Ohio River at Dashields Lock and Dam

Highest listed crest 42.80 ftFlood stage 25.0 ft22 crests since 1936

The Ohio River at Dashields Lock and Dam crested at major flood stage 5 times among the 22 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1936 to 2024. The highest, 42.80 ft on March 18, 1936, was major flooding, 17.80 feet above flood stage. 11 other gauges on the Ohio River crested above flood stage within a week of it, 6 at their own highest listed crest.

The gauge

Highest listed crest: 42.80 ft; March 18, 1936
Flood stage: 25.0 ft; Major flooding from 32.0 ft
Crests at major: 5; 44th of 170 gauges in Pennsylvania
Most recent flood crest: April 4, 2024; 26.82 ft, minor flooding
Location: Allegheny County; Near Franklin Park (6.4 mi), Pittsburgh (14.3 mi), Mount Lebanon (14.5 mi)
Identifiers: NWS DSHP1; USGS 03086000

Flood stages

The thresholds the National Weather Service uses for this gauge today, and how many listed crests reached each.

Flood categories, Ohio River at Dashields Lock and Dam

Action stage	19.4	4	Mar 24, 2007	The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)	25.0	9	Apr 4, 2024	Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage	29.0	3	Sep 19, 2004	Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage	32.0	5	Jan 20, 1996	Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

22 crests from 1936 to 2024. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

These are the crests the local National Weather Service office lists for the gauge: the highest on record and recent crests. Lesser floods between them may be missing, so counts by decade are a floor.
Categories use today's flood stages. Levees, dams and channel changes since a crest can make old and new stages not directly comparable.

Highest crests

Highest listed crests, Ohio River at Dashields Lock and Dam

1	Mar 18, 1936	42.80	+17.80	Major	—
2	Dec 31, 1942	35.90	+10.90	Major	—
3	Jan 20, 1996	33.20	+8.20	Major	—
4	Jun 24, 1972	33.00	+8.00	Major	—
5	Mar 7, 1975	32.10	+7.10	Major	—
6	Oct 16, 1954	31.40	+6.40	Moderate	—
7	Mar 11, 1964	30.00	+5.00	Moderate	—
8	Sep 19, 2004	29.90	+4.90	Moderate	311,500
9	Jan 22, 1959	28.80	+3.80	Minor	—
10	Dec 4, 1959	27.50	+2.50	Minor	—
11	Jan 7, 2005	27.18	+2.18	Minor	269,000
12	Feb 14, 1966	26.90	+1.90	Minor	—
13	Apr 4, 2024	26.82	+1.82	Minor	—
14	Apr 1, 1960	26.80	+1.80	Minor	—
15	Dec 31, 1990	26.40	+1.40	Minor	—
16	Feb 17, 2018	26.03	+1.03	Minor	—
17	Sep 11, 2018	25.98	+0.98	Minor	251,480
18	Nov 6, 1984	24.40	−0.60	Action	—
19	Dec 19, 1990	24.20	−0.80	Action	—
20	Mar 16, 2007	22.76	−2.24	Action	202,100
21	Mar 24, 2007	20.17	−4.83	Action	152,030
22	Feb 24, 2003	19.38	−5.62	Below flood stage	—

The worst floods along the Ohio River

For this gauge's highest crests, the other gauges on the Ohio River that crested above flood stage within a week.

March 18, 1936: 42.80 ft here, major flooding

R C Byrd LockWV · Mar 23, 1936 · 60.45 ft · Major
MoundsvilleWV · Mar 19, 1936 · 57.90 ft · Major · its highest
PomeroyOH · Mar 21, 1936 · 56.60 ft · Major
Montgomery Lock and DamPA · Mar 18, 1936 · 55.00 ft · Major · its highest
WellsburgWV · Mar 19, 1936 · 54.60 ft · Major · its highest
Point PleasantWV · Mar 22, 1936 · 54.40 ft · Major
Powhatan PointOH · Mar 19, 1936 · 53.30 ft · Major · its highest
Belleville LockWV · Mar 21, 1936 · 50.60 ft · Major
PittsburghPA · Mar 18, 1936 · 46.00 ft · Major · its highest
East LiverpoolWV · Mar 19, 1936 · 29.90 ft · Major · its highest

December 31, 1942: 35.90 ft here, major flooding

R C Byrd LockWV · Jan 2, 1943 · 60.40 ft · Major
PomeroyOH · Jan 2, 1943 · 57.60 ft · Major
Point PleasantWV · Jan 2, 1943 · 54.70 ft · Major
Belleville LockWV · Jan 2, 1943 · 51.60 ft · Major
New Cumberland Lock and DamOH · Dec 31, 1942 · 50.20 ft · Major · its highest
Montgomery Lock and DamPA · Dec 31, 1942 · 47.90 ft · Major
PittsburghPA · Dec 31, 1942 · 36.60 ft · Major
East LiverpoolWV · Dec 31, 1942 · 27.70 ft · Major
Clifty CreekIN · Jan 5, 1943 · 462.40 ft · Moderate
AshlandKY · Jan 2, 1943 · 64.00 ft · Moderate

January 20, 1996: 33.20 ft here, major flooding

PomeroyOH · Jan 22, 1996 · 50.50 ft · Major
WellsburgWV · Jan 20, 1996 · 46.20 ft · Major
MoundsvilleWV · Jan 21, 1996 · 46.00 ft · Major
Pike Island Lock and DamWV · Jan 21, 1996 · 46.00 ft · Major
New Cumberland Lock and DamOH · Jan 20, 1996 · 45.60 ft · Major
WheelingWV · Jan 20, 1996 · 45.40 ft · Major · its highest
Powhatan PointOH · Jan 21, 1996 · 44.70 ft · Major
SteubenvilleOH · Jan 20, 1996 · 44.00 ft · Major · its highest
Montgomery Lock and DamPA · Jan 19, 1996 · 43.00 ft · Major
PittsburghPA · Jan 20, 1996 · 34.60 ft · Major

Gauges on the Ohio River

Flood gauges sharing the river's name, linked within 80 miles of one another.

