1997 Red River Valley Flood Collection, 1997-

1997 Red River Valley Flood Collection

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Collection Overview

Title: 1997 Red River Valley Flood Collection, 1997-

ID: OGLMC1351

Extent: 39.25 Linear Feet

Date Acquired: 00/00/1997

Subjects: Grand Forks - Floods, Grand Forks County, North Dakota - Floods, Red River Valley Flood of 1997, University of North Dakota - 1997 Red River Valley Flood

Languages: English

Scope and Contents of the Materials

The 1997 Red River Valley Flood Collection has been divided into ten series as follows:

Series 1: Personal Accounts

Series 2: Media Coverage

Series 3: Publications

Series 4: Governmental Organizations

Series 5: Photographs

Series 6: Audio-Visuals

Series 7: University of North Dakota

Series 8: Grand Forks Greenway

Series 9: Artifacts

Series 10: Miscellaneous

Collection Historical Note

The winter of 1996-1997 was unusually harsh as eight blizzards struck the Grand Forks region of the Red River Valley. The last and one of the most severe, Blizzard Hannah, occurred April 4-6, 1997. When the snow began to melt and the Red River began to rise, the people of Grand Forks and East Grand Forks began flood preparations in earnest. However, the cities' preparations did not anticipate the extent of the flooding. Flood preparations were made to protect the cities from a 49-foot flood crest; the actual flood crested at 54.33 feet on Tuesday, April 22. On April 18, the Red River began to overrun temporary dikes along the river. Those areas in immediate danger were evacuated. As the river continued to rise without any hint of slowing, the entire cities of Grand Forks and East Grand Forks were evacuated on April 19. On that same day, a fire broke out in downtown Grand Forks that destroyed 11 buildings, including one entire block. During the evacuation, University of North Dakota and city of Grand Forks employees remained behind to continue to protect what they could from the still rising river crest and to perform those various administrative and governmental functions that needed to be done. On Thursday, April 24, government officials began to allow people back into the driest areas of town to visit their homes and begin the cleanup process. While the majority of the cleanup itself was finished by the end of the 1997 summer, reconstruction of destroyed basements, houses, and buildings has continued into 2000. In addition to these reconstruction efforts, the cities of Grand Forks and East Grand Forks have been developing flood abatement strategies, most notably a 54-foot dike system in Grand Forks and a Greenway along the Red River itself.

Subject/Index Terms

Grand Forks - Floods
Grand Forks County, North Dakota - Floods
Red River Valley Flood of 1997
University of North Dakota - 1997 Red River Valley Flood

Administrative Information

Repository: Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections

Access Restrictions: Open for inspection under the rules and regulations of the Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections.

Acquisition Method: The collection has received numerous donations from a variety of individual donors.

Related Publications: Please search the library catalog for a complete list

Preferred Citation: (Description of Item). 1997 Red River Valley Flood Collection. OGLMC 1351, Box #, Folder #. Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections, Chester Fritz Library, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks.

Finding Aid Revision History: Finding aid migrated to Archon in February 2016.

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Series:

[Series 1: Personal Accounts],
[Series 2: Media Coverage],
[Series 3: Publications],
[Series 4: Governmental Organizations],
[Series 5: Photographs],
[Series 6: Audio-Visuals],
[Series 7: University of North Dakota],
[Series 8: Greater Grand Forks Greenway],
[Series 9: Artifacts],
[Series 10: Miscellaneous],
[All]

Series 10: Miscellaneous

Box 4

Folder 17: Application, "Greater Grand Forks Immediate Aid Fund" (aka The Angel Fund), 1997
Folder 41: 1999 Dakota Conference on Rural and Public Health: Alana Knudson-Buresh, Ph.D. "The Impact of the 1997 Flood on Health Insurance in North Dakota"
Folder 49: Correspondence from YHR Architecture Planning regarding restoration of the Metropolitan Opera House, 17 August 1998
Folder 54: Ag Imaging Inc. Letters and Enclosures, May 7, 1997
Folder 65: Flood Souvenir T-Shirt Order Forms, 1997
Folder 67: Information about other area floods, 1967 and 1999

Box 8

Folder 6: Children's Drawings from United Day Nursery, 1997
Folder 7: Children's Drawings from United Day Nursery, 1998
Folder 8: United Day Nursery Damage Estimates, May 1997
Folder 9: United Lutheran Church, 1998
Folder 18: Business/Organizational Announcements, 1998
Folder 19: East Grand Forks High School Band Thank You, 1997
Folder 20: East Grand Forks Parade Handout, April 1998
Folder 22: Memorial Monument Proposals, ca. 1999

Box 12

Folder 5: Downtown Grand Forks and Downtown East Grand Forks, 1998-1999
Folder 6: Flood Control Maps, Undated
Folder 9: Grand Forks/East Grand Forks Long Term Flood Abatement Project, January 7, 1998
Folder 11: Monetary Damage Amounts, Undated
Folder 13: Children's Drawings from United Day Nursery, 1998
Folder 18: Flood Map: Red River System; April 6, 1969

Box 17

Folder 13: Environmental Assessment & Storm Water Detention Report
Folder 15: Levee Alignments & Northridge Hills Courts Option of Floodwall: February 5, 2000
Folder 16: Levee Alignment Options Study
Folder 40: Bibliography for Stories on the Flood and Aftermath
Folder 41: Issues on the Northern Pacific Railroad Bridge: December 16, 1999 & January 18, 2000
Folder 42: Maps of Flood Protection for Grand Forks and East Grand Forks
Folder 45: Floodplain Management and 1999 Water Quality Test
Folder 46: North Dakota Museum of Art Exhibition, "Voices From the Flood" Opened May 3, 1998
Folder 47: Red Cross Reports on Remaining Red River Valley Flood Funds: December 2, 1999
Folder 49: Miscellaneous
Folder 68: Chronology of 1997 Flood Outlooks & Forecasting Activities for East Grand Forks Forecast Point
Folder 69: Grand Forks Flood Plan: March 7, 1997
Folder 72: 1997 Flood Coordination Meeting: May 6, 1997
Folder 73: Water, Pumps, and Sewer Reports & Information: April & May 1997, undated
Folder 74: Grand Forks Pump Inventory and Location
Folder 75: Emergency Personnel Passes
Folder 76: Emergency/City Personnel Phone Numbers
Folder 78: Grand Forks City & University of North Dakota Press Releases: March-May 1997
Folder 79: Utility Service Providers Press Releases: April 9, 1997 and May 2-16, 1997
Folder 82: Miscellaneous Press Releases: April 21-May 13, 1997, undated
Folder 83: Copies of Notes for Press Conferences: April 14-May 16, 1997
Folder 86: Disaster Recovery Center Information: May 3-9, 1997
Folder 87: Correspondence to City Employees: April & May 1997
Folder 88: Information about Flood Services: April and May 1997
Folder 92: Recommendations for Cleanup and Injury Prevention: April 30, 1997
Folder 94: Cartoons and Jokes About the Flood
Folder 95: Miscellaneous

Department of Special Collections
Digital Finding Aids