Description: Photograph of the Portsmouth Water Works water pump. The caption reads: "Low-duty pumping station built by WPA workmen at Portsmouth to pump water from the Ohio River into the filtration plant. The Ohio River will have to flow over the top of this tall structure --- up to a stage of 90 feet -- before the pumps will cease to function." Photographed and descriped by the Information Unit WPA in OHIO, Clinton Building, Columbus, Ohio. The photo is from the "Portsmouth, Ohio, flood of 1937", SC 381. This collection contains 37 photographic black and white prints, 21 x 26cm or smaller; and 4 postcards in black in white, 9 x 14 cm. Photographs document the flood damage in Portsmouth, including sandbagging, floodwall construction, and WPA rescue efforts. In 1937, southern Ohio faced one of the worst floods in its history, known today as the "Great Flood of 1937." The Ohio River flood of 1937 took place in late January and February. In Cincinnati, the flood was particularly difficult for the city, where flood levels reached its crest of 79.99 feet on Tuesday, January 26, 1937. Communities along the Ohio River in Kentucky, Indiana, and Illinois also faced serious problems. Many people lost their homes as a result of the flood. The Ohio River Flood of 1937 caused more than twenty million dollars in damages. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: sc381_32_01
Subjects: Floods--Ohio River; Portsmouth (Ohio)--Flood, 1937
Places: Portsmouth (Ohio); Scioto County (Ohio)
 

