Ohio River flood of 1937

=== West Virginia ===
[[Huntington, West Virginia|Huntington, WV]], a city in the tri-state area that was built as a link between steamboat and railway commerce, experienced some of the worst flooding, with a crest of 69.45&nbsp;ft (19 feet above [[flood stage]]).<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Floodwall History|url=https://huntingtonquarterly.com/2018/09/27/issue-76-floodwall-history/|website=Huntington Quarterly|date=September 27, 2018 }}</ref> First responders, volunteers, and the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers|Army Corps of Engineers]] navigated the city via rowboats and helped citizens to reach the relief shelters set up in undamaged churches and schools. Like other communities in the Ohio River Valley, Huntington was regularly visited by damaging floods, and business owners and community members were typically self-reliant in the aftermath. After the unprecedented damage of the 1937 flood, however, community and business leaders decided that more substantive preventative measures were necessary. Immediately following the flood, the [[Chamber of commerce|Chamber of Commerce]] pushed for the construction of a floodwall that would protect Huntington and the surrounding areas.<ref name=":0" />

After a prolonged fight and a legal battle that made it to the [[West Virginia Supreme Court]], the flood wall was approved, and the project was taken on by the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers]]. Since its completion in 1943, the Huntington floodwall has prevented an estimated $238.8 million in flood damage.<ref name=":0" />

Other areas of West Virginia were devastated by the flood as well. The [[Wheeling Island|Wheeling island]] had to be evacuated, as it was completely submerged when the flood crested at 47 feet. In [[Parkersburg, West Virginia|Parkersburg]], the river reached a crest of 55 feet.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Ohio River Flood, 1937|url=https://theclio.com/entry/27273|access-date=2021-06-08|website=Clio|language=en}}</ref>