down the valley.