MIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENUMMEN TETON ORAL HISTORY PROGRAM Ricks College Idaho State Historical Society History Department, Utah State University TETON DAM DISASTER Lottie Kriz Interviewed by Alyn B. Andrus August 12, 1977 Project made possible by funds from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation Idaho State Legislature through the Idaho State Historical Society and National Endowment for the Humanities
C UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY & RICKS COLLEGE HISTORY DEPARTMENTS COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT THROUGH LOCAL HISTORY ORAL HISTORY PROGRAM INTERVIEWER AGREEMENT In view of the historical and scholarly value of this information contained in the interview with 4,01+ A1-1Z, I, 4/qn 419ch-U-s- (name, please print). (iptkrviewer, print) knowingly and voluntarily permit the Milton R. Merrill Library at Utah State University, the David 0. McKay Library at Ricks College, and the Idaho State Historical Society at Boise, Idaho, the full rights and use of this information. (aahel./ "Interviewer's Signature R /977 Date
MIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENUMMEN UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY & RICKS COLLEGE HISTORY DEPARTMENTS COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT THROUGH LOCAL HISTORY ORAL HISTORY PROGRAM INTERVIEWEE AGREEMENT You have been interviewed in connection with a joint oral history program of the History Department, Utah State University, Ricks College, and the Idaho State Historical Society. The purpose of this oral history program is to gather and preserve information for historical and scholarly use. A tape recording of your interview has been made by the interviewer. A verbatim typescript of the tape will be made and a final typed and edited transcripts, together with the tape will be made and a final will then be filed in the Milton R. Merrill Library Special Collections, David 0. McKay Library at Ricks College, and the Idaho State Historical Society in Boise. This material will be made available according to each of the depositories' policies for research be scholars and by others for scholarly purposes. When the final transcript is completed, a personal copy will_be sent to you. * * * * In view f t e histprical and scholarly value of this information, I, /C-71- /, do hereby assign full (please print full name) and all rights of this material to the Merrill Library at Utah State University, to the Library at Ricks College, and to the Idaho State Historical Society at Boise, Idaho, for scholarly purposes according to each of the institutions governing policies. a2, /4'1;1: interviewee's Signature A Olu:`,5 - /9.77 Date
ORAL HISTORY INTERVIEWEE: Lottie Kriz INTERVIEWER: Alyn B. Andrus DATE: Augsut 19, 1977 TETON DAM DISASTER A: Now, Mrs. Kriz, will you please spell your name for me? K: Kriz. A: Thank you. K: You are welcome. A: What is your birth date and where were you born? K: I was born in Chicago and my birthday is the 17th of May, 1881. A: 1881. Let's see you are 96, is that right? K: Yes. A: Okay, 96 years old. Do you have a family? K: I have just the one son, Frank. A: And he is married and has a family? K: Oh, yes. That's a picture of his wife and then that man there, that is his son. My son only has one son and his son only has one son. A: So you have a great grandson? K: Yes sir I have, yes. A: Where does your boy and his family live? K: Well, Frank lives in Idaho Falls, and Donald lives in Texas. A: Donald would be the grandson? K: That is my grandson, yes sir. A: Were you living here in the Golden Living Center before the flood?
KRIZ -2- K: I've been here nine years. A: Did you come here directly from Chicago? K: No, I was with my son. When Daddy was sick I came to Frank and we stayed there in Idaho Falls with him till we could look around for a place for me and Daddy. Frank was retired from the navy then and he was in another position. I stayed in an apartment with my husband there for maybe two years, I think. That was in Idaho Falls. A: Did you know anything about the Teton Dam before it broke? K: No, I didn't. Only we would drive by and I could see it, but that would be about all. I remember the water and everything there you know. A: Mrs. Kriz, where were you and what were you doing the day that the dam broke? K: I was in my room here. We just got through with dinner and I came in my room and I heard some hollering. Somebody said, "Oh, Mrs. Kriz, hurry, hurry, hurry. 1!e got water all over; just take yourself and that is all." And then we got to the front door and there was Mrs. Peterson right near the motel and oh, she would wave, "Hurry, hurry, hurry." Well, we hurried. There was quite a crowd of the ladies then we got in front of the motel. We went into the motel. We went up the steps and we were in a room there and we didn't even get time to sit down and then they hollered, "Hurry up, hurry up, come down. The water is coming!" So we all got in a bus and they took us to the next place. I think it was just for the young boys, but it was vacation
MIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENUMMEN KRIZ -3- time and the boys weren't there so we stayed there all night. Of course, we didn't have much food but Dr. Peterson and Mrs. Peterson certainly took good care of everybody here in the Golden Center and they gave us as much food as they could get. A: Now, the motel that you mentioned would be the Viking Motel just across the street from the Golden Living Center. K: Yes. A: The dormitory where you stayed that night would be the dormitory on the Ricks College Campus. K: Yes, it was all for the young boys. A: Were you told where the water was coming from? K: Oh, we kind of knew, everybody you know would talk about how it was coming more and more, the water was. That is why we had to leave the motel. A: Were you told that the water was coming because the Teton Dam was broken? K: Yes. A: What did you think about that? K: Well, everybody said they should have let us know sooner. They knew it but they didn't tell anybody. We heard an awful lot about that, but now whether it is true we don't know. Then we stayed there and Mrs. Peterson took care of us. We tried to get two ladies in the room. There were two beds and we stayed there all night. We didn't get much to eat, we didn't know what to do with no place to cook or get anything. Then, in the morning, Dr. Peterson, I think we had one egg and I think we had a glass of milk and we were thankful but nobody
KRIZ was hungry. I couldn't eat, I wasn't hungry. But we slept? but not very good, of course. A: Were you worried about what the water would do to your room here? K: Well, I left right away, you know, when they called, we all ran. Is that what you mean? A: Did you think your room would be flooded out? K: Oh, I thought so, and all the clothes that T. had was what I had on me. A: Were you afraid that you would lose some of your clothe$7 K: I thought maybe that all my clothes would be really oone. The only thing that was bad was that it was so muddy and wet. My bathroom rug is the only thing that had to be thrown away. A: You didn't lose any clothing or anything else? K: No clothing, no sir. A: Were you surprised? K: Oh, yes, those woolen suits, maybe you don't know what they are, but anyway, they are expensive and I have two suits in there and you can't hang them up, you have to fold them, you know. They drag if you didn't. And I thought they were gone, but they were not. They were just fine, and my room was really the same as it was. A: Did it get any water in it at all? K: Oh, this is all new, all the carpets in the building here is new. Oh, it was terrible really. A: That is because the carpet was covered with water and mud and they had to
KRIZ -5- K: Water and mud, yes sir, it was. Yes. A: Did the water get very high? K: Yes, it was pretty high, oh yes, a little higher than the window sill. A: On the outside of the building? K: Yes, you could see it on the outside walls after awhile. A: But there wasn't that much water on the inside was there? K: I will tell you, then Mrs. Peterson was trying to get our families for us. She gave the key to Frank to come in the Golden Center because just the clothes I had was all I had. So Frank came and got me and then when he said, "Oh, Mother, you never can get in there, all the mud and water and you might fall." So Frank came in here and got what he thought I would need, you know. So he did pretty good getting some of my clothes. Then we drove back to Idaho Falls and his wife was waiting for us to come. Then, what happened then? They wanted to know if I didn't want something to eat right away. And then I guess I stayed with Frank about four or five weeks before I could come here at all. Then the Peterson's called and said that we could come, but there was no carpet. So when Ruth came here she said, "Oh, Mother, you couldn't sleep all night here with nothing on the floor." She said, "I wouldn't let you." So she says, "I'll tell you what I'll do, you stay here in this room and I an going back to my home in Idaho Falls and I am noing to bring you some big rugs here." So she brought about six rugs so I had something. Then, oh, it took a long time before we aot our rugs and everything. Never touched the flowers or anything. Really it was amazing the way things were in here.
KRIZ -6- A: Everything remained the way it was? K: Yes, only as I say, just the bathroom rug was gone, that is all. Of course, it needed cleaning, you know what I mean, but the girls every now and then when they had a little time would come and kind of brush up a little bit and see. Even, I got a stand in my bathroom which is mine and that was all right too. A: Were you glad to come back to the Golden Living Center? K: Well, yes. I'll tell you why. I didn't want to stay with Frank so much. They go out a lot and they will not leave me alone. They have a big home and they wouldn't leave me alone all night. So they would get a lady to come in and stay with me all day and all night, because sometimes they would ao out for the firm, you know, and they wouldn't leave me alone. Four days she stayed with me, that lady did. So I was safe there, but you see, Frank and Ruth go out so much that they wouldn't leave me alone, that is why it is better off that I am here then. A: Did you see the flood water come through Rexburg? K: Oh, sure. And then when we were up in the building we could see, oh, we saw a cow in the water. You wouldn't believe it. Somebody said they saw a fridgedaire or something in the water! I didn't see, but I saw the cow and you know it was really, we were thinking, my, we'd have to move yet. But we didn't have to, there was no danger then I guess, no more. Then, when we got to Idaho Falls they were putting sandbags all over. They hollered, "You'd better get you car, get it ready, we think some is coming to Idaho Falls." But it never did. No water.
MIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENUMMEN KRIZ A: Were you frightened when you saw the flood waters? K: Well, of course, you know, everybody would say, "Now let's just try and keep up our strength and our health. Don't get sick," But everybody was pretty good, really. But I wasn't a bit hungry though. A: When did you first start to eat after the flood? K: Well, they brought us something to eat that night, see, we had no dinner. Then they brought, oh, I think maybe we had a little soup or broth of some kind, nothing much. I know they would have aotten more, but what are you going to do in a place that it empty when we went in, you know. But I remember one morning the breakfast that Dr. Peterson brought us in a - gried egg and I think a glass of milk. And then from then on, of course, we all went downstairs and were sitting on the chairs and all waiting for our families to come to get us. So that wasn't too bad. I must say Dr. Peterson and Mrs. Peterson did everything they could for us; they really couldn't have done a better job. They saw that everybody was out of here you know. Of course, some women found it out and they came here and they came and got their families, but it wasn't many that did it. So Frank says he had the television on and everything but couldn't even telephone or anything, so many friends even tried the Red Cross and couldn't get them. A: Do you feel that the flood bothered you emotionally? K: No, I don't think so, I tried not to get nervous or anything. We went to bed and anyway we were resting a little, you know, got our clothes of and we felt better. But we didn't of course, sleep too good. We got up early in the morning, got up about five in the morning.
MIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENUMMEN KRIZ -g- But really Dr. Peterson and Mrs. Peterson were just wonderful. Yeah. Then she gave Frank the key to come in and see if he couldn't get something for me to wear. A: As you talked with other people about the flood do you think that they were bothered emotionally by it? K: Well, I haven't, well... A: Did they seem really upset about it? K: Some were, some they say were really sick, sick in bed! A: Did you see Rexburg after it was flooded? Did you see how the flood left Rexburg, how it looked? K: Oh, yes. Because you see, Frank came here and I was with him because he wanted to get my clothes before he'd take me to Idaho Falls. Then we drove a little bit around and it was bad, oh yes, it just looked terrible. Really it did, oh dear! I thought they would never get it fixed up again, but they did. A: Now, it has only been a year, just a little longer than a year since the flood. What do you think of Rexburg now? K: I think it is growing. I really do. They are building more now they said than they ever did. Of course, they have to because there was a lot of damage to the homes you know. What do you think? Do you think it is improving or what? A: Yes, I surely do. K: Oh, everybody talks about it, yes. I know they say a lot of farmers say, "Well, I am through with Rexburg, I am gonna get out of here!" So whether they did or not, I don't know. You know you hear so much about it really. But Mrs. Peterson and the doctor were certainly
KRIZ -9- wonderful to me. Poor thing, she'd be barefooted and everything up there where we were. That woman trying to get everybody home and trying to get their families to come and get them, she worked really hard. They are lovely people though. Do you know them personally? A: Yes, I do. K: They are very lovely, lovely people. Mrs. Peterson knows me a little bit, I have been here long enough. I guess. Yes, yes, they're lovely people. A: Now Mrs. Kriz, do you feel that the flood came because God was punishing the people in this valley? K: I've heard that! A: Do you believe that? K: Oh, I don't know what to think. I don't know what to think. Now, you know Mr. Luke, and he is a friend of mine, and he kind of thought so. A: Well, I've heard other people say that though. K: Did they? Yes, Yes. I tried to keep myself up and not get nervous about it and I think that was a good way for me to do. I always felt I wasn't alone. God was with us, I am sure he was. A: Do you feel like the dam should be rebuilt? K: Well, they are fighting it all the time. I've heard a lot of men that work for the dam all left and got different jobs. Is that true? See, I really don't know, people say, too, that if they would ever rebuild it would happen again. A: Would you be afraid to live here if they rebuilt the dam? K: It all depends of Frank and Ruth, you know what I mean? A: Do you feel like they could build a dam that would not break?
MIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENNUMMUNIIMMENUMMUNIMMENUMMEN KRIZ -10- K: Oh, dear. Everybody says no. If they fix the dam, well, how different would they fix it? They fixed it so that it would be all right all the time, but they didn't so this happened and it might happen again. That man's got to be a pretty bright smart man if he fixes it so we wouldn't have a flood again. Don't you think I am right, sir? I really do. Of course, I am one though what I hear I keep to myself. I think it is the best way to do. Then you don't get in trouble. Is that what they all thought too? A: Now, is there anything else you would like to say Mrs. Kriz before we end the interview? Can you think of anything else? K: Well, no. I told you how wonderful the Petersons were to us, you know. And nothing of mine was gone but the bathroom rug, and that was all not another thing and I couldn't believe it. A: Well, I think we will end the interview then and I appreciate the time that you were willing to give. K: That was fine, wish I could do more. Did I do all right? A: Oh, yes. You did fine. Thank you, Mrs. Kriz.