Portsmouth Commemorates 75th Anniversary of 1937 Flood

Nov. 30, 2011

One woman drowned saving her baby as the city of Portsmouth was flooded in one of the worst disasters of the 20th century in the United States.

An estimated one million people were left homeless and 385 people died as the flooding stretched from Pittsburgh to Cairo, Ill. People had nowhere to go. In Portsmouth, the Ohio River crested at 74.23 feet.

To commemorate the event, John Lorentz, associate provost for International Education and professor of history emeritus at Shawnee State University, and producer of "River Voices," award-winning documentary film on the 1937 flood, has organized the 75th Commemoration of the 1937 Flood Committee to produce a weeklong of events.

• Monday, Jan. 23: At Noon. Opening of Southern Ohio Medical Center exhibition at the Friend's Center and presentation on the state of medicine at the time of the 1937 Flood;
• Tuesday, Jan. 24 and Wednesday, Jan. 25: David Welky from the University of Central Arkansas, author of "The Thousand-Year Flood: the Ohio-Mississippi Disaster of 1937," will be guest speaker at Shawnee State University and The Southern Ohio Museum;
• Wednesday, Jan. 25: Southern Ohio Museum opening of the Akerman Photo exhibition of the 1937 flood;
• Thursday, Jan. 26: Portsmouth Public Library presents Jim Casto, author of "The Great Ohio River Flood of 1937";
• Friday, Jan. 27: 7 p.m. Presentation of the re-mastered version of "River Voices" at the Shawnee State University Vern Riffe Center for the Arts.

In addition, throughout the month of January, honor students from Portsmouth High School will present programs county-wide in the public schools on the 1937 Flood. More events are planned and will be announced in the near future. All events are free and open to the public.

For more information, call SSU's Coordinator of Community Relations Mistie Spicer at (740) 351-3635.