April 3, 1913 map from an April 8, 2013 post by the Genealogy Centeron Facebook : Cynthia found this cool map showing obstructions in the rivers that contributed to the effects of the Great Flood of 1913 here in Fort Wayne. It is in one of the big boxes of flat maps here in The Genealogy Center if you would like to take a closer look.
Fort Wayne Through Time Leftovers: Dan Baker and I spent 15 months putting together our book, Fort Wayne Through Time, and ended up with more photograph comparisons than we could use. We’ve chosen some of our favorites of the leftovers to share with you until the book comes out November 1.
March/1913: Combs Street Bridge at Edgewater Avenue. Fort Wayne has been the recipient of three devastating floods (and dozens of nearly so) during its recorded history. The first documented was in 1790, followed by the famous 1913 Flood, and then the 1982 Flood which resulted in us being dubbed “The City That Saved Itself”. The 1913 Flood washed out many parts of Fort Wayne resulting in 5,500 homes incurring damage and over 15,000 citizens left homeless. During the night of March 26th, water breached the dikes adjacent to Lakeside on both the St. Joe and Maumee River sides. In this image, building materials litter the intersection of Tecumseh and Edgewater at the north end of the bridge. As can be seen, several of the houses in this view are still in use 105 years later. (Image Courtesy Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL). Photo from an archived closed Facebook group June 30, 2018. This same location can be seen on Google maps Street view.
March 27, 1913 flood line at Fire Station No. 7 at 1716 West Main Street from June 14, 2023 photos posted on True Fort Wayne Indiana History on Facebook showing a photo taken in the 1970s on left and February 2022 on the right.
Flood of 1913 premiered May 21, 2021 by ARCH, Inc on YouTube ARCH ( Architecture and Community Heritage) has been a leading force for preservation in Fort Wayne and Northeast Indiana since 1975 with monthly programs and more on their website: https://archfw.org/. Recordings of ARCH, Inc. programs are premiered on YouTube.
Good Friday, March 21, 1913 - it started as a storm with winds clocked at 60 mph tearing up Fort Wayne.
Easter Sunday, March 23, 1913 - a steady rain prevented women from turning out in their Easter bonnets, and the Easter parade was canceled.
Monday, March 24, 1913 - wind reached speeds up to 52 mph, was over in a matter of minutes. 2.76 inches of rainfall over 24 hours caused the rivers to rise 12 feet in one day. By Monday evening, water surrounded 42 houses on Wagner Street, Baltes Avenue and Prospect Avenue.
Tuesday, March 25, 1913 - water began flowing into Lakeside at 8 a.m., at the foot of the Tennessee Avenue Bridge. Floodwaters seeped into water-pumping stations, overflowing rivers, flooded streets, now the city faced a water shortage. The south-side reservoir didn't contain enough water to sustain the city for even a day. An iconic photo titled High Water Along St. Joe Blvd. Lakeside Ft. Wayne, IND March 25, 1913 from the The News-Sentinel newspaper Roto section dated April 4, 1964 shows sandbags along St. Joseph Boulevard.
For "Throwback Thursday" we share this photo taken along St. Joseph Boulevard in the Lakeside area on March 25, 1913....
Surveyors often deal with storm water run-off and are involved in FEMA programs like the Flood Insurance Rate Maps or FIRM Maps where they rate properties on the likelihood of flooding. My grandfather graduated from Purdue in 1913 and I’m sure he clipped this picture.
For "Throwback Thursday" we share this photo taken along St. Joseph Boulevard in the Lakeside area on March 25, 1913. This photo is from The News-Sentinel Roto dated April 4, 1964. Captioned is "Spectators view the high water during the 1913 flood."
Wednesday, March 26, 1913 - the Allen County Orphan's Home, situated in a bend of the St. Marys River west of Foster Park with about 60 children and their caretakers had moved to the second floor of the building. Four girls drowned during rescue attempts. Three more city people would drown before it was over.
Thursday, March 27, 1913 - a rumor that the big dam at St. Mary's, Ohio, had given way sent residents of Fort Wayne into a fresh panic. Meanwhile, the Maumee River dropped 3 inches, and all parts of the city that had flooded saw substantial drops in the water level.
Friday, March 28, 1913 - floodwaters had dropped about 18 inches, and the city felt a collective sense of relief that the worst was over.
Saturday, March 29, 1913 - as conditions grew steadily better throughout the city, the 1913 flood claimed one last life.
High-water mark Flood fears temper push to develop city’s riverfronts March 17, 2013 - This week marks the 100th anniversary of the Great Flood of 1913 that destroyed large swaths of Indiana and Ohio and remains one of the worst floods in Fort Wayne’s history. That flood resulted in more than $110 million worth of damage in today’s dollars and at least seven deaths.
News-Sentinel Flood of 1913 photos They state: Since 1833, we've covered every major event in Fort Wayne's history. For several days in 1913, stories about the flood and photos filled the front pages of The Daily News and The Daily Sentinel. These photos are from the archives of The News-Sentinel. They also have archived photos from Reader-submitted Flood of 1913 photos and The Fort Wayne History Center.
Fort Wayne photographer's legacy: A visual record of 1913 flood by Kevin Kilbane published March 21, 2013 in The News-Sentinel newspaper. A snippet from a longer article states: Many of the photos you see in The News-Sentinel's coverage of the 100th anniversary of the Flood of 1913 were snapped by one man — Norman P. Standish. Here is a little about him, drawn largely from 1976 News-Sentinel stories about the man and his work, and from Craig Berndt, development services program manager for City Utilities, who has a collection of Standish photos: Born in 1877 in Jackson, Mich., Standish already had established himself as a photographer when he met his future wife, Lovella, while taking a photo in 1908 of her and the rest of the nursing school graduating class at Jackson City Hospital. The couple soon married, and not long afterward they moved to Fort Wayne.
For "Throwback Thursday" we share this article written by KEVIN LEININGER from the FORT WAYNE NEWS-SENTINEL on March 16,1982 about the 1913 flood during the 1982 flood. 1913 was the year A.K. Hofer graduated from Purdue University!.
