Guilford Flood of 1855

Guilford Badly Damaged by Flood of Aug. 5, 1855

Bainbridge News & Republican, September 19, 1946

 

Extract from the diary of Mary E. Merchant, written 91 years ago [in 1946], gives an interesting account of a flood in Guilford [Chenango Co., NY] caused by the dam at the pond giving away.  Guilford residents, many of whom have probably never heard of the big flood there will be interested in this account.

 

June 11, 1855:  "The folks are afraid the dam will burst."

 

Aug. 1, 1855:  "The circus is in Oxford."

 

Aug. 2, 1855:  "Got up about 4 o'clock to see the circus company.  They came through here with about 22 large four-horse wagons and last of all an old camel, a couple of mules and an old elephant."

 

Sunday, Aug. 5, 1855:  "A hard shower at night.  About 12 o'clock the big dam at the pond gave way.  The water came down with such 'fury' that it burst the small dam, then it took the saw-mill tearing the wall and lower windows so as to leave the mill standing on only the end walls.  They expected every minute the mill would go, but it just stands and that's all.  The water ran on, tore the furnace nearly away with  such a noise that it sounded awful; then it took one of the blacksmith shops, filling the road with so much of everything that no one could pass without losing their lives.  It next took Hull's barn and cow, the Uncle Russell barn full of hay, the tannery, Baptist and Methodist sheds, Sidney Eggleston's wagon house, pig pen and two pigs, killed them both, his garden and current bushes, two or three other barns with Mr Whittemore's carding machine shop and two or three gardens.  Such a time I never saw.  See women with their clothes in their hands, children crying, Shanghais crowing, and with it all, there was quite an excitement."

 

Aug. 6:  "went out early in the morning to view the ruins."

 

The reader will please bear in mind that this was written by a little girl and was not intended for publication.  Nothing has been deleted and nothing has been added except a few commas.  Mary Merchant, age 13 years, was the daughter of Niram R. Merchant and the family then lived in the house now owned and occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Lynn Murray, on Merchant street.  Some 15 years later Mary Merchant became Mrs. Frank Burt.

 

An incident not mentioned in the diary which added to the excitement was that Mary Merchant and her sister, Helen Merchant, not realizing the danger or why everybody was yelling at them, ran pell mell through the mill, which was suspended seemingly in mid air.  However nothing gave way and the crowd breathed a sigh of relief when the two little girls emerged unharmed.  We have no record that anyone was injured in the flood.  the "furnace" referred to was the "Guilford Iron Works."