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| U.S. Coast Guard photo. |
In the first months of 1937, the Ohio River began to swell, spilling over into the surrounding land: It started on the fifth of January, and continued through early February. As the waters began to rise, there were numerous flood warnings put in place for much of the area surrounding the rising Ohio River. Rainfall amounts were reaching record highs, and did not seem to be stopping.[1]
Temperatures were abnormally warm for the beginning months of the year, and this caused what the winter weather dropped to thaw, only increasing water levels around the state. By mid-January, a large number of houses were flooded due to the Ohio River’s waters overflowing as a result of the abnormal and heavy rainfall. Experts at the weather bureau stated their fears for conditions becoming even worse than those in the 1913 flood in Indiana. Forecasts for more rain made people even more afraid of what the result of the flooding would be.[2]
According to the Chicago Daily Tribune, as the end of January approached, conditions only got worse.[3] Thirty-three counties were under martial law by this time. People were being evacuated in large numbers—whole cities at a time—and Adjutant General Elmer F. Straub reported that whole buildings that were visible at the beginning of the third week of January, the 24th, were completely underwater two days later.[4]
In one city—Aurora, Indiana—the amount of people who evacuated were eight times the amount of people who stayed. These five hundred remaining were brought food and water by army trucks. Some people, however, did not want to evacuate. A group of approximately three hundred refugees took shelter in a hall building. The higher the flood waters rose, the weaker the walls of the building became. However, the people still resisted the call to leave. Because of this, Straub had to have an officer force evacuation of the building.[5]
Water levels reached over fifty feet, some sources say fifty-four, in the city of Evansville, Indiana, which is located in the southern part of the state. Flood stage is considered to be thirty-five feet, which these water levels far surpassed. Flood waters rose to these heights and higher still in the neighboring states of Ohio and Kentucky where cities like Cincinnati and Louisville almost completely covered by upwards of seventy feet of flood water.[6]
Buildings in some areas were listed as “unsafe” by military engineers because they feared that the sewer systems could collapse as buildings become more unstable, According to Red Cross relief director Charles Carr.[7] The likelihood of having more than a couple of roads open was very slim. Often, there would be one road clear enough to get food, water and other supplies into the cities by military means. Many cities’ water supplies were affected by sewer disruptions so cities had to ration water for their citizens.[8]
Disease spread was more easily spread with flood waters present. People would be confined in small spaces for long periods of time, making disease spread easier. There were at least six deaths from exposure. Typhoid fever vaccinations were distributed in large numbers throughout many cities. People suffered and died from hunger, thirst, and the cold.[9]
The first days of February marked the beginning of the waters’ recession, with levels finally falling below flood levels for the first time in about three weeks. The damage left by this flood stretched over multiple states, leaving about one million people were left without homes. Nearly four hundred people lost their lives during this flood, and the property damages reached five hundred million dollars, or approximately eight billion in today’s dollars.[10] The Chicago Daily Tribune published that it was the return of winter weather that helped the recession of tributaries that fed into the Ohio River.[11]
Many people were left homeless after the flood had come and gone. Some sources say that nearly fifty-five thousand people were reported as being homeless across the state of Indiana.[12] A number of homes were washed away by the floodwaters, and some people reported that houses ended up smashed together.[13]
Flood relief efforts included—in addition to sending trucks with food, water, and other supplies—sending workmen from the Works Progress Administration, National Guard, the Red Cross, and other civic organization.[14] Workers were sent all over for flood relief. Damage amounts are reported differently in many sources, ranging from thirteen million dollars ($13,000,000) over six counties, to sixteen million dollars ($16,000,000) in one city, to one hundred million dollars ($100,000,000) overall.[15] There is not one source that gives an overall estimate of damages that is confirmed in another source or proven by or within that source alone.
Even with thousands of relief workers in the field, it was often difficult to keep public morale up with loss of homes, damages, and disease that all resulted from the flood. Streets were covered with debris and silt, homes were completely destroyed, and levees were broken—people were pessimistic.[16] Works Progress Administration members were highly praised for their efforts with the flood rehabilitation around throughout the state.
