Posted on July 11, 2018 at 7:24 PM by Bill Sowers
"The spirit that has made Kansas great was never more inspired than in the period of the disastrous 1951 flood. Heavy rain clouds hung over the state for weeks preceding the most fateful day-July 13, 1951, "Black Friday the 13th," as it has gone down in history. It seemed as if heavy hands punched huge holes into the rain clouds allowing drenching amounts of water to spill out on the growing crops, flooding streams, and finally washing nearly everything in the path of the torrent as it sped across Kansas to the bigger rivers of the east..."
So begins an article by Dale Fields on the 1951 Floods, published in the Kansas State Board of Agriculture's 38th Biennial Report for 1951-1952. A day by day description of events accompanied by photographs and statistics gives a powerful look at the flooding and its affect on people and property throughout the eastern half of the state. The author gives a break down of flooding along major rivers, the financial losses to Kansans and the efforts of many volunteers to assist those in need.
You can view the article here:
The State Library is slowly digitizing the Annual and Biennial Reports of the State Board of Agriculture stretching back to 1875. To see what we have up online so far at the KGI Online Library check here: