The flood of 1884 was thought to be the great flood at 47' 11", but the 1936 flood crested at 51' 6" on March 18 and was followed by another flood on March 26 at 35' 9". Over 1,000 citizens were fed at the community house and Christian Church, many buildings floated away, and the Pennsylvania Railroad station was destroyed. Flood stage for New Cumberland is 36'. Before white settlement, this area was controlled by the Iroquois, or Six Nations, a confederation of the Mohawks, Onondagas, Cayugas, Oneidas, Senecas, and later the Tuscaroras. The Iroquois were a war like people feared in the northeast quarter of the United States, and for this reason the area remained a primeval game reserve.