St . John Lutheran Church
Page 12A THE BEACON May 2018
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In the OOD OLD DAYS
goodolddays @ goBEACONnews . com
Editor ’ s note- One of our readers has taken the time to share family memories of the 1937 flood . I am sure you will enjoy his story as much as I do .
The Unexpected- It always happens
The year was 1936 , and it was a good year . My grandparents were leading a happy life . They lived on First Street in Lawrenceburg , had four children ( two boys and two girls ), and ran a grocery store at the corner of Third and Front Streets . My grandmother was the meat cutter , and my two uncles helped run the store . Uncle George , nicknamed Buddy , was recently married and lived across Front Street from the grocery store . Life was good .
Winter came and , as usual ,
Founded 1869 The Family Church
Uncle Buddy and Uncle Charles helped run the family store .
the Ohio River rose . The rising river was not a concern because the flood in 1917 had taught Lawrenceburg a lesson . In fact , the 1917 flood cost my great-grandmother three houses near the corner of Third and Walnut Streets . Because of the devastation caused by the 1917 flood , the city of Lawrenceburg built a levee , and the citizens lived snugly in their little nest while wild Ohio rose and fell .
January 1937 came . The mighty Ohio rose again and kept rising . My grandfather watched it nervously but thought that certainly , the
St . John Lutheran Church
4937 State Route 48 at Bellair , Lawrenceburg , IN 47025 Pastor Matthew Voyer , STS Office 812-537-2865 • Cell 812-577-2407
Sunday Worship 9:00 AM • Sunday School 10:15 AM www . stjohnlawrenceburg . org
Facebook : St . JohnLutheranChurchLawrenceburgIndiana
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513-367-4005 levee would keep them safe and dry . As the river rose above expectations , the family decided to be cautious and went to Buddy ’ s house . Third Street was higher than First Street , and the river was approaching the top of the levee . If the levee was breached , they did not want to get their feet wet .
So there they were ... waiting . The sky was dark when they heard the noise- a sound like a waterfall . You could hear it all over town . Water was pouring over the top of the levee . The family was thankful to be at a higher elevation than their house on Third Street . Even if flood waters got to floor level , they could go safely to the second floor of Buddy ’ s house .
It wasn ’ t long before that move was necessary . My ancestors climbed to the second floor and watched the water encroaching on the grocery store across the street . They could see the moonlight reflect from flood waters that were washing the grocery store ’ s shelves with dirty water .
They were lucky- the water did not flood the second floor of Buddy ’ s house , but it came close . My mother went to the second-floor window facing High Street and sat on the window sill holding a candle in her lap . After a while , a row boat cruised up to the window . The family stepped from the second-floor window sill into the row boat and were taken to Greendale where they stayed in the tent city until the flood abated . My grandfather decided two floods were enough . He lost his grocery store and had to start over , so he moved up the hill where no flood could threaten him again . Lawrenceburg built the levee higher .
The flood of 1937 changed my family ’ s life . Charles and Buddy found a metal barrel floating in the flood waters . They took a hammer and chisel to remove the top . The barrel contained an explosive substance which exploded because of a spark from their efforts to open the barrel . Charles was untouched . Buddy died in the explosion .
My family built homes on Ludlow Hill which still stand high and dry .
Charles and my grandfather went to work for the Cook Pump Company in Greendale . Cooks sold to Byron Jackson who eventually moved to Oklahoma , closer to the oil fields . Charles transferred to Oklahoma to continue
Student pages Rep . Lyness at the Statehouse
Area students recently joined State Representative Randy Lyness as House pages . They toured government offices , helped staff with daily duties , and joined Rep . Lyness on the House floor during the legislative session . Participating students shown above were Dylan Collett from Liberty , Bailey Harvey from Brookville , Taylor Pinkerton from Liberty , and Codey Redd , from Liberty . Rep . Lyness encourages students aged 13 to 18 to consider participating as a page during the 2019 session .
working while my grandfather retired on Social Security . I could not believe he could quit working and the government would send him a check . I was very young but saw an opportunity . I asked him whether I could just retire with him since he had all that free money coming in . That did not work .
I suppose time has a way of making everything work out . Who knows how long that little grocery store in Lawrenceburg would have supported a growing and aging family . The flood changed all that .
In 1936 , life was decided . In 1937 it was re-decided . Change is inevitable . History is interesting , so we talk about it . Sometimes , but rarely , we learn from it . Our memories of those days are of the happy times . We remember things like the
By Carol Donovan
The Old Friends and Bright Beginnings monthly luncheon begins at 11:30 on May 3 at Dearborn Hills United Methodist Church .
The May program will start with a devotional led by Pastor Scott Stephans followed with a catered meal of baked ham , scalloped potatoes , spiced apples , homemade pies , and more .
Following lunch , Marty & Tony Steer from Fairfield , Ohio will take us on a journey with Patrick Henry , who radically spoke his mind . Step back in time with us as we explore our country ’ s history flood of 1937 because those experiences are so traumatic . Change happens all the time , but slowly . We do not remember the grief of slow change . The uncomfortable parts of change are having to do things differently , or dealing with people who are different , of styles changing ( don ’ t tell my wife I don ’ t need to wear a tie ,) of technology changing the ways we do things , of community growth and congestion , and of simply having our comfort zones upended .
Are changes good ? Who knows ? But the lesson is , change happens . If you want it to be good , don ’ t complain about it- be a part of it . Help to guide change that suits you best . I remember the old days . I do not want to go back . I ’ d hate to crank a car to start it , and there were too many pigs raised on Ludlow Hill .
Old Friends Luncheon
through his words of wisdom . Mr . Steer ’ s teaching career includes Mount St . Joseph University , the University of Cincinnati , and Miami University .
Your reservation and $ 10 will be appreciated by Apr . 20 . Ed Smith will greet and check you in at the door . Reservations are required and may be made by calling luncheon leader , Shirley Greene 812-637-0044 or the Dearborn Hills United Methodist Church office 812-637-3993 . Enjoy the day with us as we learn about our history and fellowship with our neighbors .
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