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78 FLOODS IN COLORADO Precipitation, in inches, in Arkanaa8 River Basin, May 29-:-31, 1894 Altitude May Station (coot) 2lJ 30 31 Total - - Canon City __ ..._u." .___n_____________.______..n 5,329 0.76 UI '-""i:64- '.06 Pueblo_po. _._____..__._ ._n_._ .u._n._..._u_______ 4,585 un_.__n 1.38 3.02 Rocky Ford..______..... _.___._.." .____n_. "____u 4,177 __d______ ------.-07- 3.60 >5. Las AniDla!l. ._.n_____u.....____... _._.__n..". .--- 3,899 .n___n.. 1." 1.16 Lamar......__________________.._____________________ 3,592 __._.uo__ ---------" 13.00 3.06 I Record for several days. The local newspapers on the evening of May 30, 1894, reported that at Salida rain had fallen continuously for 36 hours and was continuing and that for duration and volume.the storm exceeded anything in the memory of the oldest inhabitant. At the same time, Florence reported that rain had fallcn there for the preccding 24 hours and that the amount waS estimated at 3 to 4 inches. Thc precipitation above Canon City had little influencc on the ensuing flood, as the discharge at Canon City was not greatly in excess of that during years of heavy mountain snowfall. Below Canon City, however, vcry considerable damage was caused. A dispatch from Pueblo, dated May 30, is quoted in the Rocky Mountain News of May 31, 1894: In consequence of an all-day downpour of rain such as has not ocourred in this valley in 20 years, the Arkansas River tonight came up and broke the levees in four places on the north side and two on the south side. Everything is a sea of water from Union Avenue viaduct to the post office. All business cellars a.re filled in that territory, and the water is over the floors from 6 inches to 2 feet. This is a worse flood thtm any that has occurred since the town became a city. The water flows with a strong current through the streets, and everything is confusion. The flood covers the city from Union Avenue on the south side to Fourth Avenue on the north side, an area of three-quarters of a mile. The issue of the News on June 1, 1894, stated that on Second Street between Santa Fe Avenue and Main Street the water was 4 feet dcep over the floors of the buildings. Five lives were lost in Pueblo, and damage amounting to ncarly $2,000,000 was done to property. At its highcst stnge the water was 3 fect deep in the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad freight yard and stayed at that stnge from 2 to 8: 30 a, m., May 31. It receded slowly and by 6 a. m., JUlie 1, had fallen only 4}l feet. The highcst stage was about 7 feet less than the flood of 1921." In the Arkansas V allcy above Pucblo this flood reached a highcr stage than the flood of 1921. Below Pucblo, however, it was con- siderably lower. At Las Animas, according to thc Bcnt County Democrat of June 8, 1921, the flood of 1894 reached First Street, where"" the flood of 1921 was 4 feet deep at that point. Q FollllDSboe, Hobert, and lones, E. E., The Arksns8S River lIood of lunct3-ti, 1\121: U. S. G001. Survey Water-Supply Paper 481, p. 39, 1922. T MAJOR FLOODS-ARKANSAS RIVER 79 .The city engineer of .Pueblo subsequently made a slope-area deter- mlllatlOn of the peak dIscharge and found it to be 39,100 second-feet, Subsequently the channel capacity through Pueblo was increased to 40,000 sccond-feet. .... The Purgatoire River flood of September 29-30 1904 d fl d' I ' ,cause.. 00. III th? ower ~art of the Arkansas Valley in Colorado, No gagmg ~tatlO'.' was III operation at that time at the mouth of the PurgatOIre R,vcr, and it is therefore impossible to determine the volume of the flood entering thc Arkansas River. It is believed however, to have .b~en at least as great as the peak discharge of 44,300 seeo.nd,feet at Tnmdad. Thc recorded rainfall in the Arkansas River Ba.sm below the Purgatoire River is given in the table following. Precipitation, in inches, in Arkansas River Basin, Sept 117-30, 190,4. Station Altitude (feet) September Total 37 28 2lJ 30 h;~~I~~;~-:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ~rl~~.~~~.~~!~~~====~~=~:::::::=::::::== 3.899 3.602 ----.o~ir .~.--o~ir 3,380 dh______ .28 4,279 1.23 1.00 4,155 n______.. .8() 1.20 .41 .5' .93 1.35 0.45 ... .02 1.10 1." ... .83 4." ~15 This pre~ipitation undoubtedly increased the flood volume in the Arkansas RIver. At the Colorado and Kansas diversion dam 3 miles west of Prowers, the peak discharge was computed as about 70 000 second-feet. Further information on this flood is summarized f~m .earher reports, as follows: " tOi;:~ lower botto~ lands were entirely inunda.ted from the mouth of the Purga- o the State Ime, and as a flood in September was unexpected the railroad -company and farmers were unprepared for it, with the result that damages were much greater than they would otherwise have been. From Fort Lyon to Hall t~e water co;ered aU the lower bottom lands, and from Caddoa to Lamar, wher~ ~:e bot~m IS narro~er than above or below, the waters rea.ched from bluff to C ~ff, a distance varYlllg from three-quarters of 8. mile to a mile in width. At the o orado and l~ans~s canal dam, 3 miles west of Prowers, the gatekeeper was compelled to.sw.lm hIS horses out, so rapid was the rise of the water. At Lamar the water was WltlllD 1 foot of flooding the town. 1908 'f.he flood of October 19-20, 1908, was caused by heavy rains, chiefly dUllng the nIght of October 18, which covered the part of the ~rkansas River Basin in Colorado east of a line running just west of a Junta, except the area south of a line from the Purgatoire'River s=t:7nk:;M~1}.sP~;;to~rc R1verwfl~_d, In Murph', E. 0., and others, Destructive floods in the United .' .. . urvey u........supply Pa.per 147, pp. ]65-167, 19M.