How to purchase
What: Bronze 1913 flood level markers
Cost: $318 per plaque (includes installation). The cost of sponsorship is tax deductible.
More info: 513-863-1717
As part of the 100th anniversary commemoration of the 1913 Flood, Hamilton citizens can support a piece of history.
The City of Hamilton 1913 Flood Centennial Committee is beginning to mount permanent high-water flood level markers throughout the affected parts of Hamilton.
“These are cast bronze plaques produced by the Dayton Stencil Company, and will be professionally installed by Hamilton’s Triangle Sign Company” said committee convener Curtis Ellison, director of the Michael J. Colligan History Project.
The plaques are replicas of those mounted outside the Miami Conservancy District in Dayton.
“They are designed to go on buildings to mark the high water spots from the flood,” said John Guidugli, convener of the signage committee and president of the Hamilton Community Foundation.
“We’ve identified a number of suitable buildings that have been recommended by people in the community,” Guidugli said, “but if someone else is interested in having a plaque, they can contact the Foundation and we will explore those options.”
The Miami Conservancy District will identify correct flood levels for each location.
“We already have several high water markers around the city, but with these additional markers, people will be able to see how high the waters got at various other points,” Ellison said.
“The 100th Anniversary of the Great Miami River Flood of 1913 is an opportunity to remember both a catastrophic event and how Hamiltonians responded to it. Unprecedented acts of civic leadership after an enormously destructive flood helped victims recover and built public support for creating the Miami Conservancy District,” Ellison said.
“This national model of regional cooperation, water management engineering, and community protection remains a key asset for the future of Hamilton and the Miami Valley,” he said.
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