To this day, it’s the biggest flood in California’s recorded history. It put Sacramento underwater, but what about this part of the San Joaquin Valley? The local story of the flood of 1861 and 1862, on this edition of KVPR’s Central Valley Roots.
On December 9th 1861 an atmospheric river storm hit California. The rain continued, all the way until January 20th 1862. Sacramento saw 37 inches of rain. Much of the capital city was underwater. Governor Leland Stanford took a rowboat to his inauguration ceremony. An estimated 4,000 people died, and damages topped $3 billion in today’s dollars.
The southern San Joaquin Valley saw major flooding as well, but most valley cities didn’t exist back in 1862, and the population was sparse. While the entire valley was not submerged, low lying areas were. The valley’s rivers and natural lakes rose, creating a waterway 250-300 miles long and 20 miles wide…