TETON ORAL HISTORY PROGRAM ......car, my mom and dad and my little brothers and sisters and my...

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TETON ORAL HISTORY PROGRAM

Ricks College Idaho State Historical Society

History Department, Utah State University

TETON DAM DISASTER

Sharyn Niederer

Interviewed by

Christina Sorensen

August 9, 1977

Project made possible by funds from the

W.K. Kellog Foundation Idaho State Legislature through the Idaho State Historical Society and

National Endowment for the Humanities


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

N l l e , I, (' 1Thri (arne, please print) (interviewer, 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 Histor-ical Society at Boise, Idaho, the full rights and use of this information.

ChrtiPtLnri C-f,71Anin Interviewer's Signature

t . I crn Date

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UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY & RTCKS 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 pur-pose 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 in-terviewer. 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 O. 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 of the historical and scholarly value of this information, I, ,,Sk147,"0, 1H s,r1E i ri , 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.

c/? L / ntervie'ee s Signature

7/7 7 Date


ORAL HISTORY

INTERVIEWEE: Sharyn Niederer

INTERVIEWER: Christina Sorensen

DATE: August 9, 1977

TETON DAM DISASTER

S: Sharyn, would you spell your name, please?

N: Sharyn Niederer.

S: Sharyn, where were you born?

N: Logan, Utah.

S: How old are you?

N: Twenty-three.

S: Do you have a family?

N: No, just my husband and I.

S: At the time of the flood, what your address here in Rexburg?

N: 126 North Center.

S; What is your address now?

N: The same.

S: Prior to the construction of the dam, were you living in this area? If so,

were you in favor of the construction of the dam, or opposed to it?

N; We were living in the area and I had no thoughts about tt, I: didn't pay that

much attention to it.

S: What do you do for a living?

N: I am a secretary.

S: Did you own your own home prior to the flood?

N; We had just bought it about a year before.


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2

S: Now, looking back to that day, do you recall where you were and what you were

doing when you first heard that the dam was breaking? What was your initial

reaction to that news?

N: We got up that Saturday morning and we went fishing. It was the first time in

many weeks that my husband and I had had a day out together like that. So we

spent the whole day fishing in DuBois and we were coming home that evening

at about five or six o'clock along the Red Road, coming through Salem. When

we got to Salem, there was water across the road and a bunch of cars stopped.

We stopped our pick up and went wading through the water and went up to where all

the people were gathered and said, "Well, what is happening?" Someone said,

"The Teton Dam has broken."

I can remember my first thoughts were, all these people along the river,

some of them have got their basements wet, that is too bad. It was kind of an

adventure and we stood there kind of standing around. They said that the road

was out through Salem and so we stood around there for a while. Finally, I

said to my husband, "Well, let's go home. I have got things to do at home."

He satd, "Well, we can't get home." I said, "Let's go to the main highway

and go home." He says, "It is washed out. We can't" I didn't believe him, I

thought that he was crazy and he just tried to convince me that there was no way

to get home. I said, "Well, do you think that our home was hit?" He said,

"Yes, I do. It has kinda wiped out the whole town." He some way understood.

He couldn't convince me of it, but finally he did.

We decided we couldn't get home so we went to St. Anthony to stay with his

boss. When we got to St. Anthony, the boss's wife confirmed the whole story

of what had really happened. By then, I was really scared, wondering what

was really happening. Bill immediately went out on search and rescue with the

St. Anthony teams and I just stayed in the house with his boss''s wife and


watched t.v. I can remember thinking it was so ironic that Carol Burnette

was still on. The world was still continuing with silly comedies on t.v.

while there was a disaster. I was listening to the radio and the t.v. at the

same time so I wouldn't miss anything. My main concern was that my house is

still standing and just how bad Rexburg was. Then when I heard the missing

persons report on the radio, I' was really concerned about friends and

relatives.

All I can remember is being really nervous and upset. Finally, Bill

came home from search and rescue about midnight and I was really glad to have

him. We went to bed and I can remember that I didn't sleep at all that night

and I cried a couple of times during the night because it was scarey. We

didn't know what was really the matter and what was happening.

