The Great Flood of 1927 remains the flood by which all Mississippi River floods are measured. At that time, it was the most destructive flood in American history and the nation's largest natural disaster. It caused more than $1 billion in damage at a time when the entire annual budget of the nation was $3 billion. More than 1,000 people died and 700,000 were driven from their homes. The devastating effect on communities along the lower portion of the Mississippi River resulted in the creation of the Jadwin Plan. This comprehensive plan sought to control the river with a coordinated system of levees supported by floodways, spillways, channels and improved mapping, starting here and continuing to the Gulf of Mexico.