Mississippi River Commission's 145th Birthday

145 years ago today, Congress established the Mississippi River Commission to transform the Mississippi River into a viable commercial artery and to protect adjacent lands from destructive floods. This was the greatest engineering challenge that our young nation had ever faced, and if successful, it would allow the vast resources of the nation’s interior to be shipped to markets all over the world, providing food to hundreds of millions of people.

Prior to the commission, the Mississippi was constantly meandering and shifting its course across the alluvial valley, making settlement near the river difficult, if not impossible. Navigating the river was even more treacherous than living near it. In 1870, the average life of a steamboat was just 18 months. The commission’s task was daunting: prevent the river from meandering; protect surrounding lands from floods; and maintain a safe and reliable navigation channel.

The commission’s task was made even more difficult by the fact that there were no accurate surveys and maps of the entire Mississippi River valley. The responsibility to oversee surveys and create the first fully detailed maps of the Mississippi would fall upon the shoulders of the commission. The data from these surveys allowed the commission to better understand the dynamics of the river and informed future improvements.

The establishment of the commission was also a first step towards the federalization of improvements on the Mississippi. Prior to the commission, each local levee district built, maintained, and set the standards for it its own levees. Levee districts often competed with one another and poorer districts were left with inadequate levels of protection. The commission overcame this challenge by setting the standard for construction of all levees across the lower Mississippi valley. Thus the commission was able to overcome the challenges of competing regional and local interests by promoting the improvement of the Mississippi as a system, to the benefit all who lived and worked along the river.

The commission also began conducting inspection trips and public hearings at various points along the river. These trips allowed the commission to meet face-to-face with local partners, listen to their concerns, and get a boots-on-ground perspective of the people and places along the river. These inspection trips were democracy in action, as local interests were allowed to voice their concerns, which were carried all the way to Congress and used to shape policy.

145 years later, the commission continues this tradition of listening and partnering with its bi-annual inspection trips aboard the Motor Vessel MISSISSPPI. On August 19-23, the commission will host its 411th inspection trip, which will include site visits to key features of the Mississippi River and Tributaries Project, engagements with partners from the valley, and public hearings aboard the Motor Vessel MISSISSIPPI, at which members of the public can provide testimony to the commission.

Following the 1927 flood, Congress authorized the commission to oversee the Mississippi River and Tributaries Project, a comprehensive navigation and flood control project that has prevented more than $2.3 trillion in flood damages since 1928 – a return on investment of $109 for every $1 dollar spent.

With each flood event, including the recent record floods of 2011 and 2019, the Mississippi River and Tributaries Project continues to prove its value to the nation. And with each year that passes – now 145 and counting! – the commission continues to prove its value to the nation through its annual inspection trips and expertise overseeing the most successful civil works project in our nation’s history.