Description: Dated January 8, 1941, this photograph shows the Cary-Bird, a stern-wheel paddle boat, anchored on the Ohio River. A note on the reverse of the photograph reads "The Cary-Bird at Anchor on the Ohio River; Ident. - 28-to Michigan - National Picture 1/8/41 Book; Location - Ohio River; Credit - E. P. Moody; Caption - The Cary-Bird. The photo must be returned to OHIO WRITERS' PROJECT 8 E. Chestnut St., Columbus, O." This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B12F01_005_001
Subjects: Steamboats; Ohio River; Ohio--History--Pictorial works; Federal Writers' Project
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows the John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge, which links Covington, Kentucky, with Cincinnati, Ohio. Formerly named the Covington-Cincinnati Bridge, the structure was the first Ohio River bridge linking the North and South after the Civil War. This view shows the bridge and downtown Cincinnati skyline. In 1846 the Kentucky General Assembly granted a charter to the founders of the Covington & Cincinnati Bridge Company, which hoped to build a bridge across the Ohio River that would connect the two cities. Cincinnati was a major metropolis by the 1850s, and Kentucky farmers and businessmen hoped to have an easier time transporting their goods to the city. For various reasons, many Ohioans were less enthusiastic. As a result of this opposition, the Ohio legislature did not grant the Covington & Cincinnati Bridge Company a charter to construct a bridge in 1849. Despite these hurdles, the Covington & Cincinnati Bridge Company persevered, and in 1856 it signed civil engineer John A. Roebling (1806-1869) to construct a suspension bridge. Construction began that year, but it stopped the next year due to the Panic of 1857. Construction resumed during the American Civil War when Ohio and federal government authorities realized the need for a bridge to supply the soldiers operating in the South. Due to the high inflation during the war, Roebling had to pay his workers in gold, and shortages forced him to import some construction materials from England. Workers completed a small footbridge across the Ohio River on September 24, 1865, nearly six months after the war ended. This initial bridge gave construction workers an easier means of stringing the cables. The Covington & Cincinnati Suspension Bridge was opened to pedestrian traffic on December 1, 1866, but its formal opening occurred a month later. To help offset the construction cost (approximately $1.8 million), the company established tollbooths at both ends of the bridge and charged three cents per person to walk across the span. At the time of its completion, it was the world’s longest suspension bridge (a span of 1,619 feet. When the Ohio River flooded in 1937, the Covington & Cincinnati Suspension Bridge was the only bridge that remained open along the Ohio River between Steubenville, Ohio, and Cairo, Illinois, a distance of more than eight hundred miles. The bridge was privately operated until Kentucky purchased it in 1953. In 1982 the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet officially renamed it the “John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge.” It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1975. The Covington & Cincinnati Suspension Bridge is regarded as a prototype for Roebling’s next project, which would become his most famous structure. The New York Bridge Company hired him to design and build a bridge over the East River that would connect Brooklyn and Manhattan. Roebling, however, would not live to see the completion of the world-famous Brooklyn Bridge. He contracted tetanus after being injured on the work site and died in 1869. His son Washington Roebling, a civil engineer, and daughter-in-law Emily Warren Roebling supervised the construction and completion of the bridge, which opened in 1883. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06656
Subjects: John A. Roebling Bridge (Cincinnati, Ohio, and Covington, Ky.); Suspension bridges; National Historic Landmarks Program (U.S.); Roebling, John Augustus, 1806-1869; Bridges; Ohio River
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows the John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge, which links Covington, Kentucky, with Cincinnati, Ohio. Formerly named the Covington-Cincinnati Bridge, the structure was the first Ohio River bridge linking the North and South after the Civil War. This view shows the bridge from the Kentucky side looking toward the downtown Cincinnati skyline. Clearly visible are the suspension cables and one of the bridge towers. In 1846 the Kentucky General Assembly granted a charter to the founders of the Covington & Cincinnati Bridge Company, which hoped to build a bridge across the Ohio River that would connect the two cities. Cincinnati was a major metropolis by the 1850s, and Kentucky farmers and businessmen hoped to have an easier time transporting their goods to the city. For various reasons, many Ohioans were less enthusiastic. As a result of this opposition, the Ohio legislature did not grant the Covington & Cincinnati Bridge Company a charter to construct a bridge in 1849. Despite these hurdles, the Covington & Cincinnati Bridge Company persevered, and in 1856 it signed civil engineer John A. Roebling (1806-1869) to construct a suspension bridge. Construction began that year, but it stopped the next year due to the Panic of 1857. Construction resumed during the American Civil War when Ohio and federal government authorities realized the need for a bridge to supply the soldiers operating in the South. Due to the high inflation during the war, Roebling had to pay his workers in gold, and shortages forced him to import some construction materials from England. Workers completed a small footbridge across the Ohio River on September 24, 1865, nearly six months after the war ended. This initial bridge gave construction workers an easier means of stringing the cables. The Covington & Cincinnati Suspension Bridge was opened to pedestrian traffic on December 1, 1866, but its formal opening occurred a month later. To help offset the construction cost (approximately $1.8 million), the company established tollbooths at both ends of the bridge and charged three cents per person to walk across the span. At the time of its completion, it was the world’s longest suspension bridge (a span of 1,619 feet). When the Ohio River flooded in 1937, the Covington & Cincinnati Suspension Bridge was the only bridge that remained open along the Ohio River between Steubenville, Ohio, and Cairo, Illinois, a distance of more than eight hundred miles. The bridge was privately operated until Kentucky purchased it in 1953. In 1982 the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet officially renamed it the “John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge.” It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1975. The Covington & Cincinnati Suspension Bridge is regarded as a prototype for Roebling’s next project, which would become his most famous structure. The New York Bridge Company hired him to design and build a bridge over the East River that would connect Brooklyn and Manhattan. Roebling, however, would not live to see the completion of the world-famous Brooklyn Bridge. He contracted tetanus after being injured on the work site and died in 1869. His son Washington Roebling, a civil engineer, and daughter-in-law Emily Warren Roebling supervised the construction and completion of the bridge, which opened in 1883. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06657
Subjects: John A. Roebling Bridge (Cincinnati, Ohio, and Covington, Ky.); Suspension bridges; National Historic Landmarks Program (U.S.); Roebling, John Augustus, 1806-1869; Bridges; Ohio River
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: Canal plat map showing a section of the route of the Ohio and Erie Canal in Scioto County, including the new channel for the outlet of the canal into the Ohio River near Portsmouth. Bridges, culverts, and other landmarks along the route are also noted. The map was created under the direction of the members of the Canal Commission of the state of Ohio and approved by the Chief Engineer of the Department of Public Works (variously referred to as the Board of Public Works and the Division of Public Works). The Ohio and Erie Canal was constructed between 1825 and 1832, eventually connecting Cleveland and Lake Erie with Portsmouth and the Ohio River. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: BV4919_011
Subjects: Transportation; Canals -- Ohio; Ohio and Erie Canal (Ohio); Ohio River
Places: Scioto County (Ohio);
 

