Story of Soquee Flood of 1949

Submitted by: Florence Wikle

In June, 1949 the paradise that five very happy children enjoyed beyond comprehension was destroyed.

The winter of 1948 had been extremely rainy. This continued into the month of June of 1949. As the ground became more and more saturated with water there was nowhere for it to go but into the streams. Located in the Batesville community was a dam used by the Wikle family for a source of electrical power for the family houses and businesses. This dam was located on Raper Creek which flowed in into the Soque River. There was also another dam located on the Ernest Nash property which was located on Shoal Creek, which ran into the Soque River, below the dam which belonged to the Wikle family.

I remember it had rained almost continuously for about two weeks, most of the time in torrential downpours. I remember my mother washing our clothes and then having to hang them on the porch and all over the house rather than hanging them outside to dry. I am sure at this point in her life she must have prayed every night for it to stop raining so she could get us five kids out of the house and out from under her feet. My mother was not the only one feeling frustrated, we kids needed and wanted to get outside. We were so used to playing in our beautiful woods and in the gorgeous Soque River just being inside was sheer torture. For a kid, this home and its surroundings was sheer paradise. Over the years the land around our house had flooded leaving beautiful sand all along the river, just perfect to take a running jump down the bank and into the Soque River. It was also the perfect place to do our night fishing with Mr. Otto Fricks. My brother, Willard and I would go with Mr. Fricks, sit on that lovely sand, set out lines, lean back and hope to catch some kind of fish, we were not particular about the kind of fish we caught since we never kept the fish, just threw them back.

Our father operated what was known as the lower plant. It was one of two power plants used to generate power for Habersham Mills and the village. As you came down the narrow road that led to the plant and our house, you first came to the lower dam, below the dam was located the power plant and then beyond that our house, barn, etc. The charm of this place was our swimming hole which was located behind the plant. It was just at the bottom of the dam on the shoals and went from very shallow to about six feet deep. Perfect for our ages! We also had a beach where you could build sand castles and have all manner of fun. This was sort of like living in a resort with something to do every season. In the summer we had the river and all the fun you could possibly have there and the glorious woods and hills to play in the winter and fall. I also think one of the nicest things about living so close to the river was the sound of the Soque cascading over the dam and onto the rocks. This is the sound that will always remind me of my childhood and is responsible for my home I live in today, being located on Hazel Creek in Demorest where I hear this delightful sound every day.

The Soque is a gorgeous river which most of the time is very placid except in the areas where there are mild shoals, but on this particular June night it was running strong and wild. We had gone out during the day to watch the water as it rushed over the dam. It was very exciting to watch, never thinking in a million years what lay ahead of us.

That morning around two o’clock we heard a great commotion, my father, along with several men from the village came into the house and began getting us out of our beds and out of the house as quickly as possible. We all had on our pajamas and I remember whoever took me out put a quilt over me to keep off the rain. As we started out the water was rising fast. The thing I remember the most about that night was the fact that when we had been flooded before, which was two times, the water had never been so rushing and wild. My parents had time to remove or put our furniture on blocks and save the furniture before, but this time it was very different, as I have state, the water was coming up so fast that I knew this time it was much, much more serious than the other two times we were flooded.

I did not find out until the next morning what had actually happened. My mother came by the C. Moss house, where I was staying, and told us the dam at the Wikle property on Raper creek and broken due to debris and the over abundance of water, which in turn caused the dam at the Nash property to break and flow into the Soque creating havoc on our home and the power plants. My mother did not want us to see what was going on at the house, but she finally relented and let us go with her to the house. It was a real shock. I remember standing up on the hill above the house and looking down on the house and all I could see was a part of the roof. My father was going to build some chicken houses out in the pasture and had lumber stacked up drying for that purpose. This lumber was floating everywhere and Boots and Reeves Hill were swimming around the house trying to save anything that was salvageable from livestock to household items. Nothing much was salvaged except my mother’s sewing machine and one chair from our dining room suite. All our clothes, toys, furniture was gone. To us, was the horrible realization that we would never again get to live in our paradise. We were all absolutely devastated. It was a long, long time before I could go back and look at what was once a child’s very large playground, but go I did. Today even though our modest little cottage no longer exists, I still have those very wonderful memories that do not fade nor can anyone take away from me and the beautiful Soque flows as beautifully as ever.

A remembrance by: Florence Wikle

Soque River Drawings

Submitted by: Asher Samsel (10 years old)

"Got Ya!"

