Early Farwell Mill Dam Postcard

Clare Sentinel - April 23, 1909

FARWELL MILL DAM OUT

Swept Away Three Bridges, Fishing in Pond Was Good

NEW CEMENT DAM WILL BE BUILT

Clare Power Co, Had Dewey Lake Low Ready for Arrival of Flood. The week end spring freshet accumulated so much water in the Farwell mill pond that at 5:30 Monday morning the dam went out sweeping away the bridge at the mill, one mile south of the village and another near Hinkleville, putting the mill out of commission and rolling up a $3,000 loss for the mill firm, Fuller & Harris, who at once announce they will rebuild.

Word was phoned to Senator Doherty as soon as the break occurred to be ready at the dam at Dewey lake for the flood. But owing to accumulation of logs and debris at various points the flood was so retarded that the worst of it did not reach the lake till 11:30 a.m. By that time Dewey lake had been lowered seven inches and the big flow only raised it four inches so that there was no danger to the power dam there at. any time. But in anticipation of a rapid raise of water men were ready to cut out a chunk of the dam at the south end where the water is shallow if the necessity arose.

At the Farwell mill the dam was swept away some 40 feet wide and it was a picturesque sight to watch the big wave sweeping onward piling up behind logs and debris at various bridges. At some points teams were used to pull out logs to let the water down otherwise more bridges would have been swept away. The Tobacco river bridge just north of Clare stood the big wave well. The flood left trace of its course along the banks of the Tobacco river with debris left high and dry and here and there fishing was good on the banks that in a few hours left the stray members of the finny tribe high and dry. At the pond at Farwell all sorts of fish were readily caught and a crowd of fishers were out in search of the.abundant supply.

 The dam’s break is a bad misfortune to the mill proprietors. They however, are already formulating plans to rebuild the dam, replacing the old earth dam with one of cement at a cost of $2,500. But of course, this is only the roughest estimate as is this part of the state little is known of cement dam building. The mill will be out of commission meanwhile and the total loss in business and all to Fuller & Harris will be a heavy one. They, however, announce the installation of a steam engine at once to handle the work at the mill. The mill pond gone left the Farwell water works intake dry and the village without fire protection. A temporary dam was constructed by the village, raising water high enough to supply the pumps which started up again Tuesday afternoon.