Anniversary of the Great Flood of 1913

UNLESS..a simple word that opens a world of possibilities of meanings...I rediscovered "The Lorax" and UNLESS last year watching the movie with my daughter, Rowan.  I liked the message and wanted to tie it into my obsession for genealogy and family history but was not sure how or where to begin.

I decided to use the anniversary of a historic tragic event to get started.  So here it goes...

One hundred years ago today (March 25th), Columbus, Ohio, my hometown, was hit by what became known as The Flood of 1913.  Rain began that Easter Sunday and dropped more than 10 inches of rain flooding many of Ohio's rivers and streams. Tuesday morning, the levees protecting the West Side broke and the Scioto River flooded the streets. According to the Columbus Dispatch, 93 lives were lost and 4000 buildings were damaged or destroyed- many more lives were affected throughout Ohio, especially Dayton, and nationwide.  It could be considered the Katrina or Sandy of the the day, but not many remember or hear about it these days.

I vaguely recall my grandmother, Eleanor McGraw, telling me some stories about the destruction of the westside of Columbus.  Her family lived in Flytown (Arena district today).  She was only 5 when it happened but she talked about the deaths and people being trapped in their homes for days.  I wish I had been able to ask her more about it before dementia struck.

Aside from my grandmother's stories, I did not know anyone in my family was affected by this flood until I was researching my Wilkins line and the siblings of my great-great-grandfather, Clarence Sidney Wilkins.  I was shocked to discover in the 1880 census and 1870 census that Clarence had a brother named Charles.  My grandfather was Charles Wilkins and I thought he was the first Charles in the family.  Why had I never heard about him?  Was my grandfather named after him?  What happened to him?

So I dug deeper and looked for him in the 1900 census.  By then, he was a billing clerk for an express company.  He had married a woman named Martha from Indiana five years before and had a daughter named Elizabeth (age 3).  They lived on W. Norwich near Ohio State University.  I discovered a marriage record for Charles and Martha Burke in Henry County, Indiana in October 1895.  Perhaps his job with the express company took him to Indiana.

None of this information rang any bells so I looked further.  In the 1910 census, Charles and his family lived on Pennsylvania Ave. near Victorian Village.  Charles and Martha now had 4 daughters:  Elizabeth (13), Dorothy (9), Maxine (7), and Donna (3).  Charles was an Express Manager with one of the railroads.  However, by the time of the 1920 census, Charles is a widower living alone on East Main Street.  So now I am wondering what happened to Charles' family and why had I never heard of them?

Then I came across records on FamilySearch.....

 

I found a death certificate for a Martha Burk Wilkins who died on March 25, 1913 in the Columbus Flood, followed by a death certificate for Donna Wilkins, age 6; a death certificate for Maxine Wilkins, age 10; and a death certificate for Dorothy Wilkins, age 12.  Sadly, Dorothy was probably found a day or two later as her death was listed sometime March 26th-27th a block away. 

I can read between the lines as to Charles' sadness at this time as he did not list her mother's name or her exact birthdate.  The birthdate item left me feeling a little odd until I found a birth record for Esther Wilkins AKA Dorothy -- March 26, 1901.  Her 12th birthday was the day after the flood.  Martha, Donna, Maxine and Dorothy were buried in Henry County, Indiana - Martha's birthplace a week later. 

Charles remained in Columbus but lived on E Main St near Bexley until his death in November, 1926 of organic heart disease.  After the flood, he was no longer affiliated with the railroad but earned a living as a machinist for a local tool company.  My great-great-grandfather, Clarence Wilkins, was the informant on his death certificate.

The question remains what became of Elizabeth Wilkins.  She would have been about 16 at the time of the flood.  I could not find a death certificate or marriage license for her.  There is an Elizabeth Wilkins, age 23, in the 1920 census, working as a clerk for the steam railroad.  City directories list an Elizabeth Wilkins working for the YWCA until about 1920 and then nothing...  I don't know if this was Charles and Martha's Elizabeth or not.  If it was the correct Elizabeth, why aren't there any records of Elizabeth living with Charles after the flood?

Today, I am left with several questions that may never be answered...   Did Elizabeth survive the flood?  Did she marry and have children?  What happened to possibly cause a rift between Charles and Elizabeth?  Why was the story of Charles and his family not passed down through Clarence's family?  I may never find out but I wanted to record this story and start sharing it today.

A special thanks to my editor, Rowan, who asked lots of questions.  More to follow....