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Augusta in Richmond County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)
 

Floods

 
 
Floods Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, May 11, 2017
1. Floods Marker
Inscription.
The Savannah River and its tributaries drain more than 10,000 square miles of an area that receives some of the heaviest rainfall on the continent.

Augusta's location on a low bluff at the Fall Line of the river has made the city particularly susceptible to seasonal flooding throughout its history.

As one example, a flood recorded in January 1796 destroyed several tobacco warehouses and the public wharf. A freshet of more devastating consequence occurred in 1840, when torrents of rising water and floating debris washed away the two bridges over the river.

In 1888 raging waters five to ten feet deep pushed houses off their foundations. Boats were poled through the streets like "gondolas on Venice canals.”

Again, in 1908 waters swelled to the first stories of homes. As one elderly resident remembered later, "We jacked up the piano, sent the milk cow to higher ground, and retired to the second floor.”
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: DisastersWaterways & Vessels.
 
Location. 33° 28.683′ N, 81° 57.83′ W. Marker is in Augusta, Georgia, in Richmond County. Marker can be reached from 8th Street north of Reynolds Street, on the right when traveling north.
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Marker is located on the Augusta Riverwalk near the 8th Street crossing. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 2 8th Street, Augusta GA 30901, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Cotton (a few steps from this marker); The Levee (within shouting distance of this marker); Founding of Augusta (within shouting distance of this marker); William Bartram Trail (within shouting distance of this marker); Great Indian Warrior / Trading Path (within shouting distance of this marker); De Soto In Georgia (within shouting distance of this marker); Indians (within shouting distance of this marker); Industrial Heritage (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Augusta.
 
Marker detail: Destruction of a cotton warehouse after the flood of 1888 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, May 11, 2017
2. Marker detail: Destruction of a cotton warehouse after the flood of 1888
Photograph Courtesy of The Augusta-Richmond County Museum
Marker detail: Boats were poled past Sacred Heart Church on Greene Street in 1912 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, May 11, 2017
3. Marker detail: Boats were poled past Sacred Heart Church on Greene Street in 1912
Photograph Courtesy of The Augusta-Richmond County Museum
Marker detail: Store owners posed knee-deep in water on Broad Street, in 1908 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, May 11, 2017
4. Marker detail: Store owners posed knee-deep in water on Broad Street, in 1908
Photograph Courtesy of The Augusta-Richmond County Museum
Floods Marker (<i>wide view; Savannah River in background</i>) image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, May 11, 2017
5. Floods Marker (wide view; Savannah River in background)
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on October 21, 2020. It was originally submitted on February 22, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 829 times since then and 18 times this year. Photos:   1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on February 22, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.

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Mar. 19, 2024