On This Day: Flood of 1771 kills 150 people in Henrico

HENRICO, Va. (WWBT) - Thursday marks a weather milestone that some of you may have never heard about. Two hundred fifty years ago Thursday, Henrico was hit by what some say was the worst flooding ever in the Richmond area.

A viewer by the name of Matt Gottlieb brought this story to Meteorologist Andrew Freiden’s attention earlier this week through social media.

A historical marker now sits in the Eastern Henrico area impacted by this huge flood in 1771. The plaque is just off the Capital Trail.

The flood took the lives of at least 150 people and was the result of 10-12 days of intensive rainfall.

Records say that May 25 was when the first visible rise in the river was noticed. Then on May 27, a wall of water came roaring down the River Valley.

The river then reached a flood stage of 45-feet above normal. That is almost 10-feet higher than Hurricane Agnes’ historic crest of 36-feet at the Richmond Locks in 1972.

Copyright 2021 WWBT. All rights reserved.

Submit a news tip.

Want NBC12’s top stories in your inbox each morning? Subscribe here.