The Great Read: Caskets on the River: The Story of an American Disaster
Covering a flood powerful enough to disrupt the dead.
The New York Times
The Great Read
October 15, 2026, 2:01 p.m. Eastern time

On weekdays and Sundays, we recommend one piece of exceptional writing from The Times — a narrative or essay that takes you someplace you might not expect to go.

A collage featuring a rectangular inset with a photo of flooded farmland, set against a blue background and framed by an orange circle, an orange semicircle and a snippet of a black-and-white newspaper.

Matt Dorfman

Caskets on the River: The Story of an American Disaster

Covering a flood powerful enough to disrupt the dead.

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