60 Amazing Color Photographs Depict Life and Pollution on the Ohio River in the Early 1970s

William Strode III (August, 1937 - May, 2006) was a talented photographer whose clients included National Geographic, Time, Life, Sports Illustrated, Esquire, The New York Times, and The Washington Post.

In the late 1950s Strode worked for two summers at the Courier-Journal while he was a student at Western Kentucky University. He joined the paper full-time in 1960. By 1967 he was assistant director of photography, and later edited the newspaper’s Sunday Magazine.

The late 1960s and the 1970s at the Courier-Journal in Louisville were the golden years of newspaper photojournalism for those of us lucky enough to have worked there. Strode was instrumental in assembling the staff and creating that environment.

These amazing color photographs were taken by William Strode III for the project depict life and pollution on the Ohio River when he was working as a photographer for the Environmental Protection Agency’s Documerica project in the early 1970s.

Visual Pollution, September 1972

Camping Along The Ohio River, June 1972

Magazines And Newspapers Litter The Intersection Of Sixth & Broadway After Debris Was Spilled From A Passing Truck, September 1972

Traffic On Highway 25 Exit Off Of Interstate 65, September 1972

Kentucky - Near Louisville, June 1972

Visual Pollution Along Interstate 24, September 1972

The Ohio River, June 1972

The Ohio River, June 1972

The Ohio River, June 1972

Visual Pollution Along Interstate 24, September 1972

Police And National Guardsmen Maintain Law And Order During The Evacuation, June 1972

The Ohio River, June 1972

A Nurse Helps An Elderly Patient Leave Louisville Memorial Hospital, March 1972

An Evacuation Center Set Up Outside The City Of Louisville To House Those Fleeing A Potential Disaster. A Liquid Chlorine Barge Threatened To Spill Enough Poison Gas To Devastate Much Of The City, June 1972

Paddlewheel Steamboat On The Ohio River, June 1972

Paddlewheel Steamboat On The Ohio River, May 1972

The "Belle Of Louisiana" On The Ohio River. The Paddlewheel Steamboat Is Owned By Louisville And Jefferson County, May 1972

Smog, September 1972

The "Belle Of Louisville" Docked At The "New" Louisville Waterfront On The Ohio River, May 1972

Paddlewheel Steamboat On The Ohio River, May 1972

Bride And Groom At Wedding Reception On The "Belle Of Louisiana" Steamboat, May 1972

Smog Lingers Over Louisville Skyline, September 1972

Belle Of Louisiana, A Paddlewheel Steamboat Owned By Louisville And Jefferson County, May 1972

Steamboat On The Ohio River, June 1972

Steamboat On The Ohio River, May 1972

Wedding On The "Belle Of Louisiana." Paddlewheel Steamboat Is Owned By The City Of Louisville And Jefferson County, March 1972

Louisville Mayor Frank Burke Ordered 4,800 Residents Of The Waterfront Area Known As Portland, To Evacuate, April 1972

Pool Hall, April 1972

Yacht Is Refueled At Station On Ohio River, June 1972

The Ohio River, June 1972

The Fourth Annual Spring Sunfish Regatta Of The Louisville Sailing Club, June 1972

Participant In The Spring Sunfish Regatta Of The Louisville Sailing Club, September 1972

Boating On The Ohio River, June 1972

State And County Police Patrol The Ohio River, June 1972

Boating On The Ohio River, June 1972

Participants In The Spring Regatta Of The Louisville Sailing Club, June 1972

The Ohio River, June 1972

Camping Along The Banks Of The Ohio River, September 1972

The Ohio River, June 1972

Participant In The Louisville Sailing Club Spring Regatta, June 1972

The Ohio River, June 1972

Boaters Unload Canoe Near The Ohio River, September 1972

Ohio River Police Patrol Help A Man Start His Boat, June 1972

Participant In The Louisville Spring Regatta, June 1972

The Ohio River, June 1972

The Ohio River, September 1972

Small Pleasure Craft Goes Aground On Banks Of Ohio River, June 1972

Participant In The Louisville Spring Regatta, September 1972

Paddle Wheel Steamboats, Docked At The New Louisville Waterfront On The Ohio River, May 1972

The Ohio River, May 1972

Smog Over Louisville And Ohio River, September 1972

Paddlewheel Steamboats Seen From Banks Of Ohio River, May 1972

Paddlewheel Steamboat On Ohio River, May 1972

Pool Hall, June 1972

A Liquid Chlorine Barge, After Breaking Loose From Its Tug Became Lodged Against The Mcalpine Dam On The Ohio River And Could Not Be Set Free, March 1972

Tennessee - Near Nashville, September 1972

The Streets Of The Louisville Waterfront Area, Portland, Are Deserted Following Evacuation, March 1972

Burning Barge On The Ohio River, May 1972

Picnic On The Banks Of The Ohio River, June 1972

Strip Mining On Indian Burial Grounds By Peabody Coal Co, May 1972

(Photos via The U.S. National Archives)