The amount of federal money ranged from the lower tens of thousands into the millions for different locations in the state. This flood was said to the worst Indiana had seen in nearly a quarter of a century, since the flood of 1913.[17]
Politics and Life Around the Ohio
Some people tended to see a divine hand in such disasters and would preach about it, saying that the consumption of whiskey was the sin of man that brought the wrath of God upon them.[18] Whether people believed it was the result of an angry Deity, or just simply the fault of humans, perhaps that they did not take the right precautions, the theories as to the causation of the flood were widespread throughout the public, and questions about what the real cause of the excessive overflow were everywhere.[19]
Those who settled around the Ohio did so for the transportation opportunities it supplied, and the potential it held for trade, agriculture, and even defense and other resources.[20] People blamed these settlers for part of the flood damage. This was because of their refusal to “adjust their lives to the river’s inexorable will,” because with each advancement before and by the river, there were greater risks being faced, more things to damage.[21]
During this time in the political world, Franklin D. Roosevelt was president, and ready to enter his second term in office. Another possible channel of blame was on Congress’ shoulders: There was no comprehensive control plan for flooding, even though it had been talked about over many decades. It was argued that, even with a plan from a previous president in place, President Roosevelt would have had to persuade state governors to allow the federal government to infringe on states’ rights, get a very expensive bill through congress extremely quickly, and convince voters in areas that did not flood to pay for said bill. [22]
Discussions about flood plans were all over, and many different types of people—engineers to journalists—were trying to get their voice heard and their plan considered.[23] One such plan was proposed by President Roosevelt. He wanted to create a part of the plan inspired by ability of the Tennessee Valley Authority’s, as well as the Miami Conservancy District’s to deal with flooding before, and proposed, with this plan, an Ohio Valley Authority which would have the power to construct and oversee building projects such as dams and reservoirs in and around the rivers.[24]
Some people had little concern for how protection would be implemented, and cared only for keeping the river away from them—these people included governors, mayors, and levee board engineers. They would have appreciated federal government intervention with paying for flood damages, so issues of expenditures were also in question—and the federal government responded, in one case, with sending $20 million to people who were not eligible to receive Red Cross funds for relief, or Works Progress Administration relief. Some continuing questions included whether certain fund amounts were adequate and what exactly the government should cover. [25]
After initial flood relief, land-owning victims began pushing relief workers away from their land so they could begin replanting the land.[26] As the debates over flood relief plans and programs continued throughout Washington, people worked to clean up and reconstruct their towns, and as they did, they questioned whether they would go back to their old ways, or whether the flood created something new.[27]
Who was Affected?
Over thirty counties in Indiana were affected by the flooding of the Ohio River, and the river rose to nearly fifty-four feet—nineteen feet above flood stage.[28] Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio were among the states which faced the most damages as a result of the flood. Other states along the Ohio River were also affected: such states include West Virginia and Arkansas. In total, about one and a half million people over twelve states were affected by the flooding.[29]
In Indiana, the big cities that received major damages and, therefore, much media coverage were cities such as Evansville, New Albany, and Jeffersonville. The city that received much coverage that will be focused on for the purpose and length of this essay, was New Albany.
New Albany, Indiana
New Albany came into being as a town in the early 1800s as part of Floyd County.[30] The Ohio River had a huge influence on establishing the city as one of the largest cities in the Midwest after New Albany officially became a city in 1839. Because of its placement along the river, the businesses that started out well and as important businesses were those of riverboat building and glass manufacturing: Some of the most luxurious riverboats were built in New Albany.[31]
During the flooding of the Ohio, New Albany, as mentioned before, was one of the most covered cities because of its importance and size. It was in this city that damages were estimated at around ten million dollars, flood rehabilitation costs were estimated at seventy thousand dollars, and by the end of January, all New Albany citizens were urged to leave the city.[32]
Other accomplishments of this city include Indiana’s first high school, New Albany high school, established in 1853, railroads in 1847, Floyd County Fairground, dedicated in 1858—it held the Indiana State Fair a year later—and held one of the first seven National Cemeteries in the United States established by President Abraham Lincoln in 1862.[33]
Today, New Albany’s main businesses include manufacturing of refrigerated dough products, plaques and awards, plastic materials, millworks, leather tanning and finishing, and many more. Notable people from New Albany a numerous and include people such as Michael Kerr, speaker of the United States House of Representatives after the Civil War, and Sherman Minton, a Justice of the United States Supreme Court.[34]
Clean Up Efforts: The American Red Cross
By the time the floodwaters began receding, there was a lot of destruction to be seen. The flood caused millions of dollars in relief efforts, and even more in damages.[35] Relief efforts were carried out by programs such as the Red Cross and the Works Progress Administration (WPA). For the purpose of this essay, the program of focus will be the Red Cross.
