Memories of the 1974 flood
On the morning of Saturday, June 8th, 1974, a downpour of 9.27 inches of rain fell on Siloam Springs.
A flash flood began in Sager Creek and quickly rushed downtown. It was estimated at 9,400 cubic feet per second near downtown, where the water was about 7 feet deep in some businesses.
Onlookers observe the flood water damage on Broadway.
Newsman Floyd Carl of the Northwest Arkansas Times, was on the scene and gave his account: “Police estimate that 40 businesses were flooded. The merchandise is miles and miles downstream. The water knocked walls out of several buildings….many cars were washed away.”
Henderson Fabrics, B & D Western Store, and The Southern Grill were among the buildings torn down due to flood damage.
Barbra Henderson writes:
“My in laws owned Henderson Fabrics and was the building that collapsed at the corner of Main and Broadway. He was going to stay in the building but was convinced to leave. We are so thankful that he listened! They also owned Nickels Variety. All the fabric washed down Sager Creek and was pulled out by many volunteers. We took it to my parents farm, rinsed it in the spring and laid it out on the pasture to dry. It was rolled back up and sold at a flood sale. It was all they had after the flood.”
Employees of Allen Canning Company’s central offices reportedly cut a hole in the ceiling to get to the roof where they remained for the duration of the flood.
Doug-Renae Strickland remembers, “I was standing on the roof of Allen's offices waiting for the waters to go down..watching the cars float by…"
Six persons were evacuated from their homes and four cars were pulled from the creek.
Karl Mounger writes:
“I was working at Post Office that day. Was baling water out of basement when a 3 ft wall of water came down the street and washed all of OTASCO riding lawnmowers up the street.”
On Thursday, June 13, 1974, The Interstate News estimated
$15 - 20 million in damages to the city of Siloam Springs as a result of the flood.
The city had the Army Corps of Engineers to prepare a flood plain report to help prevent future disasters.
Watch the video below for more photos from the flood.
