The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1927-06-02
TOWNS ALONG THE Y0UCH
RIVER MAY BE INUNDATED
Government Engineers Said to
be Planning Huge Dam for
Flood Control Purpose
(By c. Cronin, in Meyersdale (Pa.)
Republican,

Rumors have been floating around
here for the past two weeks and many
stories have been passed from mouth
to mouth regarding the erection of
large dam in the Youghiogheny River
near Bidwell, about three miles west
of Confluence.
About two weeks ago Assistant
Engineer J. B. Walker, of Pittsburgh,
with a crew of four men, arrived here
and started a preliminary survey for
flood control dam for the United
States Government, to prevent repe-
tition of the Mississippi Valley flood
catastrophe of the past month.
The report of the preliminary sur
vey is to be made to the United States
Senate and will not only cover the
flood control possibilities of the dam,
but will also consider the hydro-elec-
trio possibilities that can be utilized.
According to official figures, the
dam, if constructed, will be approx
mately 22O feet high and over 225 feet
wide.
Would Submerge Towns.
This project, if completed, would
mean that Confluence itself would be
inundated, and it is estimated that
water between IS and rs feet deep
would be over the main portion of the
town part of the year. An obstruc-
ton in the river at Bidwell of the
size proposed would back the water
in the Youghiogheny River up as far
as Friendsville, Maryland, and be-
sides Confluence would inundate por-
lions of Somerfield and Watsondale,
Pa, and Guard and Selbysport, Nd,
as well as Harnedsville on the Cas-
selman River and Ursina, on Laurel
Hill Creek. Miles of State and town.
ship roads would also be submerged,
including portion of the National
Pike at Somertield, Pa. The historic
three-arch stone bridge at that place,
100 years old, would have TO be re-
placed by much larger and more
elevated bridge and probably a few
miles of the old pike itself would have
to be relocated and rebuilt. A large
portion of State Highway Route so,
between Addison and Somerset, partly
completed and other parts under con-
struction at the present time, would
have to be abandoned or relocated for
many miles.
Damage to Railroads.
One of the largest items of damage
to be considered is that which would
result to the railroads. Two main
line railroads, the Baltimore and Ohio
and the Western Maryland, would
have to be relocated at an enormous
expense. 1t would be necessary to
move the Baltimore & Ohio tracks at
least 100 feet up the mountain side,
and this would necessitate the re-
location and reconstruction of the
Connellsville Division for an estimat-
ed distance of forty miles. The West
ern Maryland Railroad would be SIM
ilarly affected and would cause the
rebuilding of the railroad tracks.
The yards of the Baltimore and
Ohio at Confluence would be inundated
and two branches of the Connells-
vile Division with Confluence as their
basic terminal, would probably be
abandoned, namely, the Confluence
and Oakland branch, 20 miles long,
between Confluence and Kendall, Nd,
affording the towns of Somerfield,
Selbysport, Guard and Friendsville,
passenger, mail, express and freight
service, and the Whites Creek branch
between Confluence and Unamis, a
distance of over nine miles. The lat
ter branch is the only outlet for coal
and lumber produced in the vicinity
of Dumas, Listonburg, Unamis and
other small towns. The property loss
and bushes loss to the mining and
lumber interests would be enormous.
The C. & O. branch is the outlet for
a large area of coal and timber lands
in three states, Pennsylvania, Mary
land and West Virginia, and the in
creased expense in getting products
from that tri-state district to the
markets would probably stop devel-
opment of the resources of that terri
tory until other transportation facil-
tiles would be provided.
Stupendous Problem.
The railroad situation, as whole,
would be a very great problem. The
Baltimore and Ohio line running thru
Confluence is the main line of the B.
& o. from Chicago and Pittsburgh to
Baltimore, Washington and New
York. The bulk of through freight
both east and west bound, on this
division, is very large, and to keep
it moving while relocation and re-
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