Flood 2010 oral histories, 2011-2014.
(Document/manuscript/pamphlet/archival material)

Organization: Two subseries: A. Audio recordings, B. Transcripts, indexes, notes;,Arrangement: Recordings use the prefix FDH for the project identifier. Filed thereunder alphabetically by the last name of the interviewee.

Materials housed in Special Collections Division of the Main Library, Nashville Public Library.

The Flood 2010 oral histories are part of a larger project, the Flood 2010 Collection, which includes ephemera, photographs, videos, and periodicals, and is cataloged separately.

In library use only. Available by appointment.

Scope and content: The Flood 2010 Oral Histories document the historic Nashville flood of May 1-2, 2010 and the aftermath, as told by the people who lived through it. The project includes 174 oral history interviews conducted by library staff and volunteers. Individuals interviewed include first responders, city officials, musicians, artists, and others. Interviews were conducted in two stages (city officials & response teams, then business & community) and include information about the flooding, government response, relief efforts, and other topics. Themes include volunteerism, rescue efforts, the rebuild process, and disaster relief. Each interview has at minimum interview notes and, in a few cases, complete transcripts.

Interviewees include: Judy B. Anderson; Rogers Anderson; Sue Andrews; Kevin Anthuis; Tom Appel; Kathie Armstrong; Scott Atkinson; Nicole Baganz; Deford Bailey Jr.; Harry L Bailey III; Ruby Baker; Mark Barry; John Bauerschmidt; Ernestine Beard; Barbara Belfiglio; Sidney Bennett; Amelia J Berle; Nathaniel J Berle; Nissa J Berle; Lesli Bills; Jan Blaustone; Seawall Brandau; Kenneth Bray; Jason Brown; Richard Browning Jr.; Gary Burke; Ednaearle Burney; Ben Buttriss; Mozell Byars;

Michael Cain; German Castro; Margaret Chambers; Elsie Clark; Anetta Collier; Linda Collier; Carla Christina Conteras; Scott Cothran; Margaret Cornell; Mia Cover; Laurel Creech; Jason Curry; Cynthia Cyrus; Beth Davenport; Danny Davenport; Oralene Day; Amanda DeForest; Lee DeForest; Nancy Diana; Charlotte Disney; Mark Duffield; Tim Eads; Barbara Earl; Bryan Edwards; Binji Elder; Bryan Essary; Daryl Etheridge; Ceci Estill; Kelly Evans; Dwight Farris; Kathy Felts; Norene Fossik; Christy Frink;

Margie Garrett; Tamara "Tammy" Gentuso; Scott Gillhan; Casey Goddard; Melissa Gordon; Brian Goss; Eric Grasman; Abby Greenwood; Ally Greenwood; Andie Greenwood; Eric Greenwood; Katie Greenwood; Steve Greenwood; Owen Grimenstein; Andrea Gunn; Jim Guschke; Steve Haggard; Suzie Hamilton-Roberts; Lori Harrington; Sherri Harnist; Melissa Harris; Scott Harris; Doug Hausken; Lorenzana Haynes; Billy Heldenberg; Greg Hinote; Mike Hodge; Damian Huggins; Jeff Hughes; Tiffany Israel; Ruby Jamison; Ben Johnson; Melvin Johnson; Timothy Jones; Demetria Kalodimos; Nan Keenan; Tana Kimbro; Dawn Kirk; Don Klein;

Mary Margaret Lambert; Lora Lape; Mike Law; Walt Leaver; Eb LeMaster; Morgan Levy; Calvin Lewis; Steven Linn; Kenneth Locke; Denise Lopez; John LoPiccolo; Ginger Lue; Mandi Lynch; William Lytton; Valeria Marfy; Philip Martin; Leslie Anne Mathey; Carol McCullough; Rob McDonald; Partick McKenzie; Troy Merritt Jr; Kimberly Messer; Hugh Miller; David Mills; David Mitchell; Robert Moore; Lisa Morrison; Bruce Mosher; Marty Mullennex; Alan Murdock; Janie Murphree; Amy Nabours; James Nelson Jr; Jeff Nichols; Nikki Nobles; Sandy O'Donnell; Kristen Marie O'Hare; John O'Leary; Nancy O'Leary; Bryon Olsen; Phil Orr; Craig Owensby; Marion Parr; Kevin Penney; Amelia Post; Scott Potter; Matt Pylkas;

