What about the flood?
Radio Interviews from 1956

"I knew as soon as I saw that levee that it would never hold..." – Tom Grafton

The following radio interviews were originally broadcast in 1956 on radio station KUBA by Dutch Klemp as part of a series with survivors of the Sutter County flood of 1955... the worst disaster in California history since the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.

Original audio files were donated to the Community Memorial Museum of Sutter County by the family of Dutch Klemp, which granted permission for their use. Podcasts are donated by the Sutter Butte Flood Control Agency as a public service for educational use. Visit iTunes at the link below to listen and subscribe to future episodes.

Download Podcast at iTunes

Get iTunes (free) if you don't already have it.

NEW: You may now also subscribe with a reader via the link below.

 Subscribe in a reader

Episode 1: Interview with Norma Bartlett, a Yuba City mother who was trapped on the roof of her car with her two-year old son for nearly seven hours before being rescued during the Sutter County flood of December 23, 1955. Her husband drowned as he tried to make his way to her side.

Episode 2: Interview with Phyllis Martin, a Yuba City resident who lost her father, Earnest Yates, during the 1955 Sutter County flood. Her family home and business were also severely damaged.

Episode 3: Interview with Tom Grafton, a Yuba City resident (15 years old at the time) whose family fled their home during the 1955 Sutter County flood. Their home was washed away when a nearby levee failed.

Episode 4: Interview with Grace Nicolette, who fled the '55 flood with her husband, Charlie. "We got out just in time."

Episode 5: Interview with Loudon Parker, who fled his home with wife Alvera and daughter Geraldine. "Did you ever see a horror picture? Something looked different... it all hit so fast."

Episode 6: Interview with Master Sergeant Oliver W. Franklin, who juggled evacuating his wife and son with coordinating efforts to save the 5th Street bridge in Yuba City... and making sure that exhausted crews had coffee and sandwiches. "We saw the river keep rising."

Episode 7: Interview with Harry Chambers; business owner and Aerial Squadron member who helped evacuations in Yuba City describes the scene near the levee break. "We picked up the people who couldn't get out any longer..."

Episode 8: Interview with Marcella Slocum, who describes how she narrowly escaped death by climbing into a tree. Her father-in-law did not survive: "I wake up now in the middle of the night and I hear water running... He kept saying he was getting too cold and after a while he didn't answer anymore."

Prefer to listen via streaming MP3?

Click an episode link below.

Episode 1 (23 minutes, 13.5 MB)

Episode 2 (7 minutes, 4 MB)

Episode 3 (11 minutes, 6.3 MB)

Episode 4 (12 minutes, 13.3 MB)

Episode 5 (22 minutes, 25 MB)

Episode 6 (17 minutes, 19.6 MB)

Episode 7 (14 minutes, 15.7 MB)

Episode 8 (17 minutes, 20.3 MB)

More free Podcasts and audio feeds are under construction.

Related Links

NEW: The American Society of Civil Engineers has released a publication entitled So You Live Behind a Levee! Learn more on their website. MORE LINKS: A Mouseketeer Christmas Party in Yuba City Flood memories captured in a new video Image Galleries Flood Solutions SBFCA Board Agendas