White River Flood Protection, Indianapolis, 1917

Description:	Panoramic of the newly-constructed flood levee along the White River. Names of Board of Public Works members and engineers associated with the project have been listed on the photo, as well as the Superintendent of Construction. Joseph E. Bell (1865-1923), democratic mayor of Indianapolis from 1914 to 1918, oversaw the building of a flood levee along the West bank of the White River to help protect the city from flooding, which was finished in 1917. The Great Flood of 1913 saw as many as 7,000 displaced and illustrated the devastation that flooding of the White River could bring. A Flood Commission was formed, and bids were taken in 1915 for the building of the levee. The contract was ultimately awarded by the board of public works to Marsch-Cleary-White Construction Company for the bid of $458,065. The firm was from Chicago, but Mayor Bell required that local labor be used in order to approve the contract. Construction was slow as businesses, homes, and railroads were moved to make way for construction.
Origin:	1917
Created By:	Bretzman, Charles
Publisher:	Digital image 2015 Indiana Historical Society. All Rights Reserved.
Source:	http://images.indianahistory.org/cdm/ref/collection/dc013/id/659
Collection:	Panoramic Photograph Images
Copyright:	This image may be printed or downloaded by individuals, schools or libraries for personal use, study, research or classroom teaching without permission. For other uses contact: visualcollections@indianahistory.org.
Geography:	Indiana--Indianapolis--White River
Subjects:	Floods Riparian areas

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