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Reader-submitted Flood of 1913 photos

The Flood of 1913 was one the earliest disasters to receive mass photographic coverage. Photographers printed postcards of flood images for residents to send to their friends and family. This gallery represents submissions from our readers' postcard collections and personal photographs.

To see photos from The News-Sentinel, click here.

To see photos from the Fort Wayne History Center, click here.

Looking east from the Fort Wayne Saddlery Company, the Maumee River crested at 26.1 feet. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

Damaged foundations and sidewalks were commonplace after the flood. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

This unidentified road disappeared under the St. Marys River floodwaters. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

Vesey Greenhouses on Thompson Avenue suffered damage from the flood and a subsequent fire. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

Fast-moving water gushed over an unidentified riverbank. (Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Niblick)

A group of men gathered near the West Main Street Bridge. (Photo courtesy of John Post)

Along St. Joe Boulevard, water poured over the Lakeside dike. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

Residents of the Flats viewed the flooding from the second stories of their homes. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

Traveling along Wells Street, rescuers evacuated ill residents. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

Water nearly submerged the deck of the Main Street Bridge. In the background is the Nickel Plate Railroad Bridge. (Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Niblick)

Workers tried unsuccessfully to reinforce the Lakeside dike. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

A U.S. Coast Guard boat rescued stranded flood victims. (Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Niblick)

A U.S. Coast Guard boat rescued stranded flood victims. (Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Niblick)

St. Marys floodwater almost reached the road leading to Broadway Bridge. (Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Niblick)

After the flood, there was riverbank erosion at the Columbia Street Bridge. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

Entrance to the Main Street Bridge was cut off by high water from the St. Marys River. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

An unidentified man watched wagons navigate the floodwaters at the corner of Spy Run Avenue and Wagner Street. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

Vesey Greenhouses on Thompson Avenue suffered damage from the flood and a subsequent fire. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

Excess water from the St. Marys River flowed into Swinney Park. (Photo courtesy of John Post)

Rising water from the St. Marys River threatened to submerge the roadbed of the Main Street Bridge (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

The Lakeside dike could not hold back the floodwaters. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

A U.S. Coast Guard boat rescued stranded flood victims. (Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Niblick)

After the floodwaters receded, extensive damage to the pavement and the riverbank at the Tennessee Avenue Bridge was revealed. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

Water from the St. Marys River covered West Superior Street. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

Looking west, Taylor Avenue disappeared under the floodwaters from the St. Marys River. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

Rushing water poured over an unidentified riverbank. (Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Niblick)

Uniformed men stood guard at each end of an unidentified bridge. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

The flood gauge on the abutment of Columbia Street Bridge showed the Maumee River level at nearly 23 feet. (Photo courtesy of John Post)

Water from the St. Marys River reached Cherry Street in the Nebraska neighborhood. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

A view from the tracks taken after the flood showed the location of the Allen County Orphan’s Home, the site where four orphans drowned. (Photo courtesy of the Harter Postcard Collection/ACPL)

Julie Henricks of Ossian sent in this photo of Ardah Woods’ tombstone. Woods was one of four orphans who drowned as they were evacuated from the Allen County Orphan’s Home. Woods was a friend of Henrick’s grandmother. (Photo courtesy of Julie Henricks)

Peggy McCarty's grandparents were married only four months when the flood destroyed all their belongings, including her grandmother’s wedding dress. (Photo courtesy of Peggy McCarty)

Mike Evans' grandfather, Charles O. Kennedy, put this letter in his hotel dresser drawer in Dayton, Ohio, before the flood forced evacuations. When he returned, the letter was found with mud stains. (Photo courtesy of Mike Evans)

Fort Wayne resident Margaret Slack sent this photo of a rowboat on Wells Street. (Photo courtesy of Margaret Slack)