Event Details

• 03/09/2013

  Location: Wright Memorial, Wright-Patterson Air force Base | Map Time: 2:00 PM Fee Information: Free Contact Name: Park Ranger Contact Phone Number: 937.425.0008

Come, explore the effects of the Greatest Weather Disaster in Dayton's history and see what the community has done to prevent it from happening in the future.

Through hands on activities and first-person accounts park rangers will take participants on a journey through Dayton's flood.

What was it like to be trapped by the rising water? What dangers would you face? How would you deal with the clean up after the water drained away? These and other questions will be explored as part of the program. 

"In the early morning hours of Tuesday, March 25, church bells rang and whistles blew throughout the city warning of impending disaster. Only one hour later, the water had topped the Riverdale levee, and within another ten minutes the Monument Avenue levee had broken. With this last defense gone, water began to roar into downtown at speeds of 25 miles per hour."

The flood left a lasting impact on the community and all of western Ohio. The program explore the disaster and the community efforts to create a Conservancy District that has become a model for flood control across the nation.  

The program will be on Saturday, March 9 at 2:00 pm., in the Huffman Prairie Flying Field Interpretive Center. The building is located adjacent to the Wright Memorial on the Wright-Patterson Air force Base and is one of the units of Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park. While aimed at kids between the ages of seven and twelve, the program will have information for everyone.

The program is open to the public and is free of charge.