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Coordinates: 40°20′44″N 78°46′43″W / 40.34556°N 78.77861°W / 40.34556; -78.77861
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}}<!-- Note: site's category is unset in IUCN database, but appears to conform with Category V -->The '''Johnstown Flood National Memorial''' is a unit of the [[United States]] [[National Park Service]]. Established in 1964 through legislation signed by President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]],<ref>Matthews, Don Jr. "[https://www.newspapers.com/image/25456318/?terms=%22Johnstown%20Flood%20National%20Memorial%22&match=1 Allegheny RR, Johnstown Flood Memorial in U.S. Park System]." Lock Haven, Pennsylvania: ''The Express'', September 29, 1964, p. 10 (subscription required).</ref> it pays tribute to the thousands of victims of the [[Johnstown Flood]], who were injured or killed on May 31, 1889 when the [[South Fork Dam]] ruptured.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Walker|first=T.|title=Johnstown Flood National Memorial|url=https://stateparks.com/johnstown_flood_national_memorial_in_pennsylvania.html|access-date=2021-03-04|website=State Parks|language=en-us}}</ref>
}}<!-- Note: site's category is unset in IUCN database, but appears to conform with Category V -->The '''Johnstown Flood National Memorial''' is a unit of the [[United States]] [[National Park Service]]. Established in 1964 through legislation signed by President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]],<ref>Matthews, Don Jr. "[https://www.newspapers.com/image/25456318/?terms=%22Johnstown%20Flood%20National%20Memorial%22&match=1 Allegheny RR, Johnstown Flood Memorial in U.S. Park System]." Lock Haven, Pennsylvania: ''The Express'', September 29, 1964, p. 10 (subscription required).</ref> it pays tribute to the thousands of victims of the [[Johnstown Flood]], who were injured or killed on May 31, 1889 when the [[South Fork Dam]] ruptured.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Walker|first=T.|title=Johnstown Flood National Memorial|url=https://stateparks.com/johnstown_flood_national_memorial_in_pennsylvania.html|access-date=2021-03-04|website=State Parks|language=en-us}}</ref>


==History of the memorial==
==History==
⚫
Under legislation proposed by U.S. Congressman [[John P. Saylor]], which was approved by the [[United States Congress]] on August 31, 1964, and then signed into law by U.S. President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] later that same year, this national memorial preserves the remains of the [[South Fork Dam]], which was structurally lacking at the time of its rupture during the [[Johnstown Flood]] on May 31, 1889, killing more than two thousand two hundred men, women and children and injuring thousands more. Also preserved by this legislation were the former [[Lake Conemaugh]] bed, along with the farm of Elias Unger and the clubhouse of the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club, which owned the dam and reservoir.


⚫
===History of the Johnstown Flood===
⚫
The memorial is located at 733 Lake Road near [[South Fork, Pennsylvania]],<ref name="NPSIndex" /> about 10 miles (16&nbsp;km) northeast of [[Johnstown, Pennsylvania]].
⚫
Founded in 1800, Johnstown was a steel town that grew from the development of the Pennsylvania Railroad and other transportation services in the area. The town had a population of thirty thousand people who were of mostly German and Welsh ancestry. Established in the center of a floodplain between [[Little Conemaugh River|Little Conemaugh]] and Stony Creek rivers, the community was surrounded, during the latter part of the nineteenth century, by land that had been devastated by deforestation and the leveling of hills, both of which were responsible for periodic floods.<ref name="Johnstown Flood">{{Cite web|title=Johnstown Flood|url=https://www.loc.gov/resource/g3824j.ct008319/|access-date=2021-03-04|website=Library of Congress}}</ref>


On May 31, 1889, the South Fork dam, owned and operated by the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club, broke from the weight of high rains that had accumulated in its reservoir. The dam's rupture released twenty million tons of water, which traveled at forty miles per hour, creating a seventy-foot-high wall of water that was propelled fourteen miles downward into the Little Conemaugh River Valley, where it flooded Johnstown. Property, industry, homes, farms, and lives were destroyed as the water, debris, oil, and bodies of flood victims were caught in the arches of a [[Pennsylvania Railroad]]-owned [[Stone Bridge (Johnstown, Pennsylvania)|stone bridge]]. Eighty of the trapped people subsequently died in a related fire.<ref name="Johnstown Flood"/>
⚫
== Johnstown Flood ==
⚫
Founded in 1800, Johnstown was a steel town that grew from the development of transportation in the region such as the Pennsylvania Railroad. The town had a population of 30,000 people who were mostly German and Welsh. Johnstown was established in the center of a floodplain between [[Little Conemaugh River|Little Conemaugh]] and Stony Creek rivers. The surrounding environment was devastated by deforestation and the leveling of hills which caused periodic floods in the area.<ref name="Johnstown Flood">{{Cite web|title=Johnstown Flood|url=https://www.loc.gov/resource/g3824j.ct008319/|access-date=2021-03-04|website=Library of Congress}}</ref>


