Today, Lucas Countyan posts a story on The Flood of 1851 and its effect on Van Buren and other counties in Iowa. The account is one written by a Mr. Hussey and Iowaville is one of the places addressed specifically. No relatives are mentioned, immediate or distant, which, if you think about it, is good, that none of them gained renown via the flood, for had they it would have been likely a bad report.
A story in The Annals of Iowa mentions that it was the great flood of 1851 that killed the willows on the banks of the Des Moines.
While on the subject of early boating on the Des Moines I think it well to mention the fact that up to 1840 I had not noticed that the banks of the river were washing away; but in the year 1850 the people generally began to observe it. The great flood of 1851 killed the willows and the wash became greater…
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