The Passaic Flood of 1903 | Page 5

be loosed upon the lower valley. A discussion of
the effects of this will be taken up under the heading "Damages."
In Water-Supply Paper No. 88 is given the proportion of flood waters
contributed to the Central Basin by each of the tributaries. These
figures were computed from the results of gagings maintained for a
period sufficient to afford this information within a reasonable
approximation. In the case of the storm which resulted in the flood of
1903 it is probable that data referred to can not be safely applied.
The flood of 1902 was the result of abundant rains following upon and
melting a heavy snow. Weather Bureau records show that neither the
depth of the snow nor the amount of subsequent rainfall was uniform,
or even approximately so, over the Passaic drainage area. Indeed, so
marked was the variation that it was believed that the mean rainfall for
all the observation stations on the basin did not bear sufficient relation
to observed run-off to allow of any reliable deductions. In the case of
the October storm, however, the distribution of rainfall was more
nearly uniform, and the run-off from the highland tributaries into the
Central Basin must have been proportionately different in amount from
that indicated in the upland tributary tables in the report of the previous
flood. The data given for the 1902 flood can not, therefore, in the case
of the highland tributaries, be applied to the conditions which obtained
in the flood of 1903.
FLOOD AT MACOPIN DAM.
Mr. Morris R. Sherrerd, engineer of the Newark city water board, has
furnished flow computations over Macopin intake dam, which is the
head of the Newark pipe line. As about 73 per cent of the Pequanac
drainage area lies above this intake, the table on page 16 shows roughly
an equivalent percentage of the flow contributed by Pequanac River to
the Central Basin of the Passaic. In consulting this table it should be
borne in mind that the entire run-off of the drainage area above
Macopin is about 25,000,000 gallons per day more than the amounts

presented in this table. All reservoirs and ponds connected with the
conservancy system of the Newark water supply were filled except that
at Oakridge, which was about 1.5 feet below the crest of the spillway.
Flow of Pequanac River over Macopin dam, October 7-24, 1903.
[From Newark water department.]
Cubic feet. Oct. 8, 6 a. m. to 12 m. 240,600 12m. to 4 p. m. 347,600 4
to 6 p. m. 842,200
8-9, 6 p. m. to 6 a. m. 40,110,000
9, 6 a. m. to 12 m. 51,870,000 12m. to 1 p. m. 15,100,000 1 to 5 p. m.
62,430,000 5 to 10 p. m. 89,040,000 10 to 11 p. m. 19,520,000
9-10, 10 p. m. to 8 a. m. 201,350,000
10, 8 a. m. to 12 m. 75,670,000 12 m. to 6 p. m. 103,650,000 6 to 12 p.
m. 73,530,000
11, 12 to 6 a. m. 56,820,000 6 a. m. to 12m. 41,440,000 12 m. to 6 p. m.
32,755,000 6 to 12 p. m. 25,665,000
12, 12 to 6 a. m. 23,800,000 6 a. m. to 12m. 20,725,000 12 m. to 6 p. m.
18,450,000 6 to 12 p. m. 15,105,000 13, 12 to 6 a. m. 13,370,000 6 a. m.
to 12 m. 11,890,000 12 m. to 6 p. m. 11,230,000 6 to 12 p. m.
11,230,000
14, 12 to 6 a. m. 9,626,000 6 a. m. to 12 m. 8,690,000 12 m. to 6 p. m.
8,022,000 6 to 12 p. m. 7,353,000
15, 12 to 6 a. m. 6,952,000 6 a. m. to 6 p. m. 12,700,000 15-16, 6 p. m.
to 6 a. m. 10,965,000
16, 6 a. m. to 6 p. m. 10,025,000 16-17, 6 p. m. to 6 a. m. 9,091,000
17, 6 a. m. to 6 p. m. 8,690,000 17-18, 6 p. m. to 6 a. m. 9,893,000

18, 6 a. m. to 6 p. m. 10,565,000 18-19, 6 p. m. to 6 a. m. 8,690,000
19, 6 a. m. to 6 p. m. 6,952,000 19-20, 6 p. m. to 6 a. m. 6,150,000
20, 6 a. m. to 6 p. m. 5,882,000 20-21, 6 p. m. to 6 a. m. 5,749,000
21, 6 a. m. to 6 p. m. 5,481,000 21-22, 6 p. m. to 6 a. m. 5,214,000
22, 6 a. m. to 6 p. m. 4,144,000 22-23, 6 p. m. to 6 a. m. 3,677,000
23, 6 a. m. to 6 p. m. 3,877,000 23-24, 6 p. m. to 6 a. m. 5,749,000
24, 6 a. m. to 6 p. m. 5,615,000
FLOOD AT BEATTIE'S DAM, LITTLE FALLS.
The flow over Beattie's dam at Little Falls, has been calculated
according to coefficients used for the same dam in Water-Supply