Civil engineering and history. One of these topics I enjoy, and the other I do for a job. I joke, but these two topics go hand in hand in many ways, as civil engineering is basically the formation of future history. Take reservoirs for instance. An engineer was tasked with damming a river, either for water or power supply, and the land and surrounding area were permanently altered, creating a lake where there had been no lake before. Kind of wild when you think about it. In many cases, residents and homesteads were displaced due to the rising water levels, and instead of razing the structures, the existing buildings, bridges, roadways, etc., remained only to be submerged. However, with the recent lack of rain and falling water levels, some structures are starting to reemerge from their watery graves.
About 70 miles southeast of Pittsburgh, there's a reservoir named the Youghiogheny River Lake. The lake was formed in 1944 by damming the Youghiogheny River. Before damming, the National Road (topic for another newsletter) crossed the river along the Great Crossings Bridge. This bridge was erected between 1813 and 1818 and remained a reliable crossing until Route 40 and its subsequent bridge were built upstream and bypassed the existing structure. The bridge is normally submerged year-round, but with the recent lack of rain, is currently almost fully visible. Many curious travelers and history buffs have taken the journey to see the 200-year-old bridge and even walked on it. However, in the past week, the US Army Corps of Engineers has restricted people from walking on the structure due to its uncertain structural integrity. I guess that's what being underwater for 80 years will do to anything.
In addition to the Great Crossings Bridge, another structure has recently been exposed due to a scheduled drawdown of the Oak Ridge Reservoir in northern New Jersey. Unlike the drought being the main reason for the Youghiogheny River Lake water level, the Oak Ridge Reservoir is being drained for repairs. The reservoir was created in the late 1800s by damming the Pequannock River. This, with the creation of two additional reservoirs, created the Newark Watershed. This reservoir was most controversial due to the fact that a small village had to be bought out and sacrificed. Today, all of the structures are no longer visible except for the "ghost bridge", which can be seen just off the side of Route 23.
So, the next time you see a reservoir, let your mind wander. Most likely, there's a lot of history lying just under the surface.
Read more:
200-year-old Pennsylvania bridge that reemerged from lake during drought closed over collapse fears
