On March 25 , 1913 , the Great Flood of 1913 devastated the neighborhood of Franklinton , leaving over ninety people dead and thousands of West Side residents homeless . To prevent flooding , the Army Corps of Engineers recommended widening the Scioto River through downtown , constructing new bridges , and building a retaining wall along its banks . With the strength of the post-World War I economy , a construction boom occurred in the 1920s , resulting in a new Civic center , the Ohio Theatre , the American Insurance Union Citadel , and , to the north , a massive new Ohio Stadium . Although the American Professional Football Association was founded in Canton in 1920 , its head offices moved to Columbus in 1921 to the New Hayden Building and remained in the city until 1941 . In 1922 , the association 's name was changed to the National Football League . A decade later , in 1931 , at a convention in the city , the Jehovah 's Witnesses took that name by which they are known today
Great Flood of 1913
Great Flood of 1913
Columbus, Ohio