Tragedy and Resilience in Ellicott City

(Left) The aftermath of the 2018 flood, and (right) the same location in Ellicott City today. (Photos courtesy of Howard County Historical Society)

The Howard County Historical Society has installed an exhibit at the Welcome Center in downtown Ellicott City. When we were first asked by the Welcome Center staff to install a permanent exhibit, I asked them what visitors wanted to learn about. Without hesitation, they said “the floods.” There are four distinct elements of the exhibit: Geography, History of Floods, Resilience of the Community, and the Safe and Sound Plan.

Our research team decided to focus first on the geography that leads to frequent flooding. Called “The Hollow” by early visitors to the area, the stretch of the Patapsco River Valley that runs through Ellicott City is a unique geographic feature. The valley here is very narrow and steep, with the river moving quickly due to the town’s location bordering the Piedmont and the Coastal Plain. This narrow stretch of land is called the “Fall Line,” where the water falls from higher ground to the flat plain east of Elkridge. This made “The Hollow” a perfect location to build mills that used water power. It was not a very good place to build a town. In addition to the steep descent, much of the underlying rock in this area is granite, a metamorphic rock that is nearly impervious to water, as can be seen even along the sidewalks (inset photo) and the interiors of buildings.

A timeline of the recorded floods shows the frequency and the two distinct types of floods. River floods are the most common. These occur when the river rises after heavy rains. The other type of floods are called tributary floods, when the streams flowing to the Patapsco fill with debris and create “dams” that channel the water down the streets. Several buildings were removed as they were built over a tributary, capturing the debris flowing downstream. There is also a description with photos of the flood of 1868, which is the worst on record and killed over 40 people.

The residents and business owners of the city are the focus of the next stage of the exhibit. Here, we show how locals have rebuilt their beloved city each time tragedy occurs. Before and after photos of the floods of 1952, 1972, 2016, and 2018 demonstrate the resilience of the town.

Also featured in the story of the local business is The Artists’ Gallery, whose staff had to escape out of a second story fire escape in the 2018 flood. A monitor plays several videos related to the floods of 2016 and 2018, as well as an overview of the river and the tributaries that have long defined the town.

The final section of the exhibit is devoted to explaining the county’s Safe and Sound Plan, an attempt to mitigate future tributary floods using large containment ponds, removing some buildings, and a tunnel to channel water from the higher western side of the town to the river. On your next visit to this historic town, stop by the Welcome Center to see this exhibit and others.

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Mark J. Stout is the former Executive Director of the Howard County Historical Society. He spent the previous 33 years in the Howard County Public School System in a variety of roles.