Flood waters couldn’t stop this exhibitor
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By KENDACE BORRY
HARRISBURG - In the
draft horse competition,
there was one exhibitor
whose horses came close to
not making it to the com
petition this year or any year
in the future, for that matter,
for they were involved in the
flood waters that invaded
Cambria County this past
Summer.
Harry J. Wright, Sum
merhill, who showed the
reserve champion Per
cheron stallion and the first
place two year old mare in -
this year’s Farm Show,
related how the floodwaters
covered his 26 acre farm
located 16 miles east of
Johnstown.
He spoke of the little creek
located on the side of the hill
at the edge of his form. On
the night preceding the
flood, he said, as usual he
brought the eight horses into
the stable to be fed. But,
because of the heavy rain, he
didn’t Jet them out into the
pasture right away. But
finally about 10:30'p.m., he
put all but one of them back
on the hill for the night. One
mare stayed in the barn.
He added that the Collie
dog tied by the stable barked
furiously as he went by, but
he couldn’t figure out why
because nothing seemed
wrong. His. Dalmation,
which was afraid of the
thunder, stuck close by his
side, and followed him into
the house. Because of its
fear, he put it into the
basement before he went to
bed.
Awakened around 5:30
a.m., he was amazed to see
water surrounding the house
and covering most of the
farm’s lower lying area.
Quickly checking the
basement, he found the
Dalmation huddled on the
top step of the cellerway,
standing in about four inches
of water. The Collie outside
had drowned.
In the stable the mare left
inside was standing in water
halfway up her neck. Wright
noted that if the water sould
have been one foot higher,
the horse would not have
been able to iAirvive. When
he and his sons could get into
the stable to rescue her, the
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water was still up to her
stomach, and the mare was
too terrified to move.
Total losses of equipment
and damages of his
property, Wright estimates
at between $35,000 and
$40,000. His new 1977 cattle
truck was completely
submerged as was his 1974
model pickup truck. A
camping trailer was floating
in the yard for awhile but a
fence kept it from being
swept away. Extensive
damage was done in his
butchering shop as well as in
his basement, where among
other things, a freezer with a
fresh side of beef in it, was
upset. Wright also owns two
Weber wagons which were
damaged by the high waters.
Wright has been in the
Percheron business for
about six years, mainly
because he enjoys showing
the animals. The 63-year
flood veteran was raised on a
farm that had Percheron
horses and he uses his
animals for showing,
parades, as well as work on
the farm including hay
making and manure hauling.
He is the only draft horse
exhibitor from Cambria
County at the Farm Show
and he wishes that the
Cambria County Fair would
reinstate the draft horse
competition in its program.
“There’s just something
about draft horses that no
other horses have,” he ex
plained. “People just love to
watch them, whether they’re
standing still or moving. I
think something is missing
Lancaster Fannins, Saturday, January 14,1974
i «arry J. Wright, Summerhill, shows his two year
old mare, Commander’s Hanna, which placed first
in her class.
in not including them in the
fair.”
Besides being in show
competition, Wright has also
had the distinction of having
a team nf his Percherons
pull the Pa. Bicentennial
Wagon at the Cambria
County Fair in 1976.
Already looking forward to
next year’s competition at
the Farm Show, Wright
spoke about bringing more
horses next year and en
tering more classes. “I’ve
got a young stallion that is
even better than this one,”
he added. “I’m anxious to
see what he will do.”
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