Flood gauges on the Ohio River

Ashland	KY	52.0	74.21 ft, Jan 27, 1937	4
Belleville Lock	WV	35.0	61.80 ft, Mar 29, 1913	15
Cairo	IL	40.0	61.72 ft, May 2, 2011	19
Cannelton Lock and Dam	KY	42.0	60.80 ft, Jan 27, 1937	8
Cincinnati	OH	52.0	66.20 ft, Mar 11, 1964	1
Clifty Creek	IN	451.0	475.90 ft, Jan 27, 1937	1
Dashields Lock and Dam this gauge	PA	25.0	42.80 ft, Mar 18, 1936	5
East Liverpool	WV	14.0	29.90 ft, Mar 19, 1936	11
Evansville	IN	42.0	53.75 ft, Jan 31, 1937	1
Golconda	IL	40.0	62.60 ft, Feb 2, 1937	3
Hannibal Lock and Dam	OH	35.0	41.90 ft, Jun 25, 1972	2
Henderson	KY	36.0	43.08 ft, Apr 12, 2025	0
Ironton	OH	52.0	54.67 ft, Feb 19, 2018	0
J.T. Myers Lock and Dam	KY	37.0	64.40 ft, Feb 1, 1937	1
Lloyd Greenup Lock	KY	54.0	64.50 ft, Mar 31, 1913	3
Marietta Pumphouse	OH	35.0	58.30 ft, Mar 29, 1913	3
Markland Lower	KY	51.0	76.10 ft, Jan 26, 1937	1
Maysville	KY	50.0	75.60 ft, Jan 27, 1937	2
McAlpine Lower	KY	55.0	85.44 ft, Jan 27, 1937	4
McAlpine Upper	KY	23.0	52.15 ft, Jan 27, 1937	7
Meldahl Dam	OH	51.0	76.00 ft, Jan 26, 1937	3
Montgomery Lock and Dam	PA	33.0	55.00 ft, Mar 18, 1936	10
Moundsville	WV	37.0	57.90 ft, Mar 19, 1936	3
Mount Vernon	IN	35.0	59.21 ft, Feb 1, 1937	2
New Cumberland Lock and Dam	OH	36.0	50.20 ft, Dec 31, 1942	15
Newburgh Lock and Dam	KY	38.0	56.60 ft, Jan 31, 1937	1
Olmsted Lock and Dam Headwater	KY	36.0	48.20 ft, Feb 21, 2020	1
Owensboro	KY	40.0	54.80 ft, Jan 29, 1937	5
Paducah	KY	39.0	60.60 ft, Feb 2, 1937	7
Parkersburg	WV	36.0	45.20 ft, Mar 12, 1964	5
Pike Island Lock and Dam	WV	37.0	47.70 ft, Mar 11, 1964	5
Pittsburgh	PA	22.0	46.00 ft, Mar 18, 1936	22
Point Pleasant	WV	40.0	62.80 ft, Mar 30, 1913	25
Pomeroy	OH	46.0	68.80 ft, Apr 1, 1913	34
Portsmouth	OH	50.0	53.78 ft, Apr 7, 2025	0
Powhatan Point	OH	37.0	53.30 ft, Mar 19, 1936	5
R C Byrd Lock	WV	50.0	69.60 ft, Jan 27, 1937	9
Racine Lock	WV	41.0	50.23 ft, Sep 20, 2004	3
Shawneetown	KY	33.0	65.64 ft, Jan 30, 1937	7
Smithland Lock and Dam	KY	40.0	54.83 ft, May 6, 2011	4
Steubenville	OH	36.0	44.00 ft, Jan 20, 1996	1
Tell City	IN	38.0	56.95 ft, Jan 29, 1937	6
Wellsburg	WV	36.0	54.60 ft, Mar 19, 1936	9
Wellsville	OH	11.0	20.90 ft, Jan 20, 1996	3
Wheeling	WV	36.0	45.40 ft, Jan 20, 1996	3
Willow Island Lock	WV	37.0	44.78 ft, Sep 19, 2004	2
Huntington	OH	50.0	57.52 ft, Mar 5, 1997	0

Other gauges in Allegheny County

Flood gauges in Allegheny County

C.W. Bill Young Lock and Dam	17.0	31.10 ft, Mar 18, 1936	2
Natrona Lock and Dam	21.0	32.10 ft, Mar 18, 1936	5
Sharpsburg Lock and Dam	21.0	26.90 ft, Jun 24, 1972	1
Carnegie	20.0	25.05 ft, Sep 18, 2004	1
Girty's Run	11.0	13.56 ft, Jul 5, 2018	0
Etna	9.0	10.28 ft, May 30, 1986	0
Braddock Lock and Dam	22.0	35.30 ft, Mar 18, 1936	8
Elizabeth Lock and Dam	20.0	32.50 ft, Mar 18, 1936	9
Pittsburgh	22.0	46.00 ft, Mar 18, 1936	22
Etna	13.0	14.60 ft, Sep 1, 2021	0
Turtle Creek	6.0	11.34 ft, Jun 18, 2009	1
Sutersville	20.0	32.50 ft, Oct 16, 1954	12

Allegheny County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Pennsylvania

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge DSHP1, retrieved October 30, 2026. Stages in feet on the gauge's own datum, not elevation. Crests are as the National Weather Service lists them; preliminary values may be revised.