"This is a picture of some fisherman fishing at the Soque River. He cast next to a rock and reeled in a 3-pound trout."

"Getting Ready"

"This is a picture of someone getting ready to go fishing. I used colored pencils in this picture. My dad is a fishing writer, and he gave me advice about how to make the fishing equipment look."

"Maybe"

"This is a picture of a fly fisherman, and he's trying to catch a huge rainbow trout that he saw earlier in the day. Maybe he will, maybe he won't. Let's hope he will."

"There's One"

"This is a picture of my dad holding a rainbow trout. My dad makes baits out of feathers and wool, and he caught this fish on a bait that he made with the wool of our dog."

"In Search of the Soquee" - Story

Submitted by: E. Lane Gresham

Part One

I fell head over heels on Valentine’s Day ­- right over the edge of Tray Mountain and into the wilderness. It all started innocently enough with a simple query:  “where does the Soquee River begin?” Researching an article about The Soquee River for the Hello Habersham magazine, I wondered if there was a photo of the source of the river that streams through Habersham County.

After several exchanges with Duncan Hughes at the Soquee River Watershed Association, I realized there were conflicting opinions as to the definitive source of the beloved waterway. There are two forks of the upper Soquee - a right and a left. Several prongs feed into those forks and several theories exist about the specific location. That didn’t satisfy me - my journalistic integrity was on the line. I couldn’t take a photo of just any spot - it had to be the spot.

Duncan kindly offered to check with friends at the Georgia Dept. of Natural Resources and Lee Keefer, fisheries biologist at the Lake Burton Hatchery agreed to help us pinpoint the source. A flurry of e-mails ensued, consensus was reached and an expedition was mounted. The plan was to seek out the middle prong of the left fork as this was determined to be the highest elevation source of water. The topographical maps show the middle prong emerging from the side of Tray Mountain deep in the Chattahoochee National Forest.

Duncan extended an invitation to SRWA’s board members to join the quest and a diverse group of eight would-be explorers gathered early on Valentine’s Day 2008. The most direct route was not necessarily going to be the easiest hike - we had to hike up Tray Mountain to get to the closest jumping off point. The temperature was a frigid 25 degrees but the day dawned clear and sunny. Mother Nature put on her winter finery for us - a light snow fell the night before and the trees glittered with frozen dew and ice. After bumping up six miles on a rough gravel road, we reached the end of the line as far as vehicles go. Tumbling out of the car and slipping on a backpack filled with the all-important camera, tripod and a water bottle, I was eager to attack the just over one half-mile journey to the top of the world.

Our friend from the DNR, Lee and his colleague, Leon Brotherton came prepared. As we stood shivering in the early morning sunlight, Leon asked: “Are there any medical conditions we should know about?” He then pulled a first aid pack out of the truck; I suddenly realized this trek was not going to be a simple hike. I took a big mental gulp and started off.

Duncan brought along his nimble 8-year-old daughter, Elizabeth and she led the charge up the zigzagging trail heading to the top of peak. The higher elevation made the hike an unexpected challenge. At 4,400 feet, Tray Mountain is the seventh highest mountain in the state. Chugging through the thin air quickly reminded me that my winter hiatus from exercise was going to hinder my efforts to get anywhere in a hurry. I slowed my pace and looked around in wonder - the stark beauty of the winter forest surrounded me. Pondering the parallels of the journey that day with the journey we call life, I felt the stress slip away and I was able to breathe - not deeply, mind you but in a figurative sense. Mental breaths, deep, cleansing mental breaths. The path continued ever upward until the trees opened up at the summit and the blue sky beckoned us to cast our eyes to the 360 degree view of Northeast Georgia.

The satisfaction of reaching the top was short-lived as our energetic DNR experts said it was time to take the next step and this time we would be flying blind. A short trail protected by a canopy of twisted mountain laurel summoned us down the aisle of nature’s cathedral. The flattened evergreen leaves were like hands folded in prayer = a reminder that prayer would be a prudent idea before taking the leap into the uncharted dense forest heading straight down.

Lee and Leon didn’t seem apprehensive at all - they had done this all before. However, I don’t think they counted on dealing with an unprepared and naive reporter doggedly pursuing a photo opportunity. They were good sports about it all and were determined to keep us safe. I cautiously peered over the edge of the cliff and looked down.

Would this intrepid group of river lovers find the water? Would they make it back in time for parent pick-up? Watch for Part Two in an upcoming edition.

