At least 27 campers and counselors at Camp Mystic perished in Friday's floods, with the total death toll in the floods now surpassing 100.

After a tragedy, records from local archives can help us understand how a community understands itself. Here’s some of what we learned following the devastating July 4 flooding in Texas.

Betty Matteson’s four children, nine grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren have squeezed into her Texas Hill Country home countless times since 1968.

At least 27 campers and counselors were killed at Camp Mystic during the devastating Texas floods. Some are still missing.

The state leaves building zoning and permits up to the individual counties. And in most non-city counties, such as Kerr, which had 96 deaths as of Thursday due to floods, some officials tend to be lenient towards building owners with restrictions, some state leaders and environmental experts told ABC News.

Kerr County had discussed buying such things as water gauges and sirens after previous flood disasters. But as with many rural Texas counties, cost was an issue.

Catastrophic flooding struck central Texas on Friday as the Guadalupe River surged by more than 20 to 26 feet within 90 minutes, causing widespread devastation and forcing mass evacuations in Texas Hill Country. At least 80 people have been killed in the floods while others remain missing or displaced and more than 850 people required rescuing.

When too much rain falls for the ground to absorb, it runs downhill, pulled by gravity into streams, creeks and rivers.