The Johnstown Flood and its Impact on Dam Construction and Ownership in the United States
Faculty Mentor
Richard Orndorff
Document Type
Poster
Start Date
10-5-2023 9:00 AM
End Date
10-5-2023 10:45 AM
Location
PUB NCR
Department
Environmental Science
Abstract
In the afternoon of May 31, 1889, unsuspecting residents of Johnstown, PA were submerged in a 35-foot-high wave of water and debris as the South Fork Dam failed, and 20 million tons of water behind the dam tore through the city. In the end, over 2,000 people lost their lives to the flood, which was followed by a fire that burned through the wreckage for 3 days. The embankment dam that blocked the flow of the Little Conemaugh River created Conemaugh Lake, which sat on property owned by the South Fork Country Club. Increased rainfall that spring put immense pressure on the dam, and the country club's neglect of the rock-filled dam ultimately left it susceptible to the catastrophic failure that resulted in so much destruction. The private club's irresponsibility in this disaster resulted in dramatic changes to government regulations regarding ownership and maintenance of private dams. The Johnstown Flood was a historic and tragic moment that forever changed the processes of dam building, maintenance, and regulation in the United States.
Recommended Citation
Hays, Alexa, "The Johnstown Flood and its Impact on Dam Construction and Ownership in the United States" (2023). 2023 Symposium. 43.
https://dc.ewu.edu/srcw_2023/res_2023/p1_2023/43
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
The Johnstown Flood and its Impact on Dam Construction and Ownership in the United States
PUB NCR
In the afternoon of May 31, 1889, unsuspecting residents of Johnstown, PA were submerged in a 35-foot-high wave of water and debris as the South Fork Dam failed, and 20 million tons of water behind the dam tore through the city. In the end, over 2,000 people lost their lives to the flood, which was followed by a fire that burned through the wreckage for 3 days. The embankment dam that blocked the flow of the Little Conemaugh River created Conemaugh Lake, which sat on property owned by the South Fork Country Club. Increased rainfall that spring put immense pressure on the dam, and the country club's neglect of the rock-filled dam ultimately left it susceptible to the catastrophic failure that resulted in so much destruction. The private club's irresponsibility in this disaster resulted in dramatic changes to government regulations regarding ownership and maintenance of private dams. The Johnstown Flood was a historic and tragic moment that forever changed the processes of dam building, maintenance, and regulation in the United States.
