Anna was married to John Fenn, 4 May 1877 in Cambria, Pennsylvania. They had 8-10 children. John and all her children died in the Johnstown flood in May 1889.
On 26 September 1894, she married Charles Barnes, (1818-1908)
On 10 February 1910, she married Samuel R. Maxwell (1864-1937)
The following additional information added by Don Callihan--
On May 31, 1889, a neglected dam and a phenomenal storm led to a catastrophe in which 2,209 people died. It's a story of great tragedy, but also of triumphant recovery. Visit the Johnstown Flood Museum, which is operated by the Johnstown Area Heritage Association, to find out more about this shocking episode in American history.
Survivor Stories of the Johnstown Flood
The 1889 flood killed one in ten people in Johnstown - but what about those who survived? Some survivors managed to make it to high ground in time, or to the upper floor of a building that withstood the flood. Others were washed away but somehow managed to survive the floodwaters, floating debris, and the horrific fire that broke out at the stone bridge. Everyone who survived had a story -- and many of these stories were recorded, in memoirs, letters and media reports. Below is a sampling of a few of the most famous.
Anna Fenn Maxwell- Before the flood struck, Anna Fenn's husband, John, was at a neighbor's house, helping them move their furniture to higher ground. He was washed away moments before the flood struck the Fenn home, where Anna and the seven children were. Mrs. Fenn held the baby while the other six children clung to her, but one after the other they drowned. She described the scene as follows: "The water rose and floated us until our heads nearly touched the ceiling. . .It was dark and the house was tossing every way. The air was stifling, and I could not tell just the moment the rest of the children had to give up and drown. . .what I suffered, with the bodies of my seven children floating around me in the gloom can never be told." John Fenn also died in the flood. Mrs. Fenn gave birth to a baby girl a few weeks later, but the child did not survive. Eventually she remarried and moved to Richmond, Virginia, and apparently had no more children. She died in 1928, and her grave is marked with a large monument in Johnstown's Grandview Cemetery.
On 26 September 1894, she married Charles Barnes, (1818-1908)
On 10 February 1910, she married Samuel R. Maxwell (1864-1937)
The following additional information added by Don Callihan--
On May 31, 1889, a neglected dam and a phenomenal storm led to a catastrophe in which 2,209 people died. It's a story of great tragedy, but also of triumphant recovery. Visit the Johnstown Flood Museum, which is operated by the Johnstown Area Heritage Association, to find out more about this shocking episode in American history.
Survivor Stories of the Johnstown Flood
The 1889 flood killed one in ten people in Johnstown - but what about those who survived? Some survivors managed to make it to high ground in time, or to the upper floor of a building that withstood the flood. Others were washed away but somehow managed to survive the floodwaters, floating debris, and the horrific fire that broke out at the stone bridge. Everyone who survived had a story -- and many of these stories were recorded, in memoirs, letters and media reports. Below is a sampling of a few of the most famous.
Anna Fenn Maxwell- Before the flood struck, Anna Fenn's husband, John, was at a neighbor's house, helping them move their furniture to higher ground. He was washed away moments before the flood struck the Fenn home, where Anna and the seven children were. Mrs. Fenn held the baby while the other six children clung to her, but one after the other they drowned. She described the scene as follows: "The water rose and floated us until our heads nearly touched the ceiling. . .It was dark and the house was tossing every way. The air was stifling, and I could not tell just the moment the rest of the children had to give up and drown. . .what I suffered, with the bodies of my seven children floating around me in the gloom can never be told." John Fenn also died in the flood. Mrs. Fenn gave birth to a baby girl a few weeks later, but the child did not survive. Eventually she remarried and moved to Richmond, Virginia, and apparently had no more children. She died in 1928, and her grave is marked with a large monument in Johnstown's Grandview Cemetery.
Anna was married to John Fenn, 4 May 1877 in Cambria, Pennsylvania. They had 8-10 children. John and all her children died in the Johnstown flood in May 1889.
On 26 September 1894, she married Charles Barnes, (1818-1908)
On 10 February 1910, she married Samuel R. Maxwell (1864-1937)
The following additional information added by Don Callihan--
On May 31, 1889, a neglected dam and a phenomenal storm led to a catastrophe in which 2,209 people died. It's a story of great tragedy, but also of triumphant recovery. Visit the Johnstown Flood Museum, which is operated by the Johnstown Area Heritage Association, to find out more about this shocking episode in American history.
Survivor Stories of the Johnstown Flood
The 1889 flood killed one in ten people in Johnstown - but what about those who survived? Some survivors managed to make it to high ground in time, or to the upper floor of a building that withstood the flood. Others were washed away but somehow managed to survive the floodwaters, floating debris, and the horrific fire that broke out at the stone bridge. Everyone who survived had a story -- and many of these stories were recorded, in memoirs, letters and media reports. Below is a sampling of a few of the most famous.
Anna Fenn Maxwell- Before the flood struck, Anna Fenn's husband, John, was at a neighbor's house, helping them move their furniture to higher ground. He was washed away moments before the flood struck the Fenn home, where Anna and the seven children were. Mrs. Fenn held the baby while the other six children clung to her, but one after the other they drowned. She described the scene as follows: "The water rose and floated us until our heads nearly touched the ceiling. . .It was dark and the house was tossing every way. The air was stifling, and I could not tell just the moment the rest of the children had to give up and drown. . .what I suffered, with the bodies of my seven children floating around me in the gloom can never be told." John Fenn also died in the flood. Mrs. Fenn gave birth to a baby girl a few weeks later, but the child did not survive. Eventually she remarried and moved to Richmond, Virginia, and apparently had no more children. She died in 1928, and her grave is marked with a large monument in Johnstown's Grandview Cemetery.
On 26 September 1894, she married Charles Barnes, (1818-1908)
On 10 February 1910, she married Samuel R. Maxwell (1864-1937)
The following additional information added by Don Callihan--
On May 31, 1889, a neglected dam and a phenomenal storm led to a catastrophe in which 2,209 people died. It's a story of great tragedy, but also of triumphant recovery. Visit the Johnstown Flood Museum, which is operated by the Johnstown Area Heritage Association, to find out more about this shocking episode in American history.
Survivor Stories of the Johnstown Flood
The 1889 flood killed one in ten people in Johnstown - but what about those who survived? Some survivors managed to make it to high ground in time, or to the upper floor of a building that withstood the flood. Others were washed away but somehow managed to survive the floodwaters, floating debris, and the horrific fire that broke out at the stone bridge. Everyone who survived had a story -- and many of these stories were recorded, in memoirs, letters and media reports. Below is a sampling of a few of the most famous.
Anna Fenn Maxwell- Before the flood struck, Anna Fenn's husband, John, was at a neighbor's house, helping them move their furniture to higher ground. He was washed away moments before the flood struck the Fenn home, where Anna and the seven children were. Mrs. Fenn held the baby while the other six children clung to her, but one after the other they drowned. She described the scene as follows: "The water rose and floated us until our heads nearly touched the ceiling. . .It was dark and the house was tossing every way. The air was stifling, and I could not tell just the moment the rest of the children had to give up and drown. . .what I suffered, with the bodies of my seven children floating around me in the gloom can never be told." John Fenn also died in the flood. Mrs. Fenn gave birth to a baby girl a few weeks later, but the child did not survive. Eventually she remarried and moved to Richmond, Virginia, and apparently had no more children. She died in 1928, and her grave is marked with a large monument in Johnstown's Grandview Cemetery.
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