Sun-Journal from Lewiston, Maine • 1

-mJ -w I I Whoever Is Out Of Patience Is Out Of Possession Of Ills Bacon JOURNAL INDEX BUS LEWISTON EVENING JOURNAL 4 II II II PRICE FIVE CENTS LEWISTON AUBURN MAINE SATURDAY MARQ 1 28 1953 VOLUME xai LAST EDITION 0 itees Mma Hits 90000 Cubic 7 Feet Per Second Widespread Da Reported at Augusta 7L00D IN The above photo rate dramatis view of the current flood These were when the water wi near it peak height OUff FftnU 1 WaiSwrtl AT THB This view of Lewiston Falls afford an excel-ent idea of what brought hundreds of watcher today last night and yesterday to the North Bridge area Aa ran be seen the water cleared the Maine Central bridge by few feet -Wall Ptoto kf PMIMrk 'ENTER This ahowa the flooded over Newbury SL Auburn area a seen from the South Bridge This sector was louded first by the Little Androscoggin and the situation worsened as Andrbsroggiu reached its own crest The two riv-ere meet here i Photo to rhilMrt )N THE RIGHT-The Maine Central Railroad was taking no ehancea of losing the long span arching the Androscoggin just above the falls The main fear was that the three million feet of long logs earning down river from l'eru might jsm against the bridge hence the train of flat ears to weigh it down Other flood pirtnrrsi tskw In LewMoa-Aiiburn Mechanic Falla llallowell sit Auguato will he found an Pagea 7 and 12 of Ihla edition Main FoHtb-a weekly Journal column to on Page 4 today Prompt Action Saved Thousands On Lewiston Bank By ARCH 80UTAR Up and down the Androscoggin on the Lewiston housing tome of Lewiston inott important prompt action by owner in removing perishable good from the path n( the flood water saved countless thousand of dollar For the little fellow the humble tenement and rottage the itory waa different These mill worker for thr moat part came back Saturday forenoon after a night of bunking with frienda and relative to aee their household hopelessly flooded Main St Businesses Closed 19 fMiU IUI It rtltu kAOAfllMB Kennebec Floods Stores Factories Reports from here this morning art of widespread and extensive damage to mercantile establishments factories and homes Many roads were reported dosed and although the water hvrl was said to be receding slowly a rise is expected between three and five this afternoon because of tides At tha Edwards Mill on the Kennebec which shut down at about noon yesterday phone service which had been out all night waa restored shortly before noon today All basements in tha plant were flooded and supply room paint room personnel department and tha looms In No 3 basement were under Wiring In the floor was reported so badly damaged by water that it will have to be ripped out and replaced before operations can be resumed According to an employe the condition is not as serious as in 1936 Readings taken at Central Maine Power Co at Skowhrgan reported the flow in the Kennebec at 6 am at 965U0 CFM and at 11 am at 82350 CFM Many roads in the area wen announced closed by State Trooper Roland Paqutn of Augusta Barracks: Rt 11 Emery Mills Rt 25 East Umlngton Rt 25 Porter Rt 11 and 114 Naples RL 302 Bridgton tnd Frycburg 155 Milo and How land bridges out In See KENNEBEC Page 10 Col High Water Marks By ROSE O'BRIEN The nasty little incident of the would-be wise guy who tackled the young Civilian Defense worker when the CD worker told the smart aleck no one could enter one of the alley ways on Main St Auburn that was afloat with rising water The smart aleck accompanied by his lady friend told the CD worker: down that club and well see who's boss" and then tackled the Civilian Defense kid who looked about 16 To add to trouble the young CD worker had a broken thumb and the fracas didn't help the thumb a bit Like all Mg shots when two women came along the would-be thug quickly disappeared but we heard hia girl friend saying: you have to do that?" It's about time it seems that the public staft to realize that when that Civilian Drfense helmet and stripes are put on the Civilian Defense workpr becomes part of the law and order enforcement organization of the dty and the Civilian Defense is on the Job to protect YOU When a CD worker orders you hack GET BACK and STAY BACK and don't start allowing off Just because the CD worker may be a 16-year-old youngster He's on his Job looking out for And in tills particular Incident night this Civilian Defense worker was on the Job despite his injure! hand which probably to more Injured this morning The prise remark of the evening everhPerd when the river oosned to threaten the Draft Board office an Mein ML: he eony to see that place ge eat of hoolneno" The marked difference between the North Bridge crowd and the South Bridge crowd On the North Bridge there waa a sort of carnival air Everyone was gay excited shouting over the roar of thews- See MARKS Page 1 Col 3 IMI 1041 The Pineland Lumber Co on Avon St and the Whit