Valley Rewind: Flooding in the Swannanoa Valley exhibit looks at past and future

This photograph from the Swannanoa Valley Museum and History Center’s extensive photograph collection shows locals on the Whitson Avenue bridge in Swannanoa watching the swollen waters of the Swannanoa River during the flood of August 1940. One of the earliest major floods documented in Western North Carolina took place in 1791, when waters rose to a height estimated to be higher than any area floods since. In more recent years, the flood of 2004, caused by hurricanes Frances, Ivan and Jeanne washed out roads, tore up trailers and inundated local businesses. Floods will always be a hazard in this area, but there is much that can be done to lessen their impact. Learn more by visiting the museum’s new exhibit “Rising Waters: The Past and Future of Flooding in the Swannanoa Valley.” Call 828-669-9566 or visit www.swannanoavalleymuseum.org/exhibits to learn more.