THE SITUATION IN 1843.

At the time the Mexican trade was temporarily suppressed by order of Gen. Santa Anna in 1843, Blue Mills was the principal landing point for Independence, the effort to divert it to Wayne City having proved ineffectual. Independence enjoyed a monopoly of the outfitting business. Westport had attained much importance as an Indian trading post and was rapidly becoming the headquarters for the Mexican traders, who stopped there to graze their teams on the prairies, and await the arrival of their goods at Blue Mills; Liberty had grown to be quite a town; a town had been established at Randolph Bluffs, and at this time contained one or more quite respectable mercantile houses, and a number of residences, and had macadamized one short street. The town of Barry, which came into existence prior to the opening of the Platte purchase to settlement, had became quite an important place, as had the town of Weston. A town had been started at Parkville, an Indian trading post, and was doing a large trade with the new settlers in the adjacent country and with the Indians across the river. Parkville then contained several trading houses. At this time Kansas City was much smaller than any of these places, and was not perceptibly growing, owing to the inability of the Town Company to make titles to ground. Kansas City then contained three warehouses, those of the Town Company, Francis Chouteau, or rather the American Fur Company, and that of W. G. and G. W. Ewing, of Westport, two or three small trading houses and a few log cabins, mostly occupied by Frenchmen. It was then known only as Westport Landing, but as a landing place for Westport was beginning to attract some attention from Mexican traders, who saw the advantage of receiving their goods at this place rather than at Blue Mills. Still, however, it continued the headquarters of the fur and Indian traders established by the old St. Louis guild of French traders, and conducted by the American Company or their successors. This trade was then, as it had been from the first, distributive, and though it made much less local show, and was probably less in volume than the Indian trade done at Westport, it covered a much greater area of country.

In 1840 W. G. and G. W. Ewing, already referred to as having become prominent Indian traders, at Westport, in about 1836, determined to build themselves a warehouse at Kansas City. They had received goods at Blue Mills, and at Chouteau's Warehouse just below Kansas City, but their trade had become so large that they desired to avoid this warehouse tax and so built a warehouse as above stated.

In June, 1842, Gen. John C. Fremont came to Kansas City on his first expedition across the plains. At this time he made his headquarters at Cyprian Chouteau's house, six miles west, but outfitted here at Kansas City. In his subsequent expeditions he made his headquarters with Wm. M. Chick, at Kansas City, while outfitting.

During the year of 1843, Wm. M. Chick, father of Jos. S. Chick, now President of the Bank of Kansas City, who was then living at Westport, saw the tendency of trade to concentrate at Kansas City, and removed to this place and built a warehouse here.

FROM 1843 TO 1846.

The suppression of the Mexican trade in 1843 was a severe blow to Independence and damaged Westport somewhat. The former was thrown back upon its resources of local trade with the adjacent country, and the latter was left dependent mainly upon its Indian trade. Aside from the loss by the warehousemen of the few cargoes they had been receiving, on account of this trade, Kansas City was not affected.

THE GREAT FLOODS.

In 1843-4 events transpired here which have furnished material for many a fireside story among the old settlers. These were the great floods and attendant adventures of these two years. That of 1843 was not so great as that of 1844, which was the greatest ever known in these rivers.

During the past Spring of 1881, the United States Engineer, having charge of the river improvements at this point, J. W. Nier, Esq., informed the press that he had information of great snows and large accumulations of water in the Upper Missouri and its tributaries, which rendered a recurrence of these floods not improbable. This called forth from John C. McCoy, Esq., the following graphic historical sketch of the great flood, which will be interesting in this connection:

"The subject of floods in the Missouri and Kansas River in the past, and the probabilities of their recurrence in the future, is neither a pleasant or popular theme to talk or write about just now, and those who indulge in speculations or predictions of danger are looked upon as croakers and birds of evil omen, especially by those whose interests would be in jeopardy in the event of their fulfillment. This is very plainly shown by the way many persons interested in West Kansas City and the bottom lands of the river have received warnings and statements of the United States engineer as to the probable danger of a devastating flood in the Missouri River, and which appeared in the Journal a few days ago. His statements have, I think, provoked a good deal of unjust and unnecessary criticism and comment. He is a stranger to me, but holding the position of trust and responsibility he does in the engineer service of the Government, we may safely conclude that he is at least theoretically competent, and certainly possesses the most correct information obtainable to enable him to form a proper estimate of the danger to be apprehended. Not only this, but it is his special business to study the situation. He is in possession of all the facts and facilities requisite to form a correct conclusion in the premises.

