Floodwaters and Flames: The 1913 Disaster in Dayton, Ohio
WATER RUSHES IN At around 8 10 on Tuesday morning water from the Great Miami River and its tributaries rushed into the city at a speed of 25 miles 40 km per hour Church bells rang and factory whistles blew sounding their desperate warnings Frantic people in the flood's path climbed trees A witness recalled One great tree with spreading boughs was so thickly populated with women and children in various colored clothing that it looked like some great Christmas tree hung with huge dolls Others scaled telephone poles to save themselves Those in buildings ran to upper floors and rooftops The scene below was horrifying horses swimming for their lives heads held high Streetcars overturned spilling out passengers Houses swept up in the water rushed past with people clinging to their porches I in The amount of water that rushed into Dayton was about equal to four days of water flow over Niagara Falls 6 FLOODWATERS AND FLAMES
E R INVI Survivors attempt to travel to afety by walking Y from pole to pole across telegraph wires High Water Fox had been right The levees could not hold the water The Great Miami River did the most damage spilling into the heart of the city The flood covered more than 14 square miles 36 sq km of land The coming chapters tell the stories of residents who were caught in the Great Dayton Flood of 1913 Some of these people such as Orville Wright and John Patterson were famous or powerful Others such as Bill Sloan Mary Althoff and Clarence Mauch were ordinary citizens who became known for the roles they played during the flood The story follows the lives of these key residents during three days of the disaster Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday DAYTON OHIO SPAING 1913 1
THE 1913 FLOODING OF DAYTON OHIO FLOODED AREA OOOOOOOD Great Miami River OHIO BHerman Street Dayton Andrew Fox home Herman Street levee DO Dayton COPublic Beckel Lib Central Union Building Telephone Company s IDDLL Creek Piotr Wright family home 3rd Street Finke Company imore Syca Street II lawthorn Street 2 I WEST HUH HDAYTON A HH DAYTONA BAE Homestead National Cash Register NAF Company Avenue Mile 0 25 0 5 0 75 0 5 1 0 Kilometer
Here are a few of the people you ll be following in this story and their locations when the flood began MARY AITHOFF librarian at the Dayton Public Ulbrary Dayton city limits CLARENCE MACH Finke Company employee JOHN BEL Central Union Telephone Company employee MOOO KATHARINE AND WILBR WRIGHT aviation pioneers JOHN H PATTERSON National Cash Register founder BLL SLOAN pitcher for the Dayton Marcos baseball team DAYTON OHIO SPRING 19139
