Flood High Water Marks

Paducah has been wracked by flooding of the Ohio River throughout its history. 

Flood mitigation strategies, including the famous flood wall, were built over a 10 year period from 1939 to 1949. These implements protect the city when the Ohio rises above the floodplain of 50 feet.

Today, small plaques in downtown Paducah denote the high water marks of the three largest floods that occurred pre-mitigation: the "Great Flood" of 1884, the flood of 1913, and the "Thousand Years Flood" of 1937. These each set new records with high water marks of 54.2 feet, 54.3 feet, and 60.8 feet, respectively.

The visual indicator of the 1937 high water mark, especially when compared to the other two, is staggering. The town was buried in 11 feet of water, with more than 20,000 residents displaced for 3 straight weeks. It was this flood that led to the creation of the drastic protection measures that have shielded the city ever since.