Blanche and Bertha Farrell
There was a small creek called Muddy Run which ran through Niagara Falls, Ontario from west to east on its way to the whirlpool area of the Niagara Gorge. The stream crossed Victoria Avenue at Valley Way. It began at a marshland which was west of what is now Drummond Road and its boundaries were Lundy's Lane on the south and the Queen Elizabeth Highway on the west. West of Erie Avenue, the creek would enter a large sewer which was thirty inches wide and four feet high. This ran east, passing under Erie Avenue and under several hotels and businesses, then it made a sharp turn and continued north under Bridge Street. It emerged at an open stream about a quarter of a mile from its inlet. There were, of course, problems as the water caused flooding in homes and businesses, but people would use this spring-fed water for ice and the Buckleys of Erie Avenue would provide a wonderful skating rink for the public. The water was actually clear, and not as its name suggests, muddy.
Muddy Run was enclosed by a trunk sewer in 1925. This is the current Valley Way. It now runs underground and empties into the Niagara River at the gorge near Buttrey Street.
Muddy Run in Niagara Falls, Ontario
The story of the Farrell sisters from the Welland Tribune varies from the one which David Young provides in Historical Facts and Thrilling Incidents of the Niagara Frontier. On January 22, 1887, the creek was beginning to rise due to a thaw. Blanche and Bertha Farrell were playing outside. Blanche was 10 and Bertha was 4 [listed as 6 in the Welland Tribune]. Little Bertha was seated on a sleigh near the Buckley's ice rink when it suddenly slid into the water. Blanche jumped in to save her sister and the two of them were swept into the sewer. The current was running at about fifteen miles per hour. A little girl by the name of Maggie Rose gave a blood curdling scream which attracted a crowd. The Welland Tribune said that George H. Buckley spread the news. The crowd which included: Mr. Buckley, George Wright, R.P. Skinner and T.K. Wynn reached the end of the tunnel as Bertha shot out underneath the water, covered by a piece of wood. Mr. William Briggs plunged in to rescue her. Fifteen seconds later, Blanche came floating out. Adam Dennis was able to grab her about 30 feet from the mouth of the sewer. [The Welland paper claims that Briggs saved Blanche and Dennis saved Bertha]. Both of the girls appeared to be lifeless and their skin was blue. The outcome looked bleak. Neither of the girls was breathing and no heartbeat was discernable. The crowd tried to recusitate them. David Young writes that they were carried to the nearby office of Doctors Oliver and Sayers where they were brought back to conciousness. The Welland Tribune offers the more plausible explanation that Wright ran to get the doctors who tended to the girls in the Grand Trunk bunkhouse. Their father, a Grand Trunk employee was summoned and he rushed to the bunkhouse. Miraculously, the girls escaped with only bruises.
Article from The Buffalo Express
Mr Farrell posted a letter in the Welland Tribune to the citizens of Niagara Falls, Ontario.
To the citizens of Niagara Falls Ontario
On behalf of Mrs. Farrell, myself and family, I desire to tender our sincere and grateful acknowledgment to the gentlemen whose forethought and prompt action were, under Divine Providence, instrumental in saving the lives of our dear children, Blanche and Bertha, from such a terrible death on last Saturday evening. Our gratitude is especially due to Drs. Oliver and Sayers for their able exertions and kindly solicitude for the little sufferers while laboring to resuscitate them, and restore them to us once more full of life and health. I desire also to return our warmest thanks to the many friends and, who manifested their interest in the welfare of the little ones after their miraculous escape from such a horrible death as that which, for a time seemed to be their inevitable fate.
Thomas Farrell.