jtownsouthfork

THE GREAT JOHNSTOWN FLOOD OF 1889

PAGE FOUR: SOUTH FORK, THE FIRST TOWN THE FLOOD REACHED

The flood came down this valley, scraping off every tree, every rock, every bit of dirt, all the way down to bedrock.

This is the South Fork river almost at the point where it flows into the Little Conemaugh. The little town is mostly up

behind and to my left here.

This is looking downstream. The Little Conemaugh flows in from the right at the base of the tall hill. The flood passed through

where I was standing and crashed straight into the hill as the valley makes a sharp curve to the left here.

Looking back toward the town of South Fork. The depot would've been off to the left. As the town is built for the most part up the hill,

only the lower-lying section was destroyed. The train tracks went up the left of the central double hill along the Little Conemaugh. The

flood came down the valley of the South Fork, which is to the right of it. Molly's grandparents in my story lived high up on the right

section of the hill and it's up and over that she walked.

Just behind where I stood to take the picture above this one was this orange bus, which for those who know me well,

will be clearly understandable why I photographed the thing.

Carl going back to our car. A snatch of the South Fork can be seen just over its top. It flows parallel to the line of poles.

This is the nearest road to it and on the side the old road would have been that led from the depot to the base of the dam,

so I'm saying it's probably the road Letty walked up. It's also named, appropriately, River Road. Just a bit further up

it would've been very wooded and not at all as it looks now. I wished very much there were some way to follow the river

valley all the way to Johnstown, but the railroad is still the only thing that goes the full distance, so we cut back the

couple of miles to 219 and took it down to 56.

SOUTH SIDE OF THE DAM REMAINS; THE LAKEBED

BACK TO THE WATERS (Jo's story set during the flood)