Co at 47 Lincoln Stpalvagrd their entire lumber that ia worth in the hundreds of thousands of dollars Pineland did it by cutting emergency openings In flooded storage sheds- White accomplished the same results by keeping a crew of 20 working all yesterday afternoon Pineland saved some 15-20000 feet of lumber that would otherwise been Inst White Co saved about 30-40000 feet Ptnelaad The Pineland Lumber Co on Avon St looking out today on a vast lake of swirling debrisladen water that at noontime was within an uncomfortably close distance to the main offices outwitted the raging Androscoggin in one respect anyway The storage sheds for lumber are closer to the River than the main offices by number of feet When It became apparent that they would be seriously flooded the Piriteland management conceived a brilliant idea And even See PROMPT Page 12 Col 4 Family Of 12 Evacuated AtHallowell HALLOWELL The Kennebec River wts dropping slowly this noon It hid lowered five inches since 3 am Although conditions could not be compared with the disastrous 1936 flood three families we forced to evacuate their ham Mr and Mrs Flllins Fortin and their 12 children moved into the residence of a neighhor Also forced to leave their dwellings were Mrs Gertrude Dulac and her son Marshall Mrs Olive Boucher and her mother Mrs Mary Kittredge and sister Miss Myrtle Kittredge Some businessmen had oily to remove stuck from their base ments but at tilling Station ail materials were taken away On the opposite side of the river the so-called ferry building was tipped on its side This is the quarters of a man named llcnaon who rows ahoeworken across the Kennebec so they will not have to go around by Augusta It waa anticipated that at high tide between 3 and 5 pm the river might go up slightly Water seeped into a low spot on Water St necessitating rerouting of motorists Big trucks were able to negotiate the two-foot deep water A part of Temple St waa flooded Shooting down the Kennebec were vast amounts of debris Included were a number of bottled gas tank The -river surface appeared to coated with gasoline and oil Home Made Dairy Butter ukhrilliiAven farm 14 Court SL TcL 2-1347 Many New Auburn Residents Made Homeless By Flood By A LEM1EUX Residents of the New Auburn area wen keeping1 their fiw-gers crossed today as they kept wary eyes on the river Dozens of families on Riverside Drive Milt Broad Recoup I'ulsifer and Newbury St were homeless temporarily with sells and first floors flooded The families were staying with friends and relatives and hardship rasea were reported To the credit of everyone waa the fact that no looting was taking plaee in the emergency Civil Defense Auxiliary Folice were patrolling the disastaf areas augmenting the work of the regular Auburn police They encountered no trouble Maine Flood Conditions At a Glance (By The Associated Frees)' Hero are brief reports from soma of the flood-stricken comiminllicsf CANTON Two-thirds of the town under water Several families evacuated Portland Packing CU and Smith cannery flooded out their foundations undermined RUMFORD Maine National Guard truck helps get milk shipment from Auburn plowing through several feet of water Bread reported In short supply but shipment from Portland expected today WATERVILLE Several families abandon homos on WslervUl side of cresting Kennebec Water-ville-Wintdow bridge endangered Izickwood-Dutchcss Textile Mill ckwod WINNIOW Several families living near Sebaslloonk River evacuated Water creeps toward Hollingsworth A Whitney paper plant building MV Gerry Lumber Mill topples into Kczsr River Thirty feel of highway washed away Re- sort area badly flooded See CONDITION Page 7 CM 3 Water Pumps Fail At Mechanic Falls MECHANIC FALLS-The Little Androscoggin River showed signs of a reluctant backing down here after reaching the highest level since 189(1 according to old-timers a officials opined that the peak has been reached If was reported that Pemco Mfg Co had been forced tq suspend a part of its operation ami sandbags were being placed around the Colonial Mill Pumps at the water pumping station were flooded to a halt at By CUFF H0D0MAN The riverside business district of Main 8t Auburn looked somewhat like a ghost town today a the Androscoggin River readied within 15-feet of Main St at oue Hint The high water point seemed to be in the alley way he-tween the Twin City Tire Co ami the Kenmore Hotel At this point the river water was lashing up the ailed way within 15-feet of Main The majority of the business district on the river aide of the street were dosed down but a few establishment! were still open for business on a restricted nature The Twin City Tire Co wa still operating on the street level but the water had reached to the railing of the basement floor The main rrpair shop of the firm ia located on the basement floor Waters Hold Even Open North Brid BY rD RI80NAK The