Just as point of reference, the west bottoms area of Kansas City
(which is where this photo was taken) has not flooded again since
the great 1951 flood. After that flood, a 50 foot concrete flood
wall was built. Even in 1993 which caused anxiety in Kansas City
about flooding, the water level never reached closer than 10 feet
below the top of the flood wall.
The 1951 flood however decimated the stockyards and meat packers
in the area. The area never totally recovered as the livestock to
market pattern changed and Omaha became the biggest packing town.
This Esther Bubley photo from 1948 (part of the Newberry Library
CB&Q collection) shows the west bottoms as it's height prior
to the 1951 flood. The elevated track is the old Kansas City
Public Service line that entered a tunnel beneath the photographer
to get to downtown Kansas City.
Bill Hirt
On 6/22/2020 8:49 AM, William Barber
wrote:
Actually,
there are two photos of the furniture car that I think are
related. What doesn’t make sense is the car number. In one
photo it appears to be 12138 and in the other 42138. Is it
possible that in the side view, the car number is really
42138? The photos were taken following a 1903 flood in
Kansas City, and I believe the location is the West
bottoms area of KC. The dirt on the side of the car is the
height of the flood water. There is a second cor lodged
between the furniture car and the freight house. That
area, near the confluence of the Kansas and Missouri
Rivers, has always been prone to flooding. I am glad that
my furniture is not in that car!
Bill Barber
Gravois
Mills, MO
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