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The Great Flood of 1844
Great Flood of 1844

The Great Flood of 1844 is the biggest flood ever recorded on the Missouri River and Upper Mississippi River, in North America, in terms of discharge....
 is the biggest flood
Flood

A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land, a deluge. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide....
 ever recorded on the Missouri River
Missouri River

The Missouri River is a tributary of the Mississippi River, and the longest river in the United States of America. The Missouri begins at the confluence of the Madison River, Jefferson River, and Gallatin River rivers in Montana, and flows through Missouri River Valley south and east into the Mississippi north of St....
 and Upper Mississippi River
Upper Mississippi River

The Upper Mississippi River is the portion of the Mississippi River upstream of Cairo, Illinois, Illinois, United States. From the headwaters at Lake Itasca, Minnesota, the river flows approximately 2000 kilometers to Cairo, where it is joined by the Ohio River to form the Lower Mississippi River....
, in North America
North America

North America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and almost totally in the western hemisphere....
, in terms of discharge.

The impact was not as great as subsequent floods because of the small population in the region at the time. The flood was particularly devastating since the region had little or no levees at the time.

Congress in 1849 passed the Swamp Act providing land grants to build stronger levees.

Among the hardest hit were the Wyandot
Wyandot

The Wyandot and Huron are indigenous peoples of North America of North America known in their Wyandot language as the Wendat. Modern Wyandots and Hurons emerged in the 17th century from the remnants of two earlier groups, the Huron Confederacy and the Petun....
 who lost 100 people in the diseases that occurred after the flood.

The flood also placed a sandbar in front of the Wayne City Landing at Independence, Missouri
Independence, Missouri

Independence is a city in Clay County, Missouri and Jackson County, Missouri counties in the U.S. state of Missouri, and the fourth largest city in the state....
 which had been the jumping off place for the Santa Fe Trail
Santa Fe Trail

The Santa Fe Trail was a 19th century transportation route through southwestern North America that connected Missouri with Santa Fe, New Mexico....
 which was to encourage settlers to go further east to Westport Landing in Kansas City.

The flood also is the highest recorded for the Mississippi River
Mississippi River

The Mississippi River is the longest river in the United States, with a length of from its source in Lake Itasca in Minnesota to its mouth in the Gulf of Mexico....
 at St.






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The Great Flood of 1844
Great Flood of 1844

The Great Flood of 1844 is the biggest flood ever recorded on the Missouri River and Upper Mississippi River, in North America, in terms of discharge....
 is the biggest flood
Flood

A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land, a deluge. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide....
 ever recorded on the Missouri River
Missouri River

The Missouri River is a tributary of the Mississippi River, and the longest river in the United States of America. The Missouri begins at the confluence of the Madison River, Jefferson River, and Gallatin River rivers in Montana, and flows through Missouri River Valley south and east into the Mississippi north of St....
 and Upper Mississippi River
Upper Mississippi River

The Upper Mississippi River is the portion of the Mississippi River upstream of Cairo, Illinois, Illinois, United States. From the headwaters at Lake Itasca, Minnesota, the river flows approximately 2000 kilometers to Cairo, where it is joined by the Ohio River to form the Lower Mississippi River....
, in North America
North America

North America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and almost totally in the western hemisphere....
, in terms of discharge.

The impact was not as great as subsequent floods because of the small population in the region at the time. The flood was particularly devastating since the region had little or no levees at the time.

Congress in 1849 passed the Swamp Act providing land grants to build stronger levees.

Among the hardest hit were the Wyandot
Wyandot

The Wyandot and Huron are indigenous peoples of North America of North America known in their Wyandot language as the Wendat. Modern Wyandots and Hurons emerged in the 17th century from the remnants of two earlier groups, the Huron Confederacy and the Petun....
 who lost 100 people in the diseases that occurred after the flood.

The flood also placed a sandbar in front of the Wayne City Landing at Independence, Missouri
Independence, Missouri

Independence is a city in Clay County, Missouri and Jackson County, Missouri counties in the U.S. state of Missouri, and the fourth largest city in the state....
 which had been the jumping off place for the Santa Fe Trail
Santa Fe Trail

The Santa Fe Trail was a 19th century transportation route through southwestern North America that connected Missouri with Santa Fe, New Mexico....
 which was to encourage settlers to go further east to Westport Landing in Kansas City.

The flood also is the highest recorded for the Mississippi River
Mississippi River

The Mississippi River is the longest river in the United States, with a length of from its source in Lake Itasca in Minnesota to its mouth in the Gulf of Mexico....
 at St. Louis (1,300,000 cubic feet second in 1844 vs. 782,000 in 1951 and 1,030,000 in 1993).

Comparison to other big floods

Kc Floods
Channeling and levee construction have altered how the floods have hit various areas along the Missouri River. Here's a comparison of the three big floods since the early 1800s.

  • Great Flood of 1844
    Great Flood of 1844

    The Great Flood of 1844 is the biggest flood ever recorded on the Missouri River and Upper Mississippi River, in North America, in terms of discharge....
     — This was the biggest flood of the three in terms of cubic feet/second discharge at Westport Landing in Kansas City. It is estimated that 625,000 cubic feet/second was discharged in the flood. However the crest on July 16, 1844, almost a foot lower than the 1993 flood.
  • Great Flood of 1951
    Great Flood of 1951

    In mid-July 1951, heavy rains led to a great rise of water in the Kansas River and other surrounding areas. Flooding resulted in the Kansas River, Neosho River, Marais Des Cygnes River, and Verdigris river basins....
     — The 1951 flood was the second biggest in terms of cubic feet/second discharge at 573,000 cubic feet/second. The 1951 crest on July 14, 1951, was almost two feet lower than the 1844 flood and three feet lower than 1993. However, the flood was the most devastating of all modern floods for Kansas City since its levee system was not built to withstand it. It destroyed the city's stockyards and forced the building of an airport away from the Missouri River bottoms.
  • Great Flood of 1993
    Great Flood of 1993

    The Great Flood of 1993 was among the most costly and devastating ever to occur in the United States, with $15 billion in damages. The hydro graphic basin affected covered around 745 miles in length and 435 miles in width, totaling about 320,000 square miles ....
     — The 1993 flood was the highest of any of the three but had the lowest discharge (541,000 c.f.s.). While the 1993 flood had devastating impacts elsewhere, Kansas City survived it relatively well because of levees improvements after the 1951 flood.


See also

  • Floods in the United States
    Floods in the United States

    Floods in the United States are generally caused by excessive rainfall, excessive snowmelt, and dam failure. Below is a list of flood events that were of significant impact to the country, between 1901 and 2000....