The next Sunday morning, we got up and Bill went back out on search and

rescue, I called my parents. in Rigby, I was able to get through, and they were

naturally relieved to hear from me, They came and got me. They had to go

around through Swan Valley and Driggs and Ashton into St. Anthony and get me

back all the way around. So went to their house and we were just kind of

waiting around listening to the radio trying to find out if they were letting

people into Rexburg. Then we heard an announcement on the radio that all of

Ricks College employees were supposed to meet at a special meeting. So late

that afternoon we came into Rexburg to this meeting. They lere at that meeting,

all of the faculty and staff, wearing muddy clothes and we had just barely came

into Rexburg and gone straight to the meeting so I hadn't seen my house and I

didn't really know what to expect. I sat there in that meeting for a little

while and people were asking me what happened in our case, at house, and I kept

saying I don't know. I' couldn't sit still I was so nervous and upset just

waiting to see what was wrong with my house that I finally just left the meeting.


NIEDERER 4

We drove down the street and I can remember just looking around the corner

as soon as we rounded the corner and my house was standing there and it

looked all right and how relieved I was. As soon as we got out of the car, the

neighbors came running over with tears in their eyes and they were happy to

see me and to see that everyone was alrioht.

I immediately went to the front door and opened the front door. My mom

and dad were with me and we just looked at it. It looked like everything had just

been turned, just like a big, giant egg beater had gone through there and the

mud was about two feet deep and water line was about six feet up on the wall.

I just looked at it and then everything just broke loose. I just cried and

cried and cried. I just kind of lost control. Just standing there looking

at everything crying and my mom and dad just stood there looking and nobody

really said anythin9 for a little while. Then immediately what I wanted to do

was to go and find my two little baby kittens, I had left them outside when we

went fishing. I couldn't find them anywhere. I never did find them. That

was what upset me the most right at first.

After that first initial shock was over, I never did really cry again

during the whole cleaning up and the whole real tragedy of it.

We loaded up some stuff and took it back to Ribgy and came back to Rexburg

again and got some more stuff. We just took it all and unloaded it in my

parent's back lawn and we cleaned it out with the hose and packed it away in

boxes until we knew what we were going to do.

Bill came to Rigby Sunday night, by the long way around. He told me

about his day at search and rescue. He had walked clear from St. Anthony to

Rexburg waist deep in water just to see what our house was like. I didn't

know at the time I came in the house, but he had come in and straightened a few

things up so that the whole shock wouldn't be quite so bad. When he came in,


NIEDERER 5

it was a lot worse then when I saw it. He had kind of straightened a few things

up. He told about how they had to go to deserted cars and all over looking

for bodies and he never did find anything. The next day, Monday, was Bill's

birthday but nobody even had time to mention it. We just all piled into the

car, my mom and dad and my little brothers and sisters and my grandma and

grandpa, and came down to clean up. Basically during the week of cleaning up,

the thing that stands out most in my mind is that I was in kind of a daze.

My little brothers and sisters would bring something to me and say, "What should

we do with this?" or "What should we do to take care of this?" And I couldn't

answer. I couldn't force myself to make simple, little teeny decisions. So

my mom kind of took over. I really appreciated that. She kind of took over

and told everybody what to do and what moved to make and how to do everything be-

cause I just could not do anything for myself and I don't really think I

helped that much. I was just too much in a daze.

I can remember Bill saying, "Let's take everything out of the top shelves

and clean everything out of the house." I would say, "No, we are going to be

back here in about a week. Let's just leave it here, we'll just be right back."

He said, "No, just in case, let's pull everything out of the house just like

we are moving out." I couldn't believe it, but we did.

What was interesting was how people helped. That is what really got

to me. All of our friends and neighbors, if they didn't come out and help

us shovel mud, they took loads of clothing and our dishes and washed them and

distributed them around our ward at home and washed them. Lots of people came

out and helped to shovel mud and wash our things. It was so amazing how they

helped. And, of course, what was amazing was how bus loads of people came in

and helped. We didn't require that much help at our house. We had it all

done and everything packed in boxes at my mother's house by the time the


NIEDERER 6

time the week was over. Then we didn't know what we were going to do with our

house. But we did have people come in and scrub it and then later, it was knocked

down. That was kind of ironic.

Then we spent the remainder of the week after either cleaning up and shovel-

ing the mud out of our house or I spent a lot of time waiting in the disaster

lines at the Fieldhouse. Going in time to get temporary housing, Red Cross, etc.

I was in such a daze and everyone was in such a daze I really didn't know what

we were supposed to do. I spent a lot of time in those lines. I can remember

one thing about down in the field house in those lines was that everybody just

running and hugging everybody else.z)They were go glad to see each other. There

wasn't really that much concern about the property loss, it was just mainly

everyone was so glad that everyone else was alive and fine and healthy. That

was what was the most important thing. It was so interesting to see everyone

wearing muddy clothes.

I can remember thinking during that time that we•went and stayed with mom

and the thing that did stand out the most during that_time was the fact -that Bill

and I's love had never been so great and so strong as during that time because

it seemed like that was all that was left was our love for each other. That

was all that counted. We still had each other although we had not much of

anything else. It was really,really neat during that period of time.

Finally, our main objective was to get a HUD trailer moved in and try to

find a place to set it. We were trying to get it put on our property and

there were some problems with that. Meanwhile, we were living with my mom

and dad. That was difficult, and yet we got along with them fine but it still

was difficult mixing two families. They were really good about it.

We had so many problems getting our HUD trailer moved in. That was really

a hassle getting that moved in because they set it one place on our lot,-got

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NIEDERER 7

it all settled in there and then decided that it couldn't stay there and they had

to move it somewhere else. We wanted to keep it on our property so we could have

it here and to work on our house and stuff. Finally, we got permission to

set it on the piece of property that runs right behind ours. So we sat it there.

It came in two months after the flood. In addition to that, was the main thing

was trying to decid what to do with our house. Some people said to knock it

down and other people said to fix it up. It was an old home and I didn't want

to knock it down very badly but really I could see that it wasn't worth fixing

up because it was so old. There were so many little cracks in it that we would

have never gotten all the stink out of it and the mud out of it. So that was a

major thing. Getting approval to finally knock it down, we had to call in

contractors and get their opinions and they all said that they thought it should

be knocked down so we turned in the demolition order and it was approved.

It was sad and also happy.

I can remember after the flood and I was living at my mom's and things

were temporarily settled down, when I would come out of my office at work up

at the college, I would think how bad Iwanted to just go get in my car and

come home to my little house and get busy. But it wasn't the case because my

car was gone, it had been washed down the street about a block and washed up

a tree with a dead pig under it. There was a great big dead bull in our back

yard, too. I can remember how badly I just wanted to come home to my little

house and have everything normal because I could stand up on the campus and

everything was fine and green and pretty on campus. But I would go home to

my mom's house and although it was my mother's house, I just felt like a

stranger there. For the first time in my married life there wasn't really

anything for me to do. I could help my mom, but she didn't need a whole lot

of help. She pretty well had her work done during the day while I was at work.


NIEDERER 8

So basically, I had nothing to do because everything was packed away. I

would come to our home and weed what was left of my garden and wait for

Bill to pick me up on his way to Rigby , but he was so often late from

work. He was really busy. He was an electrician so he was really busy

getting.power back to everybody. So he would come home late at night to my

parent's house. Those times were just really lonely, even though we were

staying with them, just really lonely; and I noticed one things about it, I

was so insecure, I didn't go anywhere with anybody. I had to do a lot of

business, going around tying up loose ends and everything, I always had

someone with me because I was so insecure. I had to be with someone all

of the time.

Well, finally, we got moved into our HUD trailer and that first day in our

HUD trailer I just felt like a new bride. I went and bought groceries and

got to cook supper and just felt just like a new little bride. That was really

fun and exciting finally settling into having my own little house again. We

had a terrible time getting our HUD trailer and all the utilities hooked up

to, but I really thought that HUD did a really good job

hey were there to

repair anything that was broken, although it was a real hassle. I often thought

that those trailers were awfully uncomfortable and teeny but still I don't know

what we would have done without it. That would have been horrible. It was

really nice to have a convenient trailer house. About the first part of September

after we had been in our little HUD trailer about a month, they Army came

and knocked down our little house. That really shattered me to see that big old

bulldozer knock my house down just like it was nothing. You know, that was

my little home to me and there they were just knocking it down and that really

upset me and I cried over that for quite a while. But then there was that big

hole in the ground and that was just really strange. Then we went through


NIEDERER

9

the big hassle of deciding on contractors and who to build our house and just

getting everything done there. That is quite a job in itself, just getting a

house built and getting all the sub-contractors pulled together.

S: Did you have, I know that there has been talk about contractors and sub-con-

tractors who came into town and took advantage of people because of the situation,

did you have any experiences with this type of things, or did you have good

luck?

N: No, we didn't because we had a personal friend build it and he is a very good

carpenter and we knew him personally. It is someone that Bill grew up with,

so we didn't even have that problem at all.

S: Have you heard of cases of that happening?

