Capitol Planning Region, CT
Flood Risk in the Capitol Planning Region: The Hartford-East Hartford Levee System
Much of downtown Hartford and the riverfront half of East Hartford sit at grade with the Connecticut River only because of an Army Corps of Engineers levee and floodwall system built after the catastrophic 1936 and 1938 floods. That infrastructure is now the subject of an active 2026 federal rehabilitation study -- real, current, and worth understanding before buying land anywhere near the river in this region.
This page covers what's specific to Capitol Planning Region. For the general explanation, see the national guide.
Why there is a levee here at all: the 1936 and 1938 floods
In March 1936, a 14-day New England downpour on top of melting snowpack sent the Connecticut River to its highest recorded level in Hartford and East Hartford -- 37.6 feet NGVD 29 in East Hartford on March 21, 1936 -- flooding downtown Hartford and much of low-lying East Hartford along the river. A second major flood in 1938 (compounded by that year's hurricane) reinforced the case for permanent flood control. Congress responded with the Flood Control Act of 1936, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began building a system of earthen levees and concrete floodwalls along the Connecticut River through Hartford and East Hartford. The East Hartford levee alone runs roughly 4 miles, combining about 20,000 feet of earth embankment with 1,400 feet of concrete floodwall; construction began in December 1938 and finished in July 1943.
What the system actually does today
The levee and floodwall system protects the western portion of East Hartford along the east bank of the Connecticut River and the north bank of the Hockanum River, and a parallel system protects downtown Hartford on the opposite bank. In practical terms, this is the reason substantial parts of downtown Hartford and riverfront East Hartford are buildable, occupied, and not in a mapped high-risk floodway today -- the infrastructure is actively doing its job, not a historical footnote. The system includes stop-log closure structures at road and rail crossings that must be physically installed ahead of a rising river, and pump stations that move interior drainage water out from behind the levee during high-river events, both maintained by the local sponsors (the City of Hartford and Town of East Hartford) under Army Corps oversight.
A live 2026 rehabilitation study -- not settled history
This infrastructure is now roughly 80-90 years old in its oldest sections, and it is currently the subject of an active USACE New England District feasibility study: the Hartford and East Hartford Section 216 Levee Rehabilitation, Flood Risk Management Feasibility Study, with a public notice issued May 6, 2026 identifying a Tentatively Selected Plan. The study's leading alternative (Alternative 4a) carries a total investment cost estimate of roughly $100.6 million, split 50/50 between federal funding and the City of Hartford and Town of East Hartford as non-federal sponsors (a Feasibility Cost Sharing Agreement was executed January 3, 2023). The study's period of analysis runs 50 years, from 2030 through 2079. For a buyer evaluating land near this system today, this means the levee's future condition, any construction-period disruption, and any local cost-share assessment on sponsor-side municipalities are genuinely open questions worth checking directly with the Army Corps' New England District and the specific municipality, not settled facts.
What to check before buying near the river in this region
Start with a current FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) lookup for the specific parcel -- land behind an accredited levee can carry a materially different flood-zone designation (and flood-insurance requirement) than land in front of it or outside the levee's protected area entirely, and that accreditation status can change as the Army Corps' condition assessments and this rehabilitation study proceed. For any parcel in Hartford's or East Hartford's riverfront area, ask the town's Engineering Department directly about current levee condition, any stop-log closure procedures affecting access, and whether the parcel falls inside or outside the protected footprint. For riverfront land elsewhere in this region -- Windsor, Windsor Locks, South Windsor, Glastonbury, Wethersfield, Rocky Hill -- there is no comparable levee system; those towns' Connecticut River frontage sits in ordinary mapped floodplain without engineered flood-control infrastructure, so a FEMA map check there carries its ordinary full weight rather than being modified by levee protection.
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- The 1936 Flood That Engulfed New England — New England Historical Society (accessed 2026-09)
- East Hartford Levee System - Stop Log Facts — Town of East Hartford, Connecticut (accessed 2026-09)
- Levee System — Town of East Hartford, Connecticut (accessed 2026-09)
- East Hartford Local Protection Project — U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District (accessed 2026-09)
- Hartford East Hartford Levee Rehabilitation Study — U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District (accessed 2026-09)
- Public Notice: Hartford and East Hartford, Connecticut Section 216 Levee Rehabilitation Flood Risk Management Feasibility Study — Town of East Hartford, Connecticut (accessed 2026-09)
- Hartford region moves closer to levee system repairs — Hartford Business Journal (accessed 2026-09)
- Flood Map Service Center — Federal Emergency Management Agency (accessed 2026-09)
Last reviewed 2026-09