“”From the Virginia Argus”

Creator

John Davis, A. Caperton

Date

3-9-1812

Newspaper

Alexandria Herald

Page and Column

Page 2, Column 2

Newspaper Location

Alexandria, Virginia

Serial Number

1179

Abstract

Long letter detailing the effect of the New Madrid earthquake of December 16, 1811. Unique account found no where else. Location where the eyewitness was locate d was Island 25, on the Mississippi River . Good eyewitness account of earthquake from Island 25 to long reach near Flour Island. Noted that the river rose 9 feet and that land sank into the river . Good detailed account.

Transcript

From the Virginia Argus, March 2. SWEET SPRINGS, 18th Feb. 1812. Mr. Pleasants, The following letter I received to day from capt. John Davis, of this place, and have sent you a rough draught, which if you have had no previous account, please to publish it in your paper. Your's respectfully. A. CAPERTON. NATCHEZ, (M. T.) Jan. 5, 1812. Dr. Caperton; You have in my former letters from New-Madrid, a description of my journey to that place; and on my voyage down the Mississippi to this place, I shall give you an alarming detail of an earthquake. We arrived on the 15th December at night to the 25th island, and on the 16th at 10 minutes after 8 o'clock A. M. we were surprised by the greatest emotion imaginable of the boat, which I can compare to nothing more picturesque, than that of a team of horses running with a waggon over the most rocky road that is in our part of the country. There was in company about 40 boats, each thought their boats adrift and running over sawyers, but a man on board a boat lashed to us hinted it to be an earthquake, when an old navigator of the river who was a little above hailed us and said it was occasioned by the banks falling in; we were then floating under a high Bluff bank, which immediately cast off and fell in about a quarter of a mile of the Bluff, which drew us into the current on the right side of the 25th island, where we staid till the next morning and put off, but in the intermediate time we experienced about fifty partial shocks, which shook our boats with great agitation; 17 minutes after seven P. M. we heard a tremendous distant noise, and in a few seconds the boats, island and main land became perfectly convulsed, the trees twisted and lapped together, the earth in all quarters was sinking, and the water issued from the centre of the island No. 25, on our left and came rushing down its sides in torrents, and on our right there sunk at once about 30 or 40 acres of land, some say, 300; but I was till then perfectly collected, and although much alarmed, was less so than any in company. The shocks at this time became more frequent, at intervals of about 15 minutes the river rose from the first shock till 8 o'clock that day 7 or 8 feet perpendicular and the current run from 7 to 8 miles per hour, as we floated from the 25th island to Flour island, a distance of 35 miles, in 5 hours and 25 minutes, though we lost considerable time to effect a landing at a place called the 9 mile reach; this place together with the 10 mile reach, were in perfect commotion, the logs which had risen from the bottom of the river had so covered the surface of the water and in such confusion that it appeared impracticable for a boat to pass with safety. Unfortunately three boats from our company were lost, two of the boats the property of Mr. James Atwell from Kentucky and in value about three thousand dollars. The other, a family boat, was stove, and all was saved except one man. Whole trees with large roots, logs and stumps came up from the bottom, which at a distance had the appearance of timbered fields, and all had the mud and sand on them from the bottom of the river, so that it appeared as if the order of nature was reversed-we experienced frequent shocks for eight days, but none compared to the first. I have heard of no place being as much convulsed as where I was.

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