greatest display of the awesome power of the Androscoggin River in 17 years hits its peak in the Twin Cities today aa 9001)0 cubic feet of water roared through liewiston and Auburn every sc ond with riverside home-owners and business establishments count ing their damage in the many thousands of dollar While the Union Water Power Co reported the waters were holding even but would begin to drop soon flooded business houses' today declared the condition wu one of fluctuation with the river dropping an Inch or two and then rising back to Its peak level North BrMgv rimed The North Bridge between the two cities wu shut to trarflc by police when conditions became grave and the waters began lapping at the road bed of the bridge at 1:15 this morning By 5:30 how ever the bridge wu deemed safe once again and auto and pedestrian traffic was permitted to cross At mid-afternoon engineer 1 Earle Parker of the Union Water Power Co uid the 90000 efa flow had held almost constant since about 5 o'clock this morning and there shouldn't be further trouble unless there to more rain Parker declared the waters should begin subsiding soon but exactly when it wu impossiMc to predict Up-river conditions were this afternoon he The worst appeared to be ever in the Twin Cities barring heavy rains And the Weather Bureau today predicted more showers but no substantial fall In the Immediate future The chief forecaster declared the Androscoggin and Kennebec Rivers See FLOOD Tage 7 Col 7 Evacuating Families Along Saco BIDDEFORD Police start' ed evacuating families from the Saco banks in Biddeford and Saco today Nearly 100 families were expect ed to flee their homes in the twin textile cities The Saco was churning within one font of the Elm SL Bridge evacuation started Light rain showers fell in Hie flood Western and Crntral Maine Ernest KHemsnn chief at the Weather Bureau here said the heavy rain wu over The Weather Bureau uid the showers would add to tha misery of floods which had already claimed one life and caused uncounted property damage in the state's major river valleys SUNDAY AT Lorraine (juilda 149 Six Main 81 Auburn Individual Chicken Pio or HAM STEAK Open at 12 Noon-Dial 2-92M Care-Ins Cave-ins were becoming evi-dent throughout the dty One bad cave-in occurred near the Kenmore Hotel river waters washed away almost half of the sidewalk and waa still washing away The City Auburn according to City Manager Bernal Allen had a successful night of rescue work and Allen reported everything undertaken went off without hitch The Shoe City was nut on an emergency footing following a meeting of Allen and dty offi- Evacuees 'To Register All Lewiston residents forced out of their homes by flood waters were urged today by CD Director Irving Iriedman to register with dvil defense headquarter! This is Friedman warned have been getting calls from out-of-atate relatives anxious for the safety of these families and we know what to teU them" Other calls have been received he said from State agencies aid the Red Cross anxious to make plans for further flood relief No Accurate Count Friedman stated at noon that no city official had an accurate count of homes flooded and families forced out people would can and tell ua be able to plan ahead" he stated Mayor's Office Civil dcleiue headquarters Khve been set up in Mayor Roland Mareotte'a office with some worker going alrnust around the clock Numbers to call Friedman stated are 4-7614 2-2021 and 2-6311 Two of these are tempo- rary telephones Installed when the office was act' up Friedman said all civil defense workers including auxiliary police were now on standby alert except for a few key personnel He expressed appreciation for the volunteer who worked long hour and also to many who called in' offering their services Lack of an adequate warden setup with personnel In all areas of the city was blamed by Friedman for lack of comprehensive information we had more volunteers on the warden level we'd know the necessary facta exactly" he said Between 200 and 300 voluntrers were ready to go last night but many of these were in transpor- lire EVACUEES Page It Col Weather Weather forecast for Lewiston and vicinity: Rain showers to-nlght Partly cloudy Sunday morning Cloudy with rain showers Sunday afternoon Little emperature change throughout Lowest tonight near 38 degree Highest tomorrow 43 degrees Moderate southerly winds Lowest overnight temperatures: Lewiston 38 Caribou 31 Eaatpnrt 38 Greenville 33 Old Town 38 Rumford 37 Portland 4L ML Wash 21 COncord 40 Boston 42 New York 42 Washington 45 Miami 60 Chicago 38' Denver 38 Loa Angeles 55 Halifax 38b Montreal 38 Urg HAM FESTIVAL Sunday Mar 20 7 :30 PAL IN THE BASEMENT OF STE ANNE CHURCH LISBON 1 BENEFIT CEMETERY FUND Up-Country Areas Count Losses As Waters Begin to Recede BY GILBERT CUMMINGS Reports of flood conditions early Saturday morning Indicated that in many areu the