The Great Johnstown Flood,By 1889 Johnstown was a prosperous Pennslyvania town which was home to ove

The Great Johnstown Flood,By 1889 Johnstown was a prosperous Pennslyvania town which was home to over 30,000 people, many of whom were Welsh and German immigrants seeking work in the towns steel mills.  Johnstown is located along the banks of the Conemaugh River, which stretches through southwest and south central PA.  About 14 miles upstream from Johnstown was the South Fork Dam, which formed Lake Conemaugh.  The dam was owned by the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club, a private retreat fro 50 wealthy businessmen and industrialists from Pittsburgh, including the famous Andrew Carnegie and Henry Frick.  While the club owned the dam, they did little to maintain the earthen structure, which was aging and badly needed repairs.On May 30th, 1889 a massive rainstorm swept the region, raising the level of Lake Conemaugh and stressing the South Fork Dam to its limits. Several men tried to repair the dam and dig spillways, but to no avail.  On 3:10 pm of the 31st, the dam broke allowing the release of 20 million tons of water.  The massive wave swept through the Conemaugh Valley, taking with it trees and houses.  An hour later a 60 foot high wall of water and debris swept through Johnstown at the speed of 30 MPH.   Hundreds of people were caught in the streets and instantly swept away.  Whole buildings and houses were likewise instantly demolished by the deluge.  Whole families were instantly killed.  In the aftermath of the flood the entire town was demolished and left under several feet of water.  Paradoxically, several fires also raged through the city as the boilers of the towns steel mills and factories exploded when the waves swept through the town.  2,209 people were killed, with many more wounded and many thousands left homeless.  It would take a week before organized relief reached the city, but soon afterward 7,000 relief workers would travel to Johnstown, among them Clara Barton and 50 members of her newly founded relief organization called the American Red Cross.  In addition, charitable donations poured in from across the nation, and 17 foreign countries also funded relief efforts.  In would take months to remove the debris and recover all the bodies.  In some cases the logjam of debris was so thick that dynamite had to be used to blast it clear.  Reconstruction and recovery of the city would take years.  The South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club was never held responsible for its role in the disaster. -- source link

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