Existing comment:
From the brochure: The original dam, which was built by the State of Pennsylvania and completed in the 1850's, had a control mechanism consisting of a sluice gate with five very large cast iron pipes covered by a stone culvert extending 270 feet through the base of the dam. The foundation stones you see are all that remain of the culvert. A valve tower out in the lake regulated the flow of water out through the pipes. After a breach in 1862, the lake was completely drained, the valve tower burned down, and the cast iron pipes were sold. The property was purchased by the South Fork Fishing & Hunting Club in 1879. The dam was reconstructed by them, but this vital control system was never replaced. The only way left to get rid of the excess water was the spillway -- and on the morning of May 31 1889, it was clogged.
The level of the lake continued to rise at an alarming rate. It was just a matter of time before the water would flow over the top, which would cause any earthen dam to break.
Colonel Unger sent John Parke to South Fork to send a telegraph message to warn the people of Johnstown. The roads were in terrible shape because of the storm but Mr Parke made the two mile ride in just ten minutes! |