The Roarbots’ series of NPS Adventures takes a big-picture view of one location within the National Park Service and highlights some of the best activities that site has to offer. This is usually done through a kid-friendly lens and almost always includes activities and suggestions we can recommend from personal experience. And pictures. There are lots and lots of pictures. Glad to have you aboard!

Welcome to Johnstown Flood National Memorial!

Stats

• Johnstown Flood National Memorial
• Location: Pennsylvania
• Established: 1964
• Admission: Free
• Social Sites: Twitter, Facebook

On May 31, 1889, after several days of unprecedented rainfall, the South Fork Dam – about 10 miles upstream from Johnstown, PA – breached. Even today, when natural disasters such as floods, wildfires, and hurricanes happen with alarming regularity, the devastation the breach unleashed on this slice of western Pennsylvania is hard to imagine.

Some 20 million tons of water were sent hurting downstream on a totally unsuspecting and unprepared populace. Smaller towns along the river were obliterated, and by the time the water reached Johnstown about an hour later, it was a 36-foot wall of water moving at 40 miles per hour. Johnstown was razed to the ground in 10 minutes. The people there had no chance.

Warnings were sent via telegraph, but almost everyone was caught totally off guard. By the time the water receded, several towns were wiped off the map. Property damage was calculated at $17 million, which in today’s money would be almost half a billion dollars. An astonishing 2,209 people were dead (with many more unaccounted for), and that number would only rise once typhoid and other diseases broke out in the flood’s wake. Bodies continued to turn up for the next 22 years as far away as Cincinnati, Ohio (350+ miles).

The devastation was almost biblical.

(Click on all pictures to embiggen.)

Visitor Center

If you’re largely unfamiliar with the Johnstown Flood (as we were), the Lake View Visitor Center does a great job of telling the story. Designwise, the visitor center also immerses you in the destruction, so to speak. The entire ceiling is designed to resemble the damage caused by the flood. Look up, and it feels like houses and trees have crashed into the building and are about to crush you. It’s a little uneasy, I’ll admit.

Over two floors and through an accessible video (“Black Friday”), the story of that day is given clarity. The story begins with the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club – a retreat for the Pittsburgh rich – who built the dam in 1853 to create a lake (Lake Conemaugh) that was their own personal western Pennsylvania Lake Tahoe.

The dam typical for its day but wasn’t much more than a wall of compacted dirt. But it held back Lake Conemaugh, which stretched for two miles upstream. Alas, they didn’t properly maintain the dam (surprise!), and years of neglect weakened its integrity and led to the breach.

In addition to the events leading up to and on the day of the flood, the visitor center also tells the story of Clara Barton, who arrived five days after the flood. The relief effort she led, along with 50 doctors and nurses – was the first true test of the newly formed American Red Cross.

South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club Clubhouse

Though we did not visit the clubhouse during our visit, it is possible to go inside. There are three options to view the clubhouse:

1. During a ranger-guided tour, usually held during the anniversary weekend.
2. During a Journey Around Lake Conemaugh van tour (offered during the summer months).
3. During a Path of the Flood van tour (offered on Saturdays during the summer months).

If you’re interested in these special tours, call (814) 886-6170 for more information. The NPS advises that “Visitors can see parts of the original structure including wood grain floors and the original colors on the walls. Hazards such as mildew, dust, and mold may greet you as well. A 12-foot-high brick and ceramic tiled fireplace is a focal point of the small portion of the clubhouse open for viewing. Water damage has softened ceilings, cracked plaster walls in 24 guest rooms and peeled away wallpaper.”

Photo © National Park Service

Photo © National Park Service

Trails and Dam Remains

A couple trails lead down the hill from the visitor center, past the Unger House, and to the remains of the South Fork Dam. The “remains” are really not much more than a wide gap between two overlooks, but it gives you a sense for where and how it all started.

Other Sites

Do note that there are two Johnstown Flood-related sites in the area. In addition to the Johnstown Flood National Memorial, the Johnstown Flood Museum is housed in an old Carnegie library in downtown Johnstown. It is a true museum and features an Academy-Award-winning film by Charles Guggenheim called “The Johnstown Flood.” The stone bridge also continues to be a symbol of both the Johnstown flood and the current community.

Junior Ranger

Like most NPS sites, Johnstown Flood has a park-centric Junior Ranger program. There are three different booklets, depending on age, but each focuses on the events the site commemorates along with all the ways that people came together to help one another.