Yellow Creek Ice Gorge Imperils Several Families

February 16, 2023

After seeing the Herald's "75 Years Ago" in the Feb. 9, 2023, edition, Edith Cooper sent these photos with the following message: "My dad Lynn Ritchey was one of the men who set off the explosives to break the ice jam. He was 6'3" so you can see how big the ice chunks were. I am the baby in the pictures. I was 5 months old."

From the Front Page of the Feb. 19, 1948, edition of the Herald

One of the worst ice jams in recent memory of residents damaged several properties and endangered the lives of residents of Yellow Creek Saturday morning.

Heavy rains and melting snow on Friday throughout the area drained by Yellow Creek, including the southern sections of the Cove, caused a sudden rise in the creek.

Early Saturday morning the wails of two dogs tied in the yard of the Frank B. Cronemiller home awakened the family. A son, John W. rescued the dogs and found a foot of water, carrying huge chunks of ice, flowing t...

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