Morganza Spillway in 1954, the Morganza Spillway has been opened twice (in 1973 and 2011), and considered for opening during four other major floods of the Lower Mississippi River. On April 17, 1973, in order to lower the water level of the Mississippi River and relieve pressure on the Old River Control Structure, the Corps of Engineers opened 42 of the 125 steel gates of the Morganza Spillway for the first time since its completion, allowing about half of its maximum designed flowrate to pass from the Mississippi into the Atchafalaya Basin. The spillway received minor scouring and slight damage to the
Western Center of the Western Center during the 1960s, wrote a book based on his experiences. In the book, Stuart describes the history of abuse and neglect that the Western Center had become known for. In fact, during the 1950s and 1960s, local parents seeking to discipline their children threatened to send them to "Morganza" if they did not behave. In 2014, Christopher R Barraclough, wrote a book ,Morganza: Pennsylvania's Reform School, about the history of the reform school. Morganza: Pennsylvania's Reform School is part of the "Images of America" series books published by Arcadia Publishing. Western Center Western State School and