Description: In January and February of 1937, weeks of heavy rainfall caused the Ohio River to flood parts of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Kentucky, causing $500 million in property damages, and displacing and killing hundreds. By the end of January, the Ohio River measured 80 feet deep in Cincinnati, one of the areas most affected. President Roosevelt dispatched thousands of relief workers from the Works Progress Administration to rescue flood victims and restore affected cities. This photograph shows the rising levels of the Ohio River encroaching on Ironton, Ohio, a city of 20,000 inhabitants. Ironton was the home of lucrative iron and cement plants, as well as lumber and mining interests. The photograph centers on the Lawrence County Courthouse, located at 111 South 4th Street. The Ironton-Russell Bridge, a cantilever bridge built in 1922, connects Campbell Avenue of Ironton to Etna Street on the Kentucky side of the river. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B08F11_006_1
Subjects: Floods; Natural disasters; Ohio River; Works Progress Administration; Ohio Federal Writers' Project
Places: Ironton (Ohio); Lawrence County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows downtown Ironton, Ohio, at 3rd and Center Streets during the 1937 Ohio River flood, also referred to as the Great Flood. Visible business signs include S.S. Kresge Co. 5-10-25 store, Peoples Credit Clothing, and Gallaker Drugs. In January and February of 1937, weeks of heavy rainfall caused the Ohio River to flood parts of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Kentucky, causing $500 million in property damages, and displacing and killing hundreds. By the end of January, the Ohio River measured 80 feet deep in Cincinnati, one of the areas most affected. President Franklin D. Roosevelt dispatched thousands of relief workers from the Works Progress Administration to rescue flood victims and restore affected cities. This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B15F04_003_012_003
Subjects: Floods; Natural Disasters; Ohio River; Storefronts; Ohio Federal Writers' Project;
Places: Ironton (Ohio); Lawrence County (Ohio)
 

Description: Caption reads: "Ice jam on Ohio River at Cincinnati." The Ohio River is formed by the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers at modern-day Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It ends approximately 900 miles downstream at Cairo, Illinois, where it flows into the Mississippi River. It received its English name from the Iroquois word, "O-Y-O," meaning "the great river." Thirty-one of the state's major streams and rivers flow directly into the Ohio River. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B01F18_014_001
Subjects: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio); Ohio River
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: In January and February of 1937, weeks of heavy rainfall caused the Ohio River to flood parts of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Kentucky, causing $500 million in property damages, and displacing and killing hundreds. By the end of January, the Ohio River measured 80 feet deep in Cincinnati, one of the areas most affected. This photograph shows Standard Oil Co. Storage in Steubenville, Ohio, looking across the Ohio River and Harmon Creek. President Roosevelt dispatched thousands of relief workers from the Works Progress Administration to rescue flood victims and restore affected cities. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a component of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project for which each state had a number of writers hired by the federal government. One of the primary goals of the Federal Writers’ Project was to complete the American Guide Series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B08F06_019_001
Subjects: Steubenville (Ohio); Storefronts--United States--Pictorial works; Floods; Natural disasters; Ohio River; Works Progress Administration; Ohio Federal Writers' Project
Places: Steubenville (Ohio); Jefferson County (Ohio)
 

Description: View of Marietta and the Ohio River, Washington County, Ohio, ca. 1940-1949. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL00423
Subjects: Ohio River; Marietta (Ohio); Bridges--Ohio River
Places: Marietta (Ohio); Washington County (Ohio)
 

Description: Dated January 21, 1893, this photograph shows a cantilever bridge over the Ohio River, connecting Cincinnati, Ohio, and Newport, Kentucky. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL07979
Subjects: Bridges--Ohio River; Ohio Economy--Transportation and Development; Ohio Economy--Architecture and Engineering; Winter
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: Dated ca. 1935-1940, this photograph shows a barge and steam boat labeled The Ohio River Company, on the Ohio River, with a sailing canoe in the foreground. A note on the photograph's reverse reads "A familiar sight along the Ohio River." This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B12F02_010_001
Subjects: Ships; Boats and boating; Ohio River; Transportation--Ohio; Outdoor recreation
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)