The valley once held Lake Conemaugh, a scenic lake retained by an earthen dam just below this point and stretching more than two miles up the valley. The lake formed the heart of an exclusive resort where sailboats used the mountain breezes and anglers sought trophy fish. Everything changed on May 31, 1889, when at 3:15 p.m., after record rainfall, the South Fork Dam failed. In minutes the lake disappeared, and in less than an hour a devastating wall of churning water and debris, 30 to 60 feet high, raced down the Little Conemaugh River valley to Johnstown 14 miles downstream. The flood traveled the distance in about 45 minutes, and the death toll exceeded 2,200.

Photo: William Fischer, Jr.

Photo: William Fischer, Jr.

Croyle, Pennsylvania · USA