On May 31, 1889, the South Fork dam, owned and operated by the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club, broke from the weight high rain accumulation in its reservoir. It released 20,000,000 tons of water traveling at 40&nbsp;mph. The wall of water reached upwards of 70 feet high and extended 14 miles down into the Little Conemaugh River Valley where it flooded Johnstown and destroyed property, industry, homes, and farms. Water, debris, oil, and people were caught in the arches of a [[Pennsylvania Railroad]]-owned [[Stone Bridge (Johnstown, Pennsylvania)|stone bridge]], and 80 trapped people died in the resulting fire. Johnstown was ravished by typhoid after the flood leading to 40 more lives lost. At the end of the city lines, about three acres, remaining residents were treated and cared for by relief corps from several cities in Southwestern Pennsylvania. The federal government and foreign countries responded with money, food, and clothing for the town which totaled at over $3.7 million. The flood lasted for 10 minutes; however, the aftermath left 5 years of rebuilding before Johnstown had fully recovered.<ref name="Johnstown Flood"/>
Although the flood lasted for just ten minutes, the catastrophic damage it caused required five years of cleanup and rebuilding to enable residents of Johnstown to recover. In addition to the initial injuries and lives lost, the community was also impacted by an outbreak of [[typhoid fever]], which developed from bacteria-tainted flood waters, causing forty additional deaths. Surviving residents were treated and cared for by relief corps from several cities in Southwestern Pennsylvania. The federal government and foreign countries also responded with more than $3.7 million in money, food, and clothing for the town.<ref name="Johnstown Flood"/>


[[Victor Heiser]], a survivor of the flood gave his recollection of the event. He was just sixteen when the flood happened and remembers the flood as a "huge wall" coming down the street. According to his recollection, the people living in the area near the dam would often say "That dam will give way, but it won’t ever happen to us".<ref>{{Cite web|title=Victor Heiser describes surviving the Johnstown Flood at the age of 16 - Johnstown Flood Museum|url=https://www.jaha.org/edu/flood/rebuild/survivor_stories/victor_heiser.html|access-date=2021-03-06|website=www.jaha.org}}</ref> The longest living survivor of the flood, Frank Shomo died March 20, 1997, at the age of 108.<ref>{{Cite web|last=US Census Bureau|first=Census History Staff|title=May 2019 - History - U.S. Census Bureau|url=https://www.census.gov/history/www/homepage_archive/2019/may_2019.html|access-date=2021-03-06|website=www.census.gov|language=EN-US}}</ref>
Just sixteen when the flood happened, survivor [[Victor Heiser]] gave his recollection of the event years later during a recording of his oral history. He remembered people living in the area near the dam often saying beforehand, "That dam will give way, but it won’t ever happen to us," and also recalled that the flood, when it hit, was like a "huge wall" coming down the street.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Victor Heiser describes surviving the Johnstown Flood at the age of 16 - Johnstown Flood Museum|url=https://www.jaha.org/edu/flood/rebuild/survivor_stories/victor_heiser.html|access-date=2021-03-06|website=www.jaha.org}}</ref> The longest living survivor of the flood, Frank Shomo, died March 20, 1997, at the age of one hundred and eight.<ref>{{Cite web|last=US Census Bureau|first=Census History Staff|title=May 2019 - History - U.S. Census Bureau|url=https://www.census.gov/history/www/homepage_archive/2019/may_2019.html|access-date=2021-03-06|website=www.census.gov|language=EN-US}}</ref>

===History of the memorial===
⚫
Under legislation proposed by U.S. Congressman [[John P. Saylor]], which was approved by the [[United States Congress]] on August 31, 1964, and then signed into law by U.S. President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] later that same year, this national memorial preserves the remains of the [[South Fork Dam]], which was structurally lacking at the time of its rupture during the [[Johnstown Flood]] on May 31, 1889. Also preserved by this legislation were the former [[Lake Conemaugh]] bed, along with the farm of Elias Unger and the clubhouse of the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club, which owned the dam and reservoir.

⚫
The memorial is located at 733 Lake Road near [[South Fork, Pennsylvania]],<ref name="NPSIndex" /> about 10 miles (16&nbsp;km) northeast of [[Johnstown, Pennsylvania]].