N: I know of some specific cases, A lady in our ward, a widow, that really aot

soaked. I felt so bad for her. I feel like in our case, when we lost a whole

lot, but we were just starting out in our married life together., We had been

married four years but still we hadn't accumulated a lot of treasures and things.

I mostly felt sorry for the older people who lost their real treasures of life

and it was so hard on them, I mean a new house means nothing to them. We really

did come out pretty good because of the flood. It put us years ahead because we

had an old home completely furnished with old, used furniture./But it was fun

getting our little home put together and scrounging up furniture and we are

remodeling it and doing all kinds of cute little things to it. c Now I am sitting

in a brand new home with brand new furniture, everything is brand new in it,

That is fine but I didn't earn any of it. Now I have found that it puts a

different relationship between us as flood victims and people who weren't.

Because they can see now is people come into a home and say, "Oh, aren't you

glad that the flood has happened? Aren't you lucky?" And that is all they

can see and people don't realize the valuable things, the wedding pictures,


and the treasures we lost and find this brand new furnitures and it is just like

I feel like a stranger here almost. It is hard to explain but I find that it has

put kind of a strain on some of our relationships with some of our friends who

weren't in the flood because they feel like we have got a lot of money now.

It is almost like they don't want to associate with us anymore because they are

afraid that we are too good for them with our new house and our money, Granted,

we have our disaster money, but that is all it is is money:)/

S; Qf the things that you lost, Sharyn, the kind of things you are mentioning are

irreplaceable, was there any one thing that really was the hardest for you to

lose?

N; What upset me, I can remember, most was losing my two kittens. That really upset

me because I could just picture what they would have done:when that flood came

in. I had left them outside. But too, it was awfully hard to through my sewing

machine away and my piano was really hard. When I came in the house after the

flood and saw my piano with mud covering the keys and inside the hammers and

everything and the wood swollen and warped, that was really hard to take. I

wouldn't let them throw it away. We called in a piano tuner to see if thought

that maybe it could be saved. At first, he thought it could and that really

excited me, Then later, he said that it was just too badly warped and couldn't

be saved and so I went with my mom and dad several weeks after the flood, out to

the junk yard to throw it away. We just pushed it out of the back of the

pickup and it rolled down the hill. I had nightmares over that for a long time.

That really choked me up bad and I do have a new piano to replace it now, an

even better piano. But that still doesn't take the fact that that was my first

piano, I had bought it with my life savings. I had a lot of sentimental

attachment to it.


NitUtKLK

It was hard to lose gifts that people had given us, like I had a jewelry

box from Vietnam and our scrapbooks, wedding book and pictures. I don't feel

like it right to go out and use some of my claim money to buy myself little

things like gtfts.

S: Sharyn, what did you think of the various agencies that helped in the recovery

process, such as the Red Cross, the L.D.S. Church and different ones? Did you

think that they were effective?

N: I thought that it was totally amazing the way the US government took care of their

disaster victims. The government can involve a lot of red tape and be disgusting

at some times, but just the fact that the Red Cross offered so many things, like

immediate clothing and even if people lost their glasses-, immediate eye glass

perscriptions, or furniture. We asked for gas money and a little bit of food

money. We weren't living on our own. A lot of people were living here in Rexburg

in apartments and college housing. We asked for food money to help my mother

out. She was taking on some extra by feeding us. I thought that it was really

amazing the way they would come in and take care of the flood victims.

The church was, of course, teaching us to be self sufficient and try not

to rely on the government. The church had a tremendous program in itself. We

went up and got some clothes. We were mostly hurting for shoes, we didn't have

a single pair of shoes. We went up to get shoes or groceries from the church. Of

course, the way the church came in the bus loads and helped the town clean up was

really amazing in itself, It really made me proud to hear government offidials

say that this L.D.S, community had not let the flood get them down and that they

had responded and picked up themselves and got right busy and pitched in and

cleaned up and saved a lot of time that other disaster victims in other areas

hadn't been able to do. The government still sent in highly paid people to

clean up and there was nothing left to clean up but they still had to be in here


--NIEDERER 12

anyway. There was a lot of red tape and everything, but I still thought basically

it was really good the way that the church and the American government took

care of the people,

S: During the time of the flood on to the next few months,, at different times you

mentioned your things that upset you, but did you ever feel during this time

just totally hopeless or numb?