The chairman of the American Red Cross at this time was Rear Admiral Cary T. Grayson who was the chairman from March of 1935 to February of 1938.[36] The Red Cross reported that the sixty-five billion gallons of water from the flood affected over twelve thousand square miles, twelve states, and one and a half million people, over one million sixty-two thousand of which were rescued and taken care of by the Red Cross relief stations and workers.[37]
The American Red Cross has a commitment to preparedness that includes the statement that they will keep communication open at all times, day and night, and will always get to a situation as fast as possible by any means—plane, boat, car, train, whatever it took to get there. Workers were sent out for various tasks including assisting health departments in the distributing of typhoid fever vaccinations, issuing food orders, providing shelter, helping with evacuation, and any other tasks in operating the relief stations that they were needed for in the locations where they were sent.[38]
Coordination between the governmental agencies such as the WPA and the Red Cross was very important. Throughout the period of the flood, the Red Cross and the White House were in contact with each other constantly in order to make sure everyone was being taken care of how they needed to be; In other words, how the relief programs were progressing.[39]
Also important was the organization of Red Cross Chapters, General Headquarters located in Washington, D.C., and relief stations. This was because, as the Red Cross reported, the magnitude of the flood in any of the states of Ohio, Indiana, or Kentucky would have been considered a “national calamity” in itself, so the magnitude of the flood in whole was cause for amazement. The size of this flood disaster—and consequently, the size of the needed relief—caused the usual procedural organization of the Red Cross had to be sidelined, in a sense, as boundaries of authority had to be stretched, less direct supervision was possible, and the number of regions covered changed, as well as the boundaries of said regions [40]
When it came to actually bring the people relief, there were always complication as well as favorable factors that either hindered or aided in relief dispersion. Complicating factors included things such as convincing people that evacuation was needed, fires, keeping public morale up, and overall keeping the hysteria down. Favorable factors, which, in this particular case were more prominent than unfavorable ones, included quick action and reaction by Red Cross Chapters, cooperation from government and private groups, a spirit of helpfulness—in the form of numerous volunteers—and the efforts of the rescue, medical, and nursing staff to keep casualty numbers at an unexpectedly low number.[41]
Returning to a normal way of life was complicated as over forty thousand homes, three thousand barns, and nearly fourteen thousand other buildings were damaged in total in some way, and many families needed rehabilitation aid. They dealt with “old problems” such as lack of uniformity in types of damages to property, a larger number of people inhabiting the affected areas, and heavy deposits of sand all around; and they dealt with “new problems” including old buildings in the path of the flood waters that had stood forever collapsing unexpectedly, an unusual depth of water causing unusually heavy amounts of damages, and having to train many new case workers.[42]
Red Cross expenditures for the 1937 Ohio River flood neared twenty-five million dollars split between categories of building and repair, household goods, agricultural rehabilitation, general family care and assistance, food and clothing, and rescue, shelter, and transportation, and more.[43]
[1] “Ohio River Flood of 1937,” last modified February 10, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohio_River_flood_of_1937.
[2] “Ohio River Flood of 1937,” Wikipedia.
[5] “Indiana Leaves 33 Counties to Whims of Flood: Whole Cities Evacuated by Soldiers.”
[6] “Indiana Leaves 33 Counties to Whims of Flood: Whole Cities Evacuated by Soldiers.”
[7] “Indiana Leaves 33 Counties to Whims of Flood: Whole Cities Evacuated by Soldiers.”
[8] “Ohio River Flood of 1937,” The Lilly Libraries, http://www.indiana.edu/~liblilly/wpa/flood.html.[9] “Indiana Leaves 33 Counties to Whims of Flood: Whole Cities Evacuated by Soldiers.”
[10] “Ohio River flood of 1937,” Wikipedia.
[11] “Indiana Leaves 33 Counties to Whims of Flood: Whole Cities Evacuated by Soldiers.”
[12] “Indiana Leaves 33 Counties to Whims of Flood: Whole Cities Evacuated by Soldiers.”
