Ohio River at Moundsville
Highest listed crest 57.90 ftFlood stage 37.0 ft15 crests since 1936
The Ohio River at Moundsville crested at major flood stage 3 times among the 15 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1936 to 2024. The highest, 57.90 ft on March 19, 1936, was major flooding, 20.90 feet above flood stage. 12 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
- 57.90 ft
- March 19, 1936
- Flood stage
- 37.0 ft
- Major flooding from 44.0 ft
- Crests at major
- 3
- 25th of 116 gauges in West Virginia
- Most recent flood crest
- April 13, 2024
- 39.50 ft, minor flooding
Flood stages
The thresholds the National Weather Service uses for this gauge today, and how many listed crests reached each.
| Action stage | 27.8 | 3 | Jan 13, 2005 |
| Flood stage (minor) | 37.0 | 7 | Apr 13, 2024 |
| Moderate flood stage | 41.0 | 2 | Apr 4, 2024 |
| Major flood stage | 44.0 | 3 | Sep 19, 2004 |
Every listed crest
15 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.
- 7 crests measured on an earlier gauge datum are left out: 42.90 ft on Mar 26, 1936; 52.30 ft on Jan 23, 1937; 54.40 ft on Dec 31, 1942; 50.30 ft on Mar 8, 1945; 45.90 ft on Mar 23, 1959; 49.60 ft on Mar 11, 1964; and more.
Highest crests
| 1 | Mar 19, 1936 | 57.90 | +20.90 | Major |
| 2 | Sep 19, 2004 | 47.00 | +10.00 | Major |
| 3 | Jan 21, 1996 | 46.00 | +9.00 | Major |
| 4 | Jan 7, 2005 | 43.40 | +6.40 | Moderate |
| 5 | Apr 4, 2024 | 43.20 | +6.20 | Moderate |
| 6 | Feb 18, 2018 | 40.70 | +3.70 | Minor |
| 7 | Sep 11, 2018 | 40.10 | +3.10 | Minor |
| 8 | Apr 13, 2024 | 39.50 | +2.50 | Minor |
| 9 | Mar 12, 2011 | 38.80 | +1.80 | Minor |
| 10 | Feb 27, 1979 | 38.60 | +1.60 | Minor |
| 11 | Jan 10, 1998 | 37.50 | +0.50 | Minor |
| 12 | Jan 6, 2004 | 37.50 | +0.50 | Minor |
| 13 | Jan 13, 2005 | 36.10 | −0.90 | Action |
| 14 | Nov 6, 1985 | 35.00 | −2.00 | Action |
| 15 | Nov 20, 1985 | 34.40 | −2.60 | Action |
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 19, 1936: 57.90 ft here, major flooding
- R C Byrd LockWV · Mar 23, 1936 · 60.45 ft · Major
- 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
- Dashields Lock and DamPA · Mar 18, 1936 · 42.80 ft · Major · its highest
- New Cumberland Lock and DamOH · Mar 26, 1936 · 39.00 ft · Major
September 19, 2004: 47.00 ft here, major flooding
- PomeroyOH · Sep 19, 2004 · 52.20 ft · Major
- Racine LockWV · Sep 20, 2004 · 50.23 ft · Major · its highest
- Pike Island Lock and DamWV · Sep 19, 2004 · 46.30 ft · Major
- Belleville LockWV · Sep 19, 2004 · 45.80 ft · Major
- Powhatan PointOH · Sep 19, 2004 · 45.60 ft · Major
- WheelingWV · Sep 19, 2004 · 45.30 ft · Major
- WellsburgWV · Sep 19, 2004 · 45.10 ft · Major
- Willow Island LockWV · Sep 19, 2004 · 44.78 ft · Major · its highest
- New Cumberland Lock and DamOH · Sep 19, 2004 · 44.50 ft · Major
- ParkersburgWV · Sep 19, 2004 · 43.73 ft · Major
January 21, 1996: 46.00 ft here, major flooding
- PomeroyOH · Jan 22, 1996 · 50.50 ft · Major
- WellsburgWV · Jan 20, 1996 · 46.20 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
- Dashields Lock and DamPA · Jan 20, 1996 · 33.20 ft · Major
Gauges on the Ohio River
Flood gauges sharing the river's name, linked within 80 miles of one another.
