The terrible Johnstown Flood of 1889 was more of a man-made Tsunami. Yes, there was flooding at first. The ‘Storm of the Century‘ rains arrived in the deep Pennsylvania valley on Memorial Day, 1889. The two rivers that flanked the steel mill town began to swell. But it wasn’t until the aging South Fork Dam burst that the REAL tragedy occurred. The dam, owned by a wealthy country club, held back the waters of Lake Conemaugh, just14 miles upriver from the unsuspecting people of Johnstown.
