Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
In March 1913, it rained steadily for five days over much of the Ohio Valley, and the Ohio
River and its tributaries begin rising rapidly. In Parkersburg, West Virginia, the Ohio cres-
ted at 56 feet, covering nearly half the downtown and reaching as far as Market and Fifth
Streets (shown here). With no railroad, telephone, or telegraph service, the city was cut off
from the outside world. The flood would prove to be the city's worst ever. (Photograph by
Artcraft Studio.)
The 1913 flood hit Huntington, West Virginia, hard. “Never since the flood of 1884 has the
city of Huntington been in worse condition,” warned the March 30 edition of the Herald-
Dispatch. Churches, schools, and other public buildings soon were crowded with an estim-
ated 2,000 men, women, and children who had been driven from their homes. Shown here in
this postcard view is the flooded intersection of Fourth Avenue and Ninth Street.
