The Ohio River Flash Floods of 1888 in Wheeling

The summer of 1888 saw two major destructive flash floods: July 19 and August 21-22. The first resulted in loss of life and widespread destruction, including the B&O trestle over Wheeling Creek. The second destroyed the Main Street Bridge. These were just a few weeks after a major flooding incident in central West Virginia.

The flooding of August 21 & 22, 1888 was the result of a category 3 hurricane (hurricanes were not named in those days as is today's convention) which landed in Louisiana around Aug. 20, and followed the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers north. 

Images

Newspaper Articles

 ▶ "LIVES LOST AND PROPERTY DESTROYED," Wheeling Intelligencer, July 20, 1888
 ▶ "STILL WORSE THE LATER REPORTS SHOW The Ruin and Desolation of the Fearful Flood," Wheeling Intelligencer, July 21, 1888

 ▶ "RUIN RIDES UPON THE AWFUL FLOOD ," Wheeling Intelligencer, Aug. 22, 1888

Additional Resources

▶ Vertical File: Wheeling Flood of 1888, Wheeling Room, non-circulating, ask for access at the reference desk.
▶ Binder: Wheeling Floods, Wheeling Room, non-circulating, ask for access at the reference desk.
▶ Archival Collection: Flood Photographs [1884-1936], OCPL Archives, non-circulating, appointment must be made to view collection.