Tippecanoe County and the 1913 Flood

Heralding the coming of spring, the weather forecast promised a warm and sunny Easter in 1913. Little did citizens of Lafayette realize the force of nature about to be unleashed that March 1913.

The stories of the 1913 flood destruction were widely documented and disseminated from many cities east of the Mississippi, but few came from Lafayette and Tippecanoe County. A hurricane-force gale two days before the flood rains started had taken out the telegraph and telephone lines largely cutting off Tippecanoe Count from the rest of the world. When the flood hit Lafayette, there was simply little means by which to get Tippecanoe’s own stories of destruction out to the rest of the world, and thus the local flood events locally were largely unknown or incorrectly reported.

This presentation is a culmination of the research on local 1913 flood events compiled for the book, “Tippecanoe County and the 1913 Flood” by Arnold Sweet and Pete Bill, and published in 2021 by Arcadia Press. Come hear the stories of how lives were saved, lives were lost, and the face of the local community was changed forever when a torrent of water greater than the flow over Niagara Falls coursed through the middle of our community.

Doors will open at 4:45, and the program will begin at 5:00 PM.  A short question and answer portion will follow.  This program is part of the Joint Program Series that West Lafayette Public Library and Tippecanoe County Historical Association are offering the community throughout 2024.