Historical Marker

The Flood Wall

Historical marker location:

Paducah, Kentucky

( 1st & Broadway next to Flood Wall, Paducah)

Paducah's $8,000,000 flood wall was built by the U.S. Corps of Engineers, is twelve miles long and protects the city to a height three feet above the 1937 flood level. The Flood of 1937 could not recur again in Paducah because of the flood wall, TVA's dams, and other upstream reservoirs. In all, flood control has cost TVA almost $200,000,000.

Reverse

The 1937 Flood - The Ohio Valley Flood of 1937 was the greatest natural disaster in the history of the U.S. and drove over one million citizens from their homes. When the Ohio River reached its crest in Paducah on Feb. 2, 1937, the water stood at 60.8 feet.90 per cent of the city was inundated, 27,000 people were evacuated, and damage exceeded $22,000,000.