Learning from the Past, Historic Flooding in Goshen
Looking at past flood events to help the City prepare for the future.
Aerial image of Shanklin Park captured by Andrew Kauffman
Flooding in February 2018 was one of the greatest flood events in Goshen's modern memory. The floodwaters shut down large sections of our community causing major road closures and damage to homes and businesses. The damage to our community affected daily life for months and the recovery effort cost local businesses, residents, and the City millions of dollars.
While damage to property was widespread, our community members remained relatively safe from direct harm. Without the efforts of our emergency personnel, this may have been a different story. At one point, Goshen's first responders used boats to conduct an early morning rescue of residents along Rock Run Creek as the water rose rapidly.
Flooding in 2018 was not the first, nor will it be the last, major flood event in our City's history. Looking back can help us look forward.
Keep reading to see highlights from other major events, compare what are thought to be the two biggest events in City history (1892 and 2018), and get a sneak peek into some of the City's efforts to prepare for the next major flood.
Historic Timeline
Historic river crest data for Goshen from the National Weather Service. Click the arrows to expand the chart to full screen.
The Elkhart River reaches "minor flood stage" in Goshen when it measures 7 feet on the USGS river gauge at the Indiana Avenue bridge—a height the River has reached 79 times since the gauge was installed in 1924 ( National Weather Service Records for Goshe n).
The City is considered to be in "major flood stage" when the River rises to a height of 11 feet. By this time, many businesses and homes along our waterways in Goshen are threatened or impacted by rising floodwaters.
The river has crested above 11 feet at least four times in recorded history. Below is a timeline of those major floods along with two additional floods thought to be at, or near, major flood stage based on historical records.
May 1892 Flooding
1892 flood images taken from atop the County Courthouse looking southwest (left) along the Millrace and west (right) along Lincoln Avenue. Historic analysis suggests the photos were taken by William Parfitt on May 6, 1892.
Goshen News Article from May 3, 1892 describing flooding and its impacts along the Elkhart River.
"Rivers on a Rampage"
In May of 1892, the City of Goshen experienced an extraordinary rain event that caused major flooding along the Elkhart River and some of its tributaries.
Incredible images depicting the event have been found in historical archives and meticulously dated by members of the Goshen Historical Society using old Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps and microfilm of newspaper clippings from the era.
The image on the left looks towards the former industrial area along the Millrace Canal. The Goshen News article describes the damage to property and manufacturing delays in this district. While a number of buildings have since been demolished, the Hawks building, with its flat roof towering above homes, is a recognizable landmark from the image.
The righthand image above shows flooding in present-day Rogers Park and the Kroger area shopping center on a scale that we have not seen in modern memory. In the above images, the bridge is at the approximate location of the present-day Lincoln Avenue Bridge. Development has reshaped this area, dramatically changing the modern floodplain.
While we do not know with certainty the river crest or flood extent during this event, dated images give us some insight. Comparing elevations on old maps with the water levels against still-standing buildings in the images, we can estimate that the river crested well above the 2018 crest of 12.53 feet.
February 2018 Flooding
The 2018 Flood sticks out in many people's memories as the worst flood event in living memory.
Images taken by City staff, hobby drone operators, and other community members provide us with a treasure trove of information. As do the damage assessment records City staff spent countless hours assembling. These records of the Flood can help us know what to expect as we move towards a climate future that predicts more intense, more frequent flood events.
During Flooding
The gallery below highlights some of the most dramatic imagery captured during the Flood.
Aerial images taken via drone and helicopter during February 2018 flooding.
Accumulated debris at the Maple City Greenway Bridge over Rock Run Creek in Oakridge Cemetery.
The Aftermath
When the floodwaters finally receded, the Goshen community banded together to assess damages and clean up.
The 2018 Flood revealed that some areas identified by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as vulnerable to flooding came through the event unscathed and other, less looked at areas suffered damage. Assessment records have helped the City better target parts of our community for flood vulnerability and adaptation planning.
Updated floodplain maps are on their way, and Goshen's on-the-ground knowledge helped make those maps more accurate and useful for targeted flood mitigation projects and emergency response planning efforts.
The map below illustrates how flooding can also occur outside of the floodplains associated with our waterways. Undersized or unmaintained storm drains, storm sewer systems, basins, and other drainage features can contribute to localized flooding. Flooding in hyperlocal drainage basins is often less predictable and can catch residents off guard with costly consequences.
This map compiles flood damage assessment records and maps the density of assessed buildings to illustrate flooding "hot spots." While most are within the predicted floodplain regions, a few areas were impacted by more localized flooding.
Areas of concern identified as focus areas for Goshen's 2021 GLISA Flood Vulnerability Assessment.
Looking to the Future
Recognizing that climate change predictions suggest future flooding will be both more intense and more frequent than years past, the City of Goshen has a number of ongoing efforts that attempt to build a more resilient community.
- Goshen's Flood Resilience Plan: Working with Christopher Burke Engineering, City staff and elected officials have helped develop a plan to increase flood resilience. The Plan includes a list of recommended actions to reduce vulnerability, adapt to changing conditions, and thus, develop flood resilience.
- Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment for Stormwater: The Stormwater Department worked with Great Lakes Integrated Sciences and Assessments (GLISA) to develop a climate change vulnerability assessment for stormwater. The assessment is a comprehensive overview of local climate predictions and factors impacting vulnerability to those changes. The assessment considers socioeconomic status, landscape features (i.e. elevation, soil type, tree canopy, land use, and built infrastructure characteristics) for 18 different assessment locations.
Access both the Flood Resilience Plan and the Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment for Stormwater at https://goshenindiana.org/flood-zone.
Localized climate data, continued floodplain research, and other developments aid greatly in planning for, and adapting to, disaster risk. The past is what grounds this planning in present realities and serves as a great reminder for both the monetary and community health value of preparedness work.