Petaluma’s Past: California’s disastrous ‘megaflood’

Global warming is upon us now and the weather has been a big topic over the last few years, but the worst winter storms in all of California’s history hit 161 years ago, as an incredible 6 feet of rain fell in just 43 days. The historic floods of the winter of 1861-62 were unprecedented. They were described by The Petaluma Argus as “devastating and ruinous,“ pointing out that it was then “impossible to approximate the number of lives lost.”

Speaking of that, the American Civil War had begun in 1861. Abraham Lincoln had been president for only a few months, California had been a state for just 11 years and Petaluma had been franchised for only three years at the time.

When the floods came, the Transcontinental Railroad was under construction and our new California governor, Leland Stanford and his legislators, were forced to convene in San Francisco because Sacramento had been virtually washed off the map. What was left of that entire city could only be reached by boat in 1862.

So what happened to cause this? Apparently, 1861-62’s torrential rains quickly melted all of the Sierra snows and the American and Sacramento Rivers overran their banks and collapsed levees. By Jan. 1, 1862, the water level in those rivers was 18 feet above the highest mark ever (or since), recorded.

The Petaluma Argus reported that, “Sunday December 8th, was a night of terror in Sacramento.” Little did they know it was only the beginning.

By January 12, the atmospheric rivers had driven thousands of families from their homes in California. In Sonoma County, the roads were impassible. The San Francisco Call, on Jan. 12, said that “Oregon, Washington and California alike had been wrecked,” and that “Sacramento has been drowned out of existence.”

During that event, Governor Stanford had to be rowed from his offices. Later that year, Stanford ordered a third story built onto the Governor’s mansion, so if the floods returned, they could just abandon the 1st floor.

Amazingly, one-quarter of California’s economy was destroyed in those storms. Thousands of cattle, hogs, horses, sheep and mules had been killed. It was later estimated that 200,000 cattle and 600,000 sheep had perished. Many of those animals, had intentionally been driven from their paddocks and barns in an attempt to save them but they were never seen again. The earth was soaked, farms were destroyed, buildings were washed away.

It was pandemonium throughout our state.

Seventy-two inches of rain fell in the San Francisco Bay ARea between Nov. 9, 1861, and Jan. 14, 1862. Compare that to the roughly 19 inches, so far, this season. About 80,000 people lived in Marin and Sonoma counties then, and most of those folks had been farming the land. Roads in Sonoma County became rivers themselves and the Sonoma County Register stated, “The town of Sonoma is submerged and Santa Rosa is inundated in the most extraordinary flood ever known.”

Meanwhile, in Washington D.C., President Lincoln addressed his new Congress, asking the crucial Civil War question, “Can a Democracy, a government of the people, by the same people, maintain its territorial integrity against its own domestic foes?”

Perhaps that’s an interesting question for today?

South Carolina’s Fort Sumter had just fallen to the Confederacy, and the president stated that, “With deepest regret,” he was forced to “call out the war power to fight against these destructive forces.” At that time, every man in the southern state of Virginia, from age 16 to 60, had been ordered to join the Confederate Army.

Sonoma County — then divided by Santa Rosa for the Southern causes and Petaluma for the North — deeply felt the trauma of the conflict while still struggling with the fatal effects of the flood. Petaluma undertaker O.H. Lovett was advertising, “A full line of coffins and grave clothes for local consumption.” It was a timely offer, as it was estimated that there would be well over 500 deaths, just within the Bay Area, from the storms. Tragically, many of those lost were Chinese laborers, hired for the flood cleanups. The Argus said, “Our city has been visited by the most terrible flooding and our farming will suffer materially. It may be utterly impossible to plant the spring crops.”

California’s population was about 500,000 at the start of 1862. But, with Orange County then a lake, and Sacramento County flooded for miles in all directions, no one could accurately tally the human death toll at that time. It is now known to have exceeded 4,000 deaths Statewide. And estimated 25% of all the buildings in the State had been ruined. Even the Mojave Desert and the Los Angeles basin had become lakes. Our Golden State of California hovered at the edge bankruptcy. Most of our actual Gold Rush “gold” had been sent East and much of that went to finance the North’s eventual victory in the Civil War.

But, even in our own desperate hours, Sonoma County residents were rallying to help out Sacramento. The Argus said that, “citizens were gathering provisions to be sent, including food and articles of apparel, both mentionable and unmentionable.” They would be delivered via The “staunch and favorite Steamer Kate Hayes,” from Petaluma’s Haystack Landing down to San Francisco Bay and then, up the swollen and dangerous Sacramento River.

Could this type of flood happen here again?

Meteorologists have called it the “200 year storm,” so I guess we’ve got another 40 years to go. But, just so you’re alert, what if our global warming suddenly melted all that newly acquired snow-pack in the Sierras?

One more thing to worry about, folks. Sorry about that.

Skip Sommer is a honorary lifetime member of the Petaluma Historical Library and Heritage Homes. He was the 1987 Petaluma Good Egg of the Year. You can reach him at skipsommer31@gmail.com.