"Now, granting that it is his deliberate judgment, formed from these sources, that the dire calamity of a devastating flood was likely to sweep over the West Kansas City bottoms, causing the loss of millions of dollars value in property and perhaps many lives, his failure to give timely warning, would, under the circumstances, be looked upon as little short of murder; and then, if his predictions fail and the elements over which he has no control are propitious, why then he subjects himself to ungenerous flings and jeers. His situation in the premises is one of great responsibility and certainly by no means to be envied. Having some knowledge of facts connected with floods in the Missouri River, I will venture, disagreeable as the subject may be to many, to briefly state them. Physic, albeit nauseating, is sometimes very beneficial to general health. We may sincerely hope the general health in this case is in no danger at present. The records of the past tell us of only three floods that may be regarded as devasting, viz: In 1782, 1826 and 1844. (One other in 1843 only partially so, and many others where the overflows caused little or no damage.) According to my recollection, the overflow of 1843 occurring the last of May and the first of June, reached a height about six feet lower than that of the succeeding year of June, 1844, and the damage was correspondingly less. The winter of 1842-3 was a long, hard one with much snow toward the mountains. In January there was a general thaw and break up with fine wetaher lasting nearly three weeks and the steamer "Ione" ascended the river to Kansas City. On the day of her arrival it turned suddenly cold, the river froze up again and so remained until near the 1st of May, during which time the boat remained near the foot of Grand avenue.

"The rise of water in 1843 was high enough to wash away some heavy new one-story log houses standing near the river bank at the lower end of Harlem, which I had put up at the beginning of winter. I stood on the levee one day and

witnessed their departure with sudden lurch and a graceful sweep of the upper end toward the river that mingled and melted away in the boiling flood.-Have I told this story so often that I really believe it was an actual occurrence, and that rumors of the snowfields to the northwest, caused me as soon as the ice was out of the river, to vamose the imperiled ranch? Nay, even before that occurred that I pulled down one house and hauled the hewed logs across on the ice and put them up to live in near the foot of William street? Does any one doubt the correctness of this statement? And that this occurred in 1843, the year before the great flood? I hope not, for I am now going to say something of another flood that far exceeded this one in its desolating effects-that which occurred from the 13th to the 16th of June, 1844. The water rose to a height of six feet or more above that of the previous year. The Missouri River at about the 13th was only a few feet over the bottom lands, but the great volume of water that came down the Kansas River madly rushing against the mighty Missouri caused the seething waters to pile up at the mouth, no doubt several feet higher than they would have done had they met at the point of junction more obliquely..

"On the morning of the 14th, Col. Wm. M. Chick, who was temporarily occupying with his family a house he owned, which stood on the east side of Tur key Creek, not far southeast of the State Line house, was surprised to find the water just rising above the banks of the creek. By 9 o'clock it had reached the door step, and as the ground was lower toward the hills eastward, he deemed it advisable to seek a place of safety on higher ground, which they succeeded in doing with the aid of a canoe or small boat. His daughter, Mrs. Peery, went to the hills near Twelfth Street on a horse, the water being then about mid-side to the horse near the hills. From thence she made her way to my house, two miles south of the city, and astonished me by her statement of facts. I galloped down to the ferry across the river, which I owned, and ran at that time, and taking a skiff with Col. John Polk, we made our way, with great difficulty and danger, up through the woods to the house, where we arrived at about twelve o'clock, and found the water about waist deep on the lower floor. We secured as many articles as our skiff would carry, placed the balance out of the reach of the water, and made our way back to the ferry, where I immediately secured a party of about ten persons to take up the ferry flat to secure that which was left.