==Park features==
==Park features==
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Hiking trails connect various parts of the memorial, and picnicking areas are also present throughout.<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|last2=|first2=|title=Things To Do - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)|url=https://www.nps.gov/jofl/planyourvisit/things2do.htm|url-status=live|access-date=2021-03-04|website=www.nps.gov|language=en}}</ref>
Hiking trails connect various parts of the memorial, and picnicking areas are also present throughout.<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|last2=|first2=|title=Things To Do - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)|url=https://www.nps.gov/jofl/planyourvisit/things2do.htm|url-status=live|access-date=2021-03-04|website=www.nps.gov|language=en}}</ref>


== Lakebed Rehabilitation Project ==
==Lakebed Rehabilitation Project==
On January, 2020, the Lakebed Rehabilitation Project began at the Johnston Flood National Memorial. The project's goal was to restore the view of how the lakebed looked before the breakage of the dam in 1889. Vegetation has grown in the area so the National Park Service Wildland Fire and Aviation staff cleared it using a [[Forestry mulching|masticator machine]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Lakebed Rehabilitation Project - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)|url=https://www.nps.gov/jofl/learn/lakebed-rehabilitation-project.htm|access-date=2021-03-05|website=www.nps.gov|language=en}}</ref> This caused problems however as there are many places that both man and machine cannot clear with safety. An organization named Allegheny Goatscape from [[Pittsburgh, PA|Pittsburgh]] used their services of 12 goats and a donkey to provide assistance in clearing the area. The herd is able to eat an approximate of an acre of vegetation every two weeks.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Herd of goats for Lakebed Rehabilitation Project - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)|url=https://www.nps.gov/jofl/learn/news/herd-of-goats-for-lakebed-rehabilitation-project.htm|access-date=2021-03-05|website=www.nps.gov|language=en}}</ref> Another organization named Russell Tree Experts from [[Ohio]] also assisted in mechanical clearing of the lakebed.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Russell Tree Experts - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)|url=https://www.nps.gov/jofl/learn/news/russell-tree-experts.htm|access-date=2021-03-05|website=www.nps.gov|language=en}}</ref> This clearing project is expected to continue till the summer of 2021.
On January, 2020, the Lakebed Rehabilitation Project began at the Johnston Flood National Memorial. The project's goal was to restore the view of how the lakebed looked before the breakage of the dam in 1889. Vegetation has grown in the area so the National Park Service Wildland Fire and Aviation staff cleared it using a [[Forestry mulching|masticator machine]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Lakebed Rehabilitation Project - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)|url=https://www.nps.gov/jofl/learn/lakebed-rehabilitation-project.htm|access-date=2021-03-05|website=www.nps.gov|language=en}}</ref> This caused problems however as there are many places that both man and machine cannot clear with safety. An organization named Allegheny Goatscape from [[Pittsburgh, PA|Pittsburgh]] used their services of 12 goats and a donkey to provide assistance in clearing the area. The herd is able to eat an approximate of an acre of vegetation every two weeks.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Herd of goats for Lakebed Rehabilitation Project - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)|url=https://www.nps.gov/jofl/learn/news/herd-of-goats-for-lakebed-rehabilitation-project.htm|access-date=2021-03-05|website=www.nps.gov|language=en}}</ref> Another organization named Russell Tree Experts from [[Ohio]] also assisted in mechanical clearing of the lakebed.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Russell Tree Experts - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)|url=https://www.nps.gov/jofl/learn/news/russell-tree-experts.htm|access-date=2021-03-05|website=www.nps.gov|language=en}}</ref> This clearing project is expected to continue till the summer of 2021.


Revision as of 15:04, 5 January 2023

Johnstown Flood National Memorial
Dam abutment and Elias Unger's farm
Map showing the location of Johnstown Flood National Memorial
Map showing the location of Johnstown Flood National Memorial
Location in Pennsylvania
Map showing the location of Johnstown Flood National Memorial
Map showing the location of Johnstown Flood National Memorial
Location in the United States
LocationCroyle Township / Adams Township, Cambria County, Pennsylvania, USA
Nearest cityJohnstown, Pennsylvania
Coordinates40°20′44″N 78°46′43″W / 40.34556°N 78.77861°W / 40.34556; -78.77861
Area164.12 acres (66.42 ha)[1]
EstablishedAugust 31, 1964[1]
Visitors111,987 (in 2005)
Governing bodyNational Park Service
WebsiteJohnstown Flood National Memorial

The Johnstown Flood National Memorial is a unit of the United States National Park Service. Established in 1964 through legislation signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson,[2] it pays tribute to the thousands of victims of the Johnstown Flood, who were injured or killed on May 31, 1889 when the South Fork Dam ruptured.[3]

History

History of the Johnstown Flood

Founded in 1800, Johnstown was a steel town that grew from the development of the Pennsylvania Railroad and other transportation services in the area. The town had a population of thirty thousand people who were of mostly German and Welsh ancestry. Established in the center of a floodplain between Little Conemaugh and Stony Creek rivers, the community was surrounded, during the latter part of the nineteenth century, by land that had been devastated by deforestation and the leveling of hills, both of which were responsible for periodic floods.[4]

