This file portion of www.watertownhistory.org website
Snow Storms
1881, 1898, 1910 and 1947
1881
03 1881
National Hotel (Lindon
House), Main and Water
Hacketts Marble Works
and St. Bernard’s in distance
At the
end of the first week of March of 1881, Mother Nature closed down the city and
isolated it from the outside world by favoring Watertown with an accumulation
of over 6 feet of snow. Trenches were
dug to navigate one’s way around town and trains were stalled.
Hacketts Marble Works, National Hotel, St.
Bernard's, 100 W Main block, 200 W Main block, Wisconsin National Bank, Straw
& Murphy
Daub's saloon, 56 E Main, North side [bet
Third and Fourth?]
Cross-References:
The Watertown Historical Society has a
number of images of the 1881 snow storm
No 1: Flood, 1881, Main St. bridge destruction
No 2: Flood, 1881, Main St. bridge destruction, Phoenix engine house in
distance
1898
02 23 1898
Saturday
and Sunday Watertown was enveloped in by all odds the worst snow storm that has
visited us since the memorable one of March, 1881, which continued four days. T
he storm was quite general throughout the Northwest. It played havoc with the railway service for
the time being, reports showing that there was a genuine blockade which was with
difficulty broken up. Very few people ventured from their homes here on Sunday.
1910
1947
01 30 1947
The
storm was listed as being the worst one since 1910 with drifts throughout the
city several feet in height and conditions much worse in the rural areas. In less than a 24-hour period over 17 inches
of snow fell. WHS_005_543
