201 North Beckwith, Box 142, Malden, MO. 63863
573-276-5008 E-Mail
Before the federal government constructed a series of large levees
that harnessed the Mississippi and Ohio rivers, their flood waters regularly
spilled across much of the Bootheel. The Ozark streams, once out of the hills,
twisted across the region adding their overflow to the flood waters with
regular frequency. Missouri’s Bootheel was a natural catch-basin for all
of this water, a swamp generally unsuitable for habitation.
An artist's painting at right of dredge
boat in operation draining the swamp land. Soon after the beginning of the
20th century a group of visionaries realized the potential benefits of
converting the swamps into habitable land. They knew that if the swamps could
be drained, the soil beneath the water (some of the richest in the nation)
would become available for farming.
There had been talk prior to 1900 and soon after the turn of the century
about draining the land. In January 1905 a meeting was held in Cape Girardeau,
Missouri, just to the north of the swamp land, to discuss how to go about it.
At the meeting the groundwork was laid for undertaking what would become the
world's largest drainage project. A public entity, The Little River Drainage
District, was created. A plan for construction of an elaborate network of
drainage ditches, canals and levees was devised and eventually carried out.
Model of dredge boat used to dig drainage
ditches in east swamp made by B.L. Presser. Draining of the region
has opened it up to settlement and subsequent agricultural and industrial use.
Before the land was drained, less than 10 percent of it was clear; now,
approximately 96 percent is clear and water free year round.
Today, The Little River Drainage District oversees and maintains numerous
drainage facilities assuring that Southeast Missouri remains free of unwanted
water. It is responsible for operation of 957.8 miles of ditches and 304.43
miles of levees. The district serves parts of seven Missouri counties:
Bollinger, Cape Girardeau, Dunklin, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Scott and
Stoddard.