flood crest hu passed temporarily at leuL Some scattered rain continues to fall In some places But as waters slowly recede hardships will continue up-country areas pull thrmselvea out of tha mud and begin to count their losses Many roads are still Impassable bust ness establishments flooded and mills dosed ge Friday night A milk company trailer truck took 6000 quarts to Auburn where water blocked the road then the National Guard vehicle plowed through and reached here A shipment of bread now in short supply will start from Portland Saturday Wilton Woolen Co suspended operations shout 7 am Friday as Wilson Lake Stream had not yet reached its peak and it was feared the rapid flow would flood the bottom-floor of the mill dala yesterday afternoon AL-ton's office wu set up aa emergency headquarter and calls were handled through his office during the night Auburn Civil Defense Director Norman A Wood reported thlni were conducted In an order! manner they got Wood was seeking additional auxiliary police units this morning Werked In Shifts Auburn personnel worked in shifts at the city building during the night answering emergency See MAIN STREET Pg 7 Col 1 At approximately 4 pm' the peak was reached and It wu roof water going over the falls then ported there wu about a foot more at the highest point during the great flood 011936 The water had been receding for the rest of the day it was reported Wilson Lake Stream washed out a section about 100 yards long on Davis Court Many merchants were said to have flooded cellars the stream overflowed its banka Town Manager James Ordway uid the Main St business section of town would probably be dosed for two days while repair crews attempted to fill excavations caused 'by the river The bridge over the dam at (he foot of Wilson Lake was holding It had been anchored with chains In an effort to prevent the rapid waters from destroying it Roy Gifford treasurer of Wll- Sea UP-COUNTRY Pg I Col I about 5:30 pm yesterday but suiplies in standpipes are expected to last through the emergency If the abatement continues Russell Bartlett of the water company has appealed to all householder to conserve the supply Town Manager Edward Sawyer estimated that between 15 and 20 See WATER PUMP Pg It Col I Maine Road Conditions Three main traffic arteries out of the Twin Cities were closed at tfulav with no nrasnect of toitay wun no prospeci noon their being opened before tomorrow The Portland Road was still under several feet of water at Oakdale with the Old Hotel road taking the detour traffic The Lewiston-Brunswick road See ROADS Page i Chi AIS FOOD SHOD Court St Auburn Opening Hpuciiil 1 lb 8 Choice Sirloin Steak Complete Dinner $200 Lower Main St Under Water At Brunswick BRUNSWICK All vehicular traffic between liere sml Tojwhsni was at 'standstill this morning as fkwd waters began to recede slowly and rain rontimied to fall A section of lower Main St is umier two feet of wafer which hacked up ami winc'd arms when ice blocked a culvert This is the as mo section that was washed out ln £lood- tpT Tnsim n-k-M was Bridge Tojwlmm Heights was closed yesterday but the foot bridge Is still open Along the Androscoggin Central Maine Power Co has seven pumps working around the clock in tlu power house and sandbagging oi the river blink continues Water has rrossed Mill SL and Hie home of Villa Bouchard on Topsham Heights was evacuated last night when the level rose to the first tlmir Reisn tedly the old See BRUNSWICK Tage 7 Ool i ClinOMK DINKTTK SKTS Hundreds To Choose From SS $5900 Select Yours Today FOR BETTER COMPLETE HOME FURNITURE SHOP AT 23 PARK ST LEWISTON On Flight And Snjjo" The floret crest was believed to have passed here during the early hours of Saturday morning a drop of water level stood1 at eight inches Evacuees from Mexico Flats and other areu were reported well fed and housed with local Red Cross agencies citizens and municipal sendees banding together to care for their needs It wu reported that about 150 cots mattresses and blankets reached here last night by Army trucks under police escort fronv Augusta High praise continues to be sounded for the work of the men of -the police fire and other departments of the area which did such admirable work In the evacuation Efforts are being made to ra-'atore' highway communications from the area A National Guard truck helped esse the milk short- Laundry Service As Usual Our drivers WILL pick-up your washings as usual starting Sun-All work done as per usual We have no flood i day evening I dam- New Auburn Social Club i All activities of tha Mu will bo cancelled until further notice Roberf Fortier Pres age Let us help you with your Spring cleaning Auburn Wet Wash Laundry Wo Wash Everything But Uio Baby 193 R1VERSIDC DRIVE TEL 2-2071 NEW AUBURN i WALLPAPER Hundreds of Beautiful Discontlnusd 1892 Pattern 1 50 DISCOUNT Bauer Hardware Co 239 Mala Lew-Snd Floor I.