Downtown Rowlesburg is shown in the flood’s aftermath on Nov. 5, 1985. The Election Day Flood washed away 118 homes and businesses in the old railroad town alone. Albright lost a hundred.
Two Rowlesburg residents asses the flood damage on a rooftop while a rescue helicopter searches for survivors.
File photo
Downtown Rowlesburg, Nov. 5, 1985
Downtown Rowlesburg is shown in the flood’s aftermath on Nov. 5, 1985. The Election Day Flood washed away 118 homes and businesses in the old railroad town alone. Albright lost a hundred.
KINGWOOD — Lives, property and much of Preston County was forever changed on Nov. 5, 1985. The Election Day flood, as it was called, hit Albright and Rowlesburg the hardest. The Cheat River destroyed 110 of the 132 houses in Albright, and washed away a trailer park in Rowlesburg, as well as 100 homes and businesses.
During the time, the Preston County News and the Preston County Journal were two separate, independent newspapers. Each media reported the devastation with first-hand account articles and award-winning photography.
Years later, both newspaper company’s merged, creating Preston Publications, which continued to publish both the Preston County Journal and the Preston County News. The accumulated photo-negatives from the flood were combined and archived uncovered only months ago when the Preston County News & Journal opened its new office in July.
“We found hundreds of old negatives in dusty envelopes buried in a closet when we moved,” Preston County News & Journal Editor John Dahlia explained. “Surprisingly, they looked to be in perfect condition, and we knew we had literally unearthed a piece of Preston County’s history.”
In all, 500 photo-negatives taken during and immediately after the floods that hit Albright and Rowlesburg were discovered.
“Many of the photos are of Rowlesburg when the flood waters receded,” Dahlia said.
The photos also include shots taken when then West Virginia Gov. Arch Moore visited Rowlesburg. He presented then Rowlesburg Mayor Margaret Schollar a $900,000 check for flood relief.
“The timing was almost perfect,” Dahlia said. “We decided to convert those old negative photos into a digital format we could reproduce and share with the Preston County community.”
Some of those photos are published in today’s Preston County Journal on page B4, B5, and B6. The photos coincide with several in-depth reports written by the staff of the Preston County News & Journal, as well as a submission from the Friends of the Cheat.
“The stories published recount the events that took place on that early November night from a few folks who were there,” Dahlia said. “And we’re using these incredible, heart-wrenching photos to help tell those stories too.”
The black-and-white photos have been converted into a .jpg format viewable on a PC or Macintosh computer. Dahlia said the staff at the Preston County News & Journal have created a photo presentation the public can view and experience at the newspaper’s office in Kingwood.
“The photos truly belong to the residents of Preston County,” Dahlia explained. “Starting Tuesday, Nov. 3, we will have all 500 photos viewable to the public here at our office at 208 West Main Street.”
A dedicated monitor and computer will be open for members of the public to come in and look at the many shots and images captured on or around Nov. 5, 1985.
The hours of operation at the Preston County News & Journal office are 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday. For additional information, please contact the main office at 304-329-0090 or email Editor John Dahlia directly at jdahlia@prestonnj.com.
Editor John Dahlia can be reached at (304) 276-1801 or by email at
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Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
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Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.