Youghiogheny River Lake
| Youghiogheny River Lake | |
|---|---|
 The Yoghiogheny River Lake as viewed from below the Youghiogheny Dam | |
| Location | Fayette / Somerset counties, Pennsylvania, and Garrett County, Maryland |
| Coordinates | 39°47′52″N 079°22′09″W / 39.79778°N 79.36917°WCoordinates: 39°47′52″N 079°22′09″W / 39.79778°N 79.36917°W |
| Type | reservoir |
| Primary inflows | Youghiogheny River |
| Primary outflows | Youghiogheny River |
| Basin countries | United States |
| Max. length | 16 miles (26 km)[1] |
| Surface elevation | 1,440 feet (440 m)[2] |
The Youghiogheny River Lake is a flood control reservoir in southwestern Pennsylvania and western Maryland.
The lake was formed in 1944 by the damming of the Youghiogheny River upstream from Confluence, Pennsylvania. Youghiogheny Dam is an earthen structure, 184 feet high and 1,610 feet long at its crest, owned and operated by the United States Army Corps of Engineers. The reservoir's normal surface area is about 4.4 square miles, and it has a maximum capacity of 300,000 acre-feet, although its normal storage level is 149,300 acre-feet.
The town of Somerfield, Pennsylvania, was abandoned, razed, and inundated when the reservoir was filled. The stone Great Crossings Bridge of the National Road, which crossed the Youghiogheny at Somerfield, is visible at extremely low water levels.[3]
References
- ↑ Youghiogheny River Lake at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
- ↑ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Youghiogheny River Lake
- ↑ Lowry, Patricia (1999). "A bridge to the 19th century: Falling water-level of Youghiogheny unearths ghost town, historical crossing". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. January 7, 1999.
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