On May 31, 1889, the South Fork dam, owned and operated by the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club, broke from the weight of high rains that had accumulated in its reservoir. The dam's rupture released twenty million tons of water, which traveled at forty miles per hour, creating a seventy-foot-high wall of water that was propelled fourteen miles downward into the Little Conemaugh River Valley, where it flooded Johnstown. Property, industry, homes, farms, and lives were destroyed as the water, debris, oil, and bodies of flood victims were caught in the arches of a Pennsylvania Railroad-owned stone bridge. Eighty of the trapped people subsequently died in a related fire.[4]

Although the flood lasted for just ten minutes, the catastrophic damage it caused required five years of cleanup and rebuilding to enable residents of Johnstown to recover. In addition to the initial injuries and lives lost, the community was also impacted by an outbreak of typhoid fever, which developed from bacteria-tainted flood waters, causing forty additional deaths. Surviving residents were treated and cared for by relief corps from several cities in Southwestern Pennsylvania. The federal government and foreign countries also responded with more than $3.7 million in money, food, and clothing for the town.[4]

Just sixteen when the flood happened, survivor Victor Heiser gave his recollection of the event years later during a recording of his oral history. He remembered people living in the area near the dam often saying beforehand, "That dam will give way, but it won’t ever happen to us," and also recalled that the flood, when it hit, was like a "huge wall" coming down the street.[5] The longest living survivor of the flood, Frank Shomo, died March 20, 1997, at the age of one hundred and eight.[6]

History of the memorial

Under legislation proposed by U.S. Congressman John P. Saylor, which was approved by the United States Congress on August 31, 1964, and then signed into law by U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson later that same year, this national memorial preserves the remains of the South Fork Dam, which was structurally lacking at the time of its rupture during the Johnstown Flood on May 31, 1889. Also preserved by this legislation were the former Lake Conemaugh bed, along with the farm of Elias Unger and the clubhouse of the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club, which owned the dam and reservoir.

The memorial is located at 733 Lake Road near South Fork, Pennsylvania,[1] about 10 miles (16 km) northeast of Johnstown, Pennsylvania.

Park features

The visitor center at this national memorial offers two floors of exhibits with maps, views of the former dam, tactile displays, historic photographs of the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club, a reproduction morgue book, the oral history of flood survivor Victor Heiser, and the film, "Black Friday," and also includes the Unger House and the Springhouse.[7]

Visitors to the national memorial may also explore the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Clubhouse, which was aquired by the park in 2006, and the Lake View Visitor Center. Ranger-interpreted and van-guided tours are also both available.[8]

Hiking trails connect various parts of the memorial, and picnicking areas are also present throughout.[9]

Lakebed Rehabilitation Project

On January, 2020, the Lakebed Rehabilitation Project began at the Johnston Flood National Memorial. The project's goal was to restore the view of how the lakebed looked before the breakage of the dam in 1889. Vegetation has grown in the area so the National Park Service Wildland Fire and Aviation staff cleared it using a masticator machine.[10] This caused problems however as there are many places that both man and machine cannot clear with safety. An organization named Allegheny Goatscape from Pittsburgh used their services of 12 goats and a donkey to provide assistance in clearing the area. The herd is able to eat an approximate of an acre of vegetation every two weeks.[11] Another organization named Russell Tree Experts from Ohio also assisted in mechanical clearing of the lakebed.[12] This clearing project is expected to continue till the summer of 2021.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "The National Parks: Index 2005 - 2007" (PDF). National Park Service, US Department of the Interior. p. 75. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-10-10. Retrieved 2009-05-07.
  2. ^ Matthews, Don Jr. "Allegheny RR, Johnstown Flood Memorial in U.S. Park System." Lock Haven, Pennsylvania: The Express, September 29, 1964, p. 10 (subscription required).
  3. ^ Walker, T. "Johnstown Flood National Memorial". State Parks. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  4. ^ a b c "Johnstown Flood". Library of Congress. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  5. ^ "Victor Heiser describes surviving the Johnstown Flood at the age of 16 - Johnstown Flood Museum". www.jaha.org. Retrieved 2021-03-06.
  6. ^ US Census Bureau, Census History Staff. "May 2019 - History - U.S. Census Bureau". www.census.gov. Retrieved 2021-03-06.
  7. ^ "Lake View Visitor Center - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  8. ^ "South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club Clubhouse - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  9. ^ "Things To Do - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2021-03-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ^ "Lakebed Rehabilitation Project - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2021-03-05.
  11. ^ "Herd of goats for Lakebed Rehabilitation Project - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2021-03-05.
  12. ^ "Russell Tree Experts - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2021-03-05.
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