"The seething, foaming flood of water was not only dashing madly onward in the river channel, but it swept across the heavily timbered bottom of West Kansas, from bluff to bluff, with a roar almost deafening. With the aid of twenty or more men in rounding the rocky headland above the bridge, we finally reached the building about four o'clock p. m, when we found the water had reached nearly to the upper floor. Placing the boat beside the house we tore off a portion of the roof, the eaves of which was probably five feet above the boat-the upper window being too small to pass out the furniture. Being now nearly dark we held a council, and decided to tie up for the night, deeming it unsafe to venture into the river in the dark. So we ran up to the smoke-house, built of heavy logs, in which about 5,000 pounds of bacon was floating about, and there spent the long, dreary hours of the night in roasting bacon and hams and telling marvelous tales of blood-curdling scenes that never happened, probably.

"In the morning we found that the depth of water under our boat was at least ten feet, and the water still rising.

"Now, those who feel disposed to believe the above statements of facts can make their own estimate of the rapidity of the rise of water in twelve hours from the morning of June 14. I make it from eight to ten feet. Is this incredible? If so, ask Col. Polk, Allen McGee, William Mulkey, and others who spent the night with me in that flood of waters.

sas.

"I will now mention only one other episode of that eventful day in West KanDuring the night of the 15th, and the next morning, from time to time.

loud cries of distress were heard over at Wyandotte, in the direction of the residence of Louis Tromley, who then lived near the Missouri south bank, just east of the State line. Those who listened to those cries knew full well that the old man was in deep trouble, as well as deep waters, but the impetuous Kaw forced its mad waters into the broad sea of the Missouri with a current so rapid that it was impossible to get the ferry flat across to the opposite woods (for there were no banks then) without cordeling the boat some distance up the Kaw, and before this could be done darkness had overspread the desolate scene. At early dawn brave hearts and strong arms were ready for the rescue. Isaiah Walker, Ethan Long, Russell Garret, David Froman, and Tall Charles, of Wyandott, soon made their way with the boat, cutting their way through the woods, to poor old Tromley, whom they found perched in a tree, and a few hundred yards farther on his wife in another tree, and a short distance further his boy sitting astraddle of the comb of the house which was just beginning to sway into the seething waters of the river.

The res

"Tromley had tried to make his way to Wyandotte on a log, in order to procure a boat and help, but finding he would be inevitably swept into the Missouri, he desisted from his effort and betook himself to his perch in the tree, and thus passed the long vigils of that dreary, desolate night to those three heipless persons. Poor Tromley meanwhile trying throughout its long watches to cheer and comfort his terrified wife and boy, whom he was unable to reach. cuers took them to the hills, near Twelfth street, on their way, picking up some others as they went. Soon afterward old Tromley's house, with his favorite dog perched upon its top, was seen by the hundreds gathered on the hillsides passing rapidly down in mid current and Poor Tromley, who had just arrived, called to his dog by name, who set up a mournful wail, and the old man seemed disposed to dash in to its rescue. During this day, the 15th, the Wyandotte rescuers, were busy saving persons and property in the West Kansas bottom until darkness closed their labors, theirs being the only boat that operated on that day, and after that none was needed for nothing was left to save of life or property. On the same day I went down with an old horse boat I had and brought up Mrs. Chouteau and her household goods from her homestead below East Kansas, to the high grounds above.

But

"Now, Mr. Editor, I have written these few incidents of the great flood of 1844 not as a sensation, for the facts are just as I have related them without any undue coloring. Neither have I done so to create any unnecessary alarm, for I don't know that there are any grounds for any, but simply to communicate some facts that everyone having interests in the river bottoms ought to know. smart people may laugh me to scorn, and so they would have done to old Tromley a day or two before he went to roost in that hackberry tree, had he been guilty of the same indiscretion. I have seen times when I would have felt supremely happy to be sitting astraddle of a good dry log with my neither extremities dangling in the waters beneath."

The great flood of 1826 has already been mentioned in this history as having washed away the house of Mr. Chouteau, opposite Randolph Bluffs, which caused him to remove higher up the river and to higher ground. Little is known of this flood, but it doubtless was not such as to cover the ground to which Mr. Chouteau removed; for it is not probable that after being washed away once he would rebuild below the high water line. However, the flood of 1844 proved that he made a mistake, for it washed away this second house which he had built. It also washed away the warehouse built by W. G. & G. W. Ewing, which was in the same vicinity, both being below the limits of the land of the Prudhomme estate, which had been partly laid off into town lots in 1839. It also washed away the warehouse built by the town company in 1839, and rose to the door of Wm. M. Chick's warehouse. This latter warehouse stood at the corner of Main street and