Great Flood of 1951
In mid-July 1951, heavy rains led to a great rise in the
Kansas River and other surrounding areas. Flooding resulted in the
Kansas,
Neosho, Marais Des Cygnes, and Verdigris
river basins. The damage in June and July of 1951 exceeded 935 million dollars in an area covering eastern
Kansas and
Missouri, which, adjusting for inflation, is nearly 7 billion dollars in 2005. The flood resulted in the loss of 28 lives.
Encyclopedia
In mid-July 1951, heavy rains led to a great rise in the
Kansas River and other surrounding areas. Flooding resulted in the
Kansas,
Neosho, Marais Des Cygnes, and Verdigris
river basins. The damage in June and July of 1951 exceeded 935 million dollars in an area covering eastern
Kansas and
Missouri, which, adjusting for inflation, is nearly 7 billion dollars in 2005. The flood resulted in the loss of 28 lives.
The flood
The initial flooding began in June 1951 with heavy rains that month. The flooding reached its worst stages when between 8 and 16 inches fell on the region between July 9 and July 13. The flood levels reached their highest point since the Great Flood of 1844 and Flood of 1903. July 13 experienced the single greatest levels of flood and led to the greatest amount of destruction by flood experienced in the
Midwest as of that date.
The actual flood-levels are not accurately known for the Kansas River, as the water crested above all official flood gages. However, between
Manhattan and
Bonner Springs flood levels were between 4 and 6 feet above all previous records. The Marais Des Cygnes River, Verdigris River, and Neosho River crested more than 9 feet above previous records.
The heaviest initial damage by the flood crest was to Manhattan and
Ft. Riley.
Barracks at the Fort were destroyed and the downtown business district was deluged under 8 feet of water. Following this,
Topeka and Lawrence were also damaged by the same crest. Approximately 24,000 people were evacuated from Topeka.
In Kansas City, the flood began running over the top of the levees protecting the Argentine and Armourdale areas, resulting in the evacuation of 15,000 people. Houses in Armourdale had water all the way to their roofs. The flood devastated the
Kansas City Stockyards in the
West Bottoms at the confluence of the Kansas and Missouri Rivers. The Stockyards would never fully recover. The flood destroyed the TWA overhaul base at Fairfax Airport in
Kansas City, Kansas prompting the city of Kansas City, Missouri, to relocate TWA to a new airport in
Platte County, Missouri that was to become
Kansas City International Airport.
On July 13, a total of 1,074,000 acres in Kansas and 926,000 acres in
Missouri were flooded.
The crest continued downstream passing through
Boonville, Missouri on July 17, Jefferson City, Missouri on July 18,
Hermann, Missouri on July 19, and
St. Charles, Missouri on July 20 resulting in further flooding.
Flood levels
Here are the measured river crest levels that the various rivers reached in the region affected.
Kansas River
| City | River crest | Height above flood stage | Date of measurement |
|---|
| Manhattan | 33.4 ft | 15.4 ft | July 13 |
| Wamego | 30.56 ft | 11.56 ft | July 13 |
| Topeka | 40.8 ft | 14.8 ft | July 13 |
| Lecompton | 30.23 ft | 13.25 ft | July 13 |
| Lawrence | 29.9 ft | 11.9 ft | July 13 |
|
Marais Des Cygnes River
| City | River crest | Height above flood stage | Date of measurement |
|---|
| Ottawa | 42.97 ft | 11.97 ft | July 11 |
|
Neosho River
| City | River crest | Height above flood stage | Date of measurement |
|---|
| Emporia | 33.4 ft | 13.4 ft | July 11 |
| Neosho Rapids | 34.3 ft | 12.3 ft | July 11 |
| Leroy | 34.48 ft | 11.48 ft | July 12 |
| Burlington | 41.53 ft | 14.53 ft | July 12 |
|
Outcome
Following this flood a series of
levees and reservoirs were constructed throughout eastern Kansas. This new network of flood control structures helped to prevent widespread damage when the region was hit later by the
Great Flood of 1993.
Prior to the flood there were five federal flood control dams in operation in the Kansas River basin:
- Bonny dam in Colorado
- Enders dam and Medicine Creek dam in Nebraska
- Cedar Bluff dam and Kanopolis dam in Kansas
Several others had been planned by the
Army Corp of Engineers and the
Bureau of Reclamation, both authorized by the
Flood Control Act of 1944.
Since then, many dams have been constructed so that a total of eighteen dams now control the flow of the
Kansas River. Many other reservoirs and levees were built in nearby in other basins were also built as part of a response to this flood, such as in the Osage River basin above the
Lake of the Ozarks.
Comparison to other big 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 - This was the biggest flood of the three in terms of rate of discharge at Westport Landing in Kansas City. It is estimated that 625,000 cubic feet per 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 - The 1951 flood was the second biggest in terms of rate of discharge at 573,000 cubic feet per 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 - The 1993 flood was the highest of any of the three but had the lowest discharge at 541,000 ft³/s . While the 1993 flood had devastating impacts elsewhere, Kansas City survived it relatively well because of levees improvements after the 1951 flood.
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