In search of the Soquee-Part Two

"Brown Trout" - Fish Art

Submitted by: Sarah Samsel

This picture is made of: hydrangea, red pepper, cinnamon, turmeric, yarrow, bark, money plant, aucuba, cosmos, maple, onion, viola, seaweed, cotton, gray poplar, creeping raspberry and poinsettia.  

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My thoughts: Of the three kinds of trout that are prevalent in the Southeast, the brown trout is Dad’s favorite. He believes fooling them is more of a game, which makes each one caught more of a prize. He also likes the way they look and says he likes their personality, although I’m not sure exactly what that means.

Although I’m Jeff Samsel’s daughter, I don’t really get into fishing. However, trout are probably my very favorite thing to make from pressed flowers. I enjoy the process of finding leaves and petals that match the colors of the fish and then figuring out how to blend those colors together. The only non-botanical thing in this picture is my signature. The rest of the black lines are made from strands of seaweed. 

"Soquee Rainbow" - Fish Art

Submitted by: Sarah Samsel

This picture is made of: hydrangea, cinnamon, orange peel, turmeric, yarrow, cornsilk, grass, seaweed, mulberry, money plant, cotton, bloody dock, poinsettia, aucuba, birch, basil and hornet's nest.

My Thoughts: I had no expectation of winning, but I figured that it was still worth entering a picture for the chance of it being chosen as the 2014 Hello Habersham magazine cover. I had complicated ideas about what sort of picture I might enter until my mom suggested that I simply make a fish. It would fit the local theme of the contest since the fish could be a rainbow trout. 

Rainbow trout live in the Soquee River—the only river that begins and ends in Habersham County. I also liked the idea because if I won I’d have a fish on the cover of a magazine, like my dad does. Dad is a freelance fishing writer and photographer so he’s had lots of (non-pressed-flower) fish on the covers of magazines. So I began snipping and gluing trout-colored leaves.

John Kollock was a well known and loved local artist. He was dedicated to preserving our region’s history through his many watercolor paintings. Mr. Kollock and his wife Nancy Kollock were (she still is) extremely supportive of my business in many ways. One wonderful thing that Mr. Kollock did was welcome me to show him whatever pictures I was having problems with or simply wanted his opinion on. I wanted to show him my trout before I entered it into the contest. He really, really wanted it to win. That was my last picture that I ever showed him.

When news reached me that I’d won the contest I could hardly believe it! It was such exciting news on such a very hard day—the day that Mr. Kollock passed away. I don’t know if Mr. Kollock was well enough to understand the news but Mrs. Kollock said that she thinks that she saw a small smile when she told him.

Usually Soque is spelled with one “e” but Mr. Kollock insisted that it should be spelled with two so I did so in honor of him. I wasn’t aware that he’d resolved that Soquee should be spelled that way when I first titled the picture, so in the magazine it just has one “e” but now I use two J.

"Me and the Soque" - A Story

Submitted by:  Brooks Garcia

My story began a long time ago when I was a young man and the Soquee did not have the notoriety it has today. I was a camp counselor at Camp Cherokee for boys on Lake Burton in the early 80s.  At the time, there was a camper whose grandmother own land at the end of Goshen Valley. Her name was Hellen Carmack. The ‘mighty’ Soquee was but a small stream that came off the mountain way back on her property. We would take the boys ‘over nighting’ there.  We swam in the icy cold stream and I taught the boys to fish with a crude line and pole using wood roaches as bait and a dog hobble twig as a bobber. We dined on fresh trout and marveled at the fox fire in the woods at night. That place touched my soul in a way I have never forgotten so much so I have returned 30 years later, bought land and plan to live out my days here in the mountains. It seems a bit of a surprise but not so much to me that my land has two small streams that feed into to Lake Habersham and into the Soquee. So, you see I have come home and me and the Soquee are inextricably tied together.

"Buckets of Soque" - Kid's Art

Submitted By: Autumn Samsel (7 years old)

"Why I did it is I like Indians and I just really wanted to do it because there was an Indian village around the Soquee River."  

~ Autumn Samsel

"Places of Solitude" - Photo

Submitted by:  Tammy Cline

"I've always enjoyed the quiet sections of the river. Places of solitude and reflection. That's why I chose this image - for its reflections and colors. To me, as an artist, it represents the metaphor of the river and life."

~Tammy Cline

Have you Seen This Fish? - Photo

Submitted by:  Steven Patrick

Steven Patrick, Habersham County Extension Agent, is interested in studying the range of shoal bass on the Soque.  He wants to know "Have you seen a fish like this on the Soque? If so, email stevenp@uga.edu."