Okoboji Flooding Update: Garlock Slough Meets Jones Beach
Abram O. Garlock and two of his brothers came to Iowa around 1870 to become some of the first settlers in the town of Pocahontas. The town grew slowly; it had just 37 residents in the 1880 census.
But Abram, originally from New York state, may have considered that to be an advantage; plenty of opportunity to participate in building the town’s future for an ambitious young man of about 28 when he arrived in Iowa.
Abram began farming with his brothers, but soon moved on to contracting and became county auditor. He also ventured into real estate development in Pocahontas and nearby towns before relocating to Des Moines, according to a newspaper recollection by Okoboji historian Aubrey La Foy.
Like a number of Iowa’s movers and shakers of the time, Garlock began to spend time at Okoboji in the early 1900s. The cooler temperatures and the accessibility of a pleasant lake were powerful attractants in the era before air-conditioning.
The Garlocks settled at the point on West Okoboji that marks the eastern end of Emerson Bay, situated at the south end of the lake. Garlock named the point for his hometown, Pocahontas, and platted the area for development in 1908. By 1915, at least five Garlock family members owned lakeshore properties in the area, county records show.
The lakeshore extending east from the point originally was known as Milford Beach, a resort of some note at the time. Later, it was acquired by W. H. Jones, who had operated a general store near the resort. He renamed it: Jones Beach.
Garlock put his own name on the large slough behind the lakeshore: Garlock Slough.
Garlock Slough and Jones Beach today have come together, literally, as the scene of Okoboji’s most horrendous residential water damage in the Flood of ’24.
Alan Mores, a retired Harlan, Iowa, newspaper owner, resides in one of the 29 homes on Jones Beach and has been chronicling the battle against the flood water. Alan’s parents, Leo and Irene Mores, had preceded him on Jones Beach beginning in 1969. His brother, Steve, and sister, Suzie, also reside there today.
For those who never have seen residential flooding in action, the power of the water, the damage it can do, and the eerily slow pace at which the water recedes before clean-up can begin make it unlike other natural disasters.
Since the Jones Beach flooding began on June 22, Mores has been writing a daily report for Jones Beach residents, friends, and other interested parties.
The following summary is from his reports.
The water from the slough quickly overflowed the road separating the slough from the lakeshore homes when the flooding began.
Mores and other homeowners on Jones Beach have had up to 19 to 30 inches of standing swamp, industrial chemical waste, soil, and likely sewage in their backyards. As of July 1, it was down to 3 ½ inches to 6 ½ inches thanks to several pumps brought in for the water removal task.
Mores has had up to 20 inches of flood water from Garlock Slough in his garage, ground-floor laundry room, and crawl spaces throughout the cottage.
The overflow of the Slough in a heavy rain might have been predictable. Mores said the fault lines leading to the overflow include over-tiling, pattern tiling, insufficient outlets for excess water from the Slough, excessive construction of storage buildings in the area, and a newly discovered culvert leading water into the Slough from the nearby Treasure Village area. Add an unbelievable five inches of rain overnight on June 22 and the threat of a flood became a disastrous reality.
Additionally, the residences on Jones Beach are receiving water pressure on the lakeside of their property. More than 12,000 sandbags were piled along the three-quarter mile beach in two days — a laborious effort to hold off water that has been extremely slow to recede. The sandbag team worked in mud so sloshy and deep that their feet sank to their ankles with every step.
Residents have been tenacious in fighting the water. “Action items change every 30 minutes,” Mores said, “helping neighbors, evacuations, sandbagging, the list goes on so much I have a Sharpie and write notes on my wrist to remind me to check a home, turn off a sump pump, call the City of West Okoboji . . . “
After more than 10 days of fighting the water, the smell of the soil, sludge, water, and sandbags has reached the point where you no longer can wash it off your hands, he said.
Even with some recession of the flood water in recent days, however, Jones Beach is a long way from returning to normal. Damage to homes likely will take months to repair. And still, the rains and winds continue and could bring more damage in the days ahead.
A NOTE TO MY READERS: I write this column, Arnold Garson: Second Thoughts, as a member of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative. This diverse group of more than 50 professional writers covers a wide range of subjects and has deep roots in Iowa. The Collaborative was founded and is led by Julie Gammack of Des Moines and is a unique group on Substack. You can subscribe for free. However, if you enjoy my work, please consider showing your support by becoming a paid subscriber at whatever level feels right for you.
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Thanks for this report, and the history of the area. Alan Mores is a local hero to those impacted by this disaster. I hadn't thought about all of the building taking place that makes so much of the surrounding land impervious. I keep thinking the area can't possibly support one more storage unit facility, and lo and behold, more get built, chewing up farmland, and any other vacant square foot. There are countless heroes all around the flooded areas of northwest Iowa doing what they can to battle the disastrous water overflow. Thanks for spotlighting Alan.