N; I wouldn't say totally hopeless. A lot of times felt like, "What is the use?"

or "Where can we go now?" We were just really caught with what should we do with

the house and should we moved clear out of the countv? It crossed our mind but

we basically thought like we should stay and help build up Rexburg again. We

wanted to leave town just to live out in the country, we don't enjoy living in

town. Neither one of us do. But we felt kind - of an obligation to put a home back

here on this lot and just to kind of help build up Rexburg. That is what we

wanted to do and we felt good about it. We never did really feel totally desparied

because I would say that just belonging to the church_ and going to church and

being with the rest of the people kept our morale up.

S: Now have you felt about the recovery that Rexburg has made? What sort of good

things have you seen happen to Rexburg since the flood and maybe what bad things

do you think have taken place?

N: It is really amazing how fast it has recovered. I mean, in a year from the

flood, you can hardly tell a flood had been through here. It is just amazing the

way that the people just didn't feel sorry for themselves and just sit around

in the mud. They got busy and cleaned it up. I think that is totally amazing.

But now Rexburg is, kind of like what I said about ourselves, Rexburg is kind

of a unique place now, People think, "Oh, those people in Rexburg are loaded

with money now," People from Idaho Falls, there are so many instances where they

will say, "Oh yeah, those Rexburg people and their money." It has kind of put


Rexbura in a different light. A light of being a model town for getting cleaned

up and also a light of being selfish and money crazy. I don't like that name.

Sometimes it is emharassing to say that I am a flood victim. it is kind of like

they were quick to forget the disaster because it was such a terrible destruction

to drive through the town and see the terrible destruction it was bad. But

people are quick to forget that and all they see are these lucky flood victims

in their new homes. I have quite strong feelings about that, It is hard to

explain to somebody that we are lucky in some ways in that it was a good experience

to see the way that people can hold together and clean up and stick together and

be each other's friends. It was a good experience in that. But it was also

a nightmare experience and not quick to forget.

S: Sharyn, you had mentioned how you felt the church,had helped you,keep your

spirits up during this time, did you or any of- your family members have any

specific or just generally uplifting or spiritual experiences during the months

of recovery from the flood?

N: I can't think of anything really specifically uplifting, Mainly, the good feeling

was just getting together, our ward would call a meeting every night and give

encouragement and instructions. I really got to where I looked forward to those.

Especially, I liked going to church on Sundays. I never appreciated church like

that before. Oust being with them again, and seeing that/everyone was all right.

The fact that President Kimball came was a tremendous experience and that he would

care enough to drop everything and to come to give his people counsel and

encouragement. I thought that was really great.

S; Without mentioning any names, do you know of any people who filed fraudulent

claims with the government?

N; No, I don't. That was a real struggle, a personal struggle. We felt like we

lost mainly old things, second hand things out of second hand stores. The only

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14

way we could replace them was with brand new things, That was a real struggle

with myself, with honesty, whether to claim something or not and the full value

of ft.. That is what we were told to do, so we did. I know a lot of people

didn't feel good about doing it, but later they could see the wisdom of it

because you can't go out and buy something second hand. But I personally don't

know of anyone that did that.

S; There has been some talk about the cause of the flood'and many people here think

that it was a manmade disaster, but some people have expressed the idea that

it was divine retribution for the people's sins. How do you feel about that?

N: Well, I don't believe that Heavenly Father works that way. I believe that it

was stayed to such a good day on noon on Saturday instead of in the middle of

the night. But T believe also, going by what I have heard, in the fact that it

couldn't happen to a better people, the way that they responded and got busy

and cleaned it up. I don't believe in somethinc being done like that for

punishment. I believe It could be a test, a test to see how well we could respond

and a test of our spirituality or whether the people would get bitter and say

God was punishing them or not. I don't think God punishes people like that.

He may test them. I believe that the dam was poorly built. I have read up on

it quite 4 bit, It was poorly built, If a poorly built dam was to be built

somewhere, T am proud of the way Rexburg responded to that, I think that Rexburg

handled it really well It was a test for the church welfare system and I

think that they handled it real well,

S; I realize that this is just your personal opinion, but as you watched your

neighbors and different people in the community recovering from the flood,

do you think there has been any difference in the reaction of people to it

as far as bouncing back as opposed to bitterness between L.D.S. and non-L.D.S,

of between active members of the church and inactive, or do you think that isn't

a dividing line?

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N. One set of our neighbors, we were real disappointed in them. Before the flood

we were pretty good friends with them, we thought that they were really kind

people. We saw them get real selfish and think only of themselves and we had some

trouble with,them over boundaries and property and stuff like that. I was real

disappointed in them. But basically it has been about the same, I see no real

division between the religious and the non-religious or anything like that.