| Ashland | KY | 74.21 ft, Jan 27, 1937 | 4 |
| Belleville Lock | WV | 61.80 ft, Mar 29, 1913 | 15 |
| Cairo | IL | 61.72 ft, May 2, 2011 | 19 |
| Cannelton Lock and Dam | KY | 60.80 ft, Jan 27, 1937 | 8 |
| Cincinnati | OH | 66.20 ft, Mar 11, 1964 | 1 |
| Clifty Creek | IN | 475.90 ft, Jan 27, 1937 | 1 |
| Dashields Lock and Dam | PA | 42.80 ft, Mar 18, 1936 | 5 |
| East Liverpool | WV | 29.90 ft, Mar 19, 1936 | 11 |
| Evansville | IN | 53.75 ft, Jan 31, 1937 | 1 |
| Golconda | IL | 62.60 ft, Feb 2, 1937 | 3 |
| Hannibal Lock and Dam | OH | 41.90 ft, Jun 25, 1972 | 2 |
| Henderson | KY | 43.08 ft, Apr 12, 2025 | 0 |
| Ironton | OH | 54.67 ft, Feb 19, 2018 | 0 |
| J.T. Myers Lock and Dam | KY | 64.40 ft, Feb 1, 1937 | 1 |
| Lloyd Greenup Lock | KY | 64.50 ft, Mar 31, 1913 | 3 |
| Marietta Pumphouse | OH | 58.30 ft, Mar 29, 1913 | 3 |
| Markland Lower | KY | 76.10 ft, Jan 26, 1937 | 1 |
| Maysville | KY | 75.60 ft, Jan 27, 1937 | 2 |
| McAlpine Lower | KY | 85.44 ft, Jan 27, 1937 | 4 |
| McAlpine Upper | KY | 52.15 ft, Jan 27, 1937 | 7 |
| Meldahl Dam | OH | 76.00 ft, Jan 26, 1937 | 3 |
| Montgomery Lock and Dam | PA | 55.00 ft, Mar 18, 1936 | 10 |
| Moundsville this gauge | WV | 57.90 ft, Mar 19, 1936 | 3 |
| Mount Vernon | IN | 59.21 ft, Feb 1, 1937 | 2 |
| New Cumberland Lock and Dam | OH | 50.20 ft, Dec 31, 1942 | 15 |
| Newburgh Lock and Dam | KY | 56.60 ft, Jan 31, 1937 | 1 |
| Olmsted Lock and Dam Headwater | KY | 48.20 ft, Feb 21, 2020 | 1 |
| Owensboro | KY | 54.80 ft, Jan 29, 1937 | 5 |
| Paducah | KY | 60.60 ft, Feb 2, 1937 | 7 |
| Parkersburg | WV | 45.20 ft, Mar 12, 1964 | 5 |
| Pike Island Lock and Dam | WV | 47.70 ft, Mar 11, 1964 | 5 |
| Pittsburgh | PA | 46.00 ft, Mar 18, 1936 | 22 |
| Point Pleasant | WV | 62.80 ft, Mar 30, 1913 | 25 |
| Pomeroy | OH | 68.80 ft, Apr 1, 1913 | 34 |
| Portsmouth | OH | 53.78 ft, Apr 7, 2025 | 0 |
| Powhatan Point | OH | 53.30 ft, Mar 19, 1936 | 5 |
| R C Byrd Lock | WV | 69.60 ft, Jan 27, 1937 | 9 |
| Racine Lock | WV | 50.23 ft, Sep 20, 2004 | 3 |
| Shawneetown | KY | 65.64 ft, Jan 30, 1937 | 7 |
| Smithland Lock and Dam | KY | 54.83 ft, May 6, 2011 | 4 |
| Steubenville | OH | 44.00 ft, Jan 20, 1996 | 1 |
| Tell City | IN | 56.95 ft, Jan 29, 1937 | 6 |
| Wellsburg | WV | 54.60 ft, Mar 19, 1936 | 9 |
| Wellsville | OH | 20.90 ft, Jan 20, 1996 | 3 |
| Wheeling | WV | 45.40 ft, Jan 20, 1996 | 3 |
| Willow Island Lock | WV | 44.78 ft, Sep 19, 2004 | 2 |
| Huntington | OH | 57.52 ft, Mar 5, 1997 | 0 |
Marshall County: every hazard · River floods across the country · West Virginia
NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge MOUW2, 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.