Johnstown Flood

The rubble left behind by the Johnstown Flood.

The Johnstown Flood, otherwise known as the Great Flood of 1889, was a major flood that happened in a city called Johnstown, Pennsylvania, in the eastern United States. It was on a river called the Little Conemaugh River. It was caused by the collapse of a dam called the South Fork Dam, 14 miles (23 km) upstream, after several days of heavy rain. The date it happened was May 31, 1889. 2,209 people were killed by the 20 million tons of water that flooded the town. The flood also resulted in $17 million in damages.

Johnstown Flood Media

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  The remaining abutment of the South Fork Dam with the US-219 highway bridge downstream in the background

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  Remains of the South Fork Dam abutment with US-219 downstream in the background as it appeared in 1980

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  Remains of South Fork Dam showing construction details of the dam as it appeared in 1980

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  The north end of the dam abutment and the farm of Elias Unger, now the visitor center of the Johnstown Flood Museum

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  View of the lake bed from top of the dam

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  May 1889 view of the broken dam from the roadway

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  May 5, 2013 view of the center section of the dam that gave way

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  Lake Conemaugh's spillway as it appeared in 1980

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  Wreck of Pullman cars and engines at Conemaugh

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  1889 view of debris field with Stone Bridge in the left center