[14] “Indiana’s Flood Crest Descends on Evansville,” Chicago Daily Tribune, 1937.
[15] “Ohio River Flood of 1937,” The Lilly Libraries, and “Indiana’s Flood Crest Descends on Evansville.”
[16] “Ohio River Flood of 1937,” The Lilly Libraries
[18] David Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, (University of Chicago Press, 2011), 225.
[19] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 225-226.
[20] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 226.
[21] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 227.
[22] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 227.
[23] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 228.[24] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 232.
[25] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 238, 239, 241-242.
[26] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 243.
[27] Ibid, 248.
[28] “Ohio River flood of 1937,” Wikipedia.
[29] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937: Report of Relief Operations of The American Red Cross Washington, D.C., 1938.
[30] Historic New Albany, “New York brothers settle New Albany, Indiana.” Last modified February 1995. http://www.historicnewalbany.com/default.asp?q_areaprimaryid=4.
[31] “New York brothers settle New Albany, Indiana.”
[32] "Indiana's Flood Crest Descends on Evansville,” and “Ohio River Flood of 1937,” The Lilly Libraries.
[33] “New York brothers settle New Albany, Indiana.”
[35] "Indiana Leaves 33 Counties to Whims of Flood: Whole Cities Evacuated by Soldiers.”
[36] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937: Report of Relief Operations of The American Red Cross Washington, D.C., 1938, 2.
[37] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937, inside front cover.
[38] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937, 52-54.
[39] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937, 54.
[40] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937, 59-60.
[41] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937, 79-80.
[42] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937, 141-145.
[43] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937, 193.
[2] “Ohio River Flood of 1937,” Wikipedia.
[5] “Indiana Leaves 33 Counties to Whims of Flood: Whole Cities Evacuated by Soldiers.”
[6] “Indiana Leaves 33 Counties to Whims of Flood: Whole Cities Evacuated by Soldiers.”
[7] “Indiana Leaves 33 Counties to Whims of Flood: Whole Cities Evacuated by Soldiers.”
[8] “Ohio River Flood of 1937,” The Lilly Libraries, http://www.indiana.edu/~liblilly/wpa/flood.html.[9] “Indiana Leaves 33 Counties to Whims of Flood: Whole Cities Evacuated by Soldiers.”
[10] “Ohio River flood of 1937,” Wikipedia.
[11] “Indiana Leaves 33 Counties to Whims of Flood: Whole Cities Evacuated by Soldiers.”
[12] “Indiana Leaves 33 Counties to Whims of Flood: Whole Cities Evacuated by Soldiers.”
[14] “Indiana’s Flood Crest Descends on Evansville,” Chicago Daily Tribune, 1937.
[15] “Ohio River Flood of 1937,” The Lilly Libraries, and “Indiana’s Flood Crest Descends on Evansville.”
[16] “Ohio River Flood of 1937,” The Lilly Libraries
[18] David Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, (University of Chicago Press, 2011), 225.
[19] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 225-226.
[20] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 226.
[21] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 227.
[22] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 227.
[23] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 228.[24] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 232.
[25] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 238, 239, 241-242.
[26] Welky, The Thousand-Year Flood, 243.
[27] Ibid, 248.
[28] “Ohio River flood of 1937,” Wikipedia.
[29] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937: Report of Relief Operations of The American Red Cross Washington, D.C., 1938.
[30] Historic New Albany, “New York brothers settle New Albany, Indiana.” Last modified February 1995. http://www.historicnewalbany.com/default.asp?q_areaprimaryid=4.
[31] “New York brothers settle New Albany, Indiana.”
[32] "Indiana's Flood Crest Descends on Evansville,” and “Ohio River Flood of 1937,” The Lilly Libraries.
[33] “New York brothers settle New Albany, Indiana.”
[35] "Indiana Leaves 33 Counties to Whims of Flood: Whole Cities Evacuated by Soldiers.”
[36] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937: Report of Relief Operations of The American Red Cross Washington, D.C., 1938, 2.
[37] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937, inside front cover.
[38] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937, 52-54.
[39] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937, 54.
[40] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937, 59-60.
[41] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937, 79-80.
[42] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937, 141-145.
[43] American National Red Cross et al., The Ohio-Mississippi River Valley Flood Disaster of 1937, 193.