Lynn Ragland; Fran Rajotte; Monette Rebecca; Cynthia Regen; Damon Regen; Jeannie Rice; Dr. James Richards; Rich Richardson; Sarah Riebau; Seth Ritter; Lisa Rivas; Ann Robinson; Derek Robinson; Dottie Rogers; George Rooker; Thelma Sanders-Hunter; Debbie Seldon; Roger Senechal; Richard Shaver; Todd Spangler; Jenn Spriggs; Michael Spriggs; Leigh Spruill; William Stone; Remziya Sulyeman; Michael Sullivan; Allie Sultan; Darla Tanner; Robert Taylor; Tom Taylor; Melissa Thomas; Jim Traub; Laura Turner; Zoe Turner-Yovanovitch; Yolanda Vaughn; Jay Voorhees; Mike Walker; Carol Warren; Annette White; Cliff Whitehead; Mikell Wiggs; Joanna Williams; Verginia Woodmore; Patti Zimmerman; Tiffani Zuch.

Cite as: [Interviewee name], Oral Histories Series, Flood 2010 Collection, Special Collections Division, Nashville Public Library

Copyright deeded to Nashville Public Library at time of creation. Nashville Public Library retains intellectual property rights to this collection. Some individual interviewee restrictions may apply. This material may be protected by copyright law (Title 17 U.S. Code).

Associated materials: Nashville Flood Digital History Project on Flickr. https://www.flickr.com/groups/nashvilleflood/ A group started by the Nashville Public Library as a place for community members to share photos of their flood experience. This site is not maintained or operated by the Nashville Public Library, and photographs on this site should not be considered a formal part of the Nashville Public Library's flood collection.

During May 1-2, 2010, Nashville received an unprecedented 13.57 inches of rainfall over a two-day period. The Cumberland River crested in Nashville at 51.86 feet, 12 feet above flood stage, with several other rivers and creeks breaking their banks. Flooding devastated areas throughout Nashville and surrounding counties and 11 people died as a result of the flood in Nashville. The Nashville Chamber of Commerce reported 2,773 businesses were impacted by the flood. The response from volunteers was overwhelming; more than 25,000 individuals helped with cleanup and repairs. Volunteer efforts were largely organized by Hands On Nashville, and their response and role in the recovery effort was cited as a national model for other cities to incorporate in their emergency response plans.

Mayor Karl Dean asked the Nashville Public Library to undertake documenting the flood of 2010. The Library's oral history effort began with an interview with Mayor Dean in January 2011. Library staff and volunteers conducted oral history interviews with citizens, city officials, and local organization leaders from different neighborhoods of Nashville and Middle Tennessee. The project was promoted by flyers, press coverage, and via the internet. Institutions in Nashville and Middle Tennessee contributed significantly to the project by identifying and recommending individual interviewees. Partners included the Mayor's Office, United Way of Middle Tennessee, Metro Arts Commission, The Brentwood Library, Restore the Dream Center, Impact Nashville, Aerial Innovations, Neighborhoods Resource Center, Matthew Walker Comprehensive Health Center, North Nashville/Bordeaux Neighborhood Association, Lipscomb University, Gentuso Photography, the Bellevue Family YMCA & FiftyForward J.L. Turner Center, and McGruder Family Resource Center.

In English

Finding aid available in repository;,item level control,https://catalog.library.nashville.org/Record/CARL0000462275/DownloadSupplementalFile?fileId=175.

Interviews were recorded by library staff and volunteers between 2011 and 2014, using a Marantz PMD671 solid state digital recorder. Interviews were recorded in .wav format at 48 khz and 16 bit and were convered to .mp3 files for access.

preliminary processing;,2013;,Susannah Gibbons.

arrange and describe;,2015;,Amber Williams.

No further accruals are expected.