When we got together at Relief Society to compare stores, or feelings, I think

the main reason we do is to see if we are thinking the same. I will have these

feelings about the flood or about things and I like to go talk to other ladies

and see if they feel the same way and sure enough they do, We are all basically

the same, there is some bitterness and some badness over the things you lost,

but basically people aren't going to let them_get them down, They just do they

best they can because they have still got their loved ones and that is what

is important.

S: Now that there is talk about the dam being rebuilt, are you in favor of it?

If you are, are you in favor of it being built in the same location?

Pi; I think that it should be rebuilt because it was built for the purpose of irrigation

and the farmers need that. The farmers are what America needs most, I think.

So, if it is needed, I think that it should be rebuilt. But I think that it should

be done a little bit more carefully. Evidently, that particular spot isn't

that good geologically. I would certainly hope that they wouldn't let the U.S.

Qoyernment build it, not the Bureau of Reclamation, I would say let someone

Private build it and carefully. I read on the things that they didn't do,

the safety measures they didn't take in building that dam and it is pretty

disgusting. But as far as needing the dam, that dam should be built. A lot

of people that I have heard talk say if it is rebuilt they will moved out.

My feeling is that is something is going to happen, it is going to happen.


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my farmland. I still kept a small acreage and some livestock.

A: Do you do that now?

N: No.

A: How long have you lived in this area?

N: About 60 years.

A: Did you own your own home and your own livestock operation before the

flood? You weren't renting or leasing any property or your home were you?

N: We owned it.

A: Mr. Nyborg, would you mind explaining your feelings about the construction

of the Teton Dam. Did you support it or oppose it?

N: I was neutral. It had some advantages and some disadvantages. No, I

didn't oppose it. I felt maybe it was a benefit to the country, although

it was of some disadvantage to me.

A: Where did you live from the Teton River and from the mouth of the Teton

Canyon?

N: Before we sold it, some of the farmlands, the river went through out

property.

The river bridge was on our property.

A: You were near the mouth of the canyon?

N: Yes, the canyon ran through our property. The river ran through ours and

Binghams.

A: How far would you say your house was from the river/

N: About three city blocks.

A: About three city blocks from the river?

N: That's as near as I can get it?

A: Did you or Mrs. Nyborg have a premonition of the Teton Disaster?

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You could move to the top of a hill and windstorm could wipe you out. The

laws of nature are such that no matter where you are living that something

could wipe you out anytime. So, I think that it should be rebuilt it if is

needed for irrigation.

S: As you look back over the last year and the experiences that you have had, in

what ways do you think this has changed, perhaps, or effected your attitudes

or values or beliefs or maybe even your personality?

N; It was a tremendousorowino experience. That feeling deep down inside of real

happiness and peace with the world and just feeling genuinely happy was

gone for a whole year. It has been a tremendous responsiblity and I feel like

that way maybe my personality isn't quite as crazy, happy-go-lucky as I used to

be. But I have felt like I have really grown up a lot and learned what material

wealth is and it's priority in life.

It was so amazing, relatives from California would send Bill and I money.

They really cared and that was what was most important to me. It didn't bother

me real bad to see all my stuff gone. It was the way that people cared, the way

the people got together and helped us. People sent us money and were always

inquiring as to how we were doing. Relatives that we hadn't even heard from were

inquiring how we were doing. I found out that you can go on living without

material things. Of course, you need your basics, but you can still go on living

just if you have got each other, that was the main thing tome, because when

you die, it is gone anyway and you can't take anything with you. So that is what

it taught me is that it isn't the end of everything when you have lost everything.

To me? everything would be if I lost Bill or my own life. Well, not my own

life, but if I lost Bill. That is the big lesson it taught me. I felt like it

taught me a lot about human nature and about people. It really taught me a lot

about that, the human nature of banding together in time of need. But also

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about the human nature of selfishness and greed and what that can do to people

and of struggling with yourself to be honest on your claim to the government

It was really just a tremendous growing experience. Something that I am glad

I was able to participate in.

S: I don't have any more specificquestions, is there anything else that you would

like to say at this point, or do you have any other feelings that you would like

to express?

N: I don't think so. I'll probably think of some later.

TETON ORAL HISTORY PROGRAM ......car, my mom and dad and my little brothers and sisters and my...

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