The Mill Creek Flood - Project Algerine

The Mill Creek Flood occurred on August 3, 1915, after a series of storms led to a once-in-a-650-year storm. The flood planning for Mill Creek was inadequate, resulting in over 250 homes, 300 businesses and structures, and 40 lives lost.
Highlights
- 🌊 Mill Creek Flood occurred on August 3, 1915, due to inadequate flood planning
- 🌧️ Series of storms led to a once-in-a-650-year storm
- 💔 Over 250 homes, 300 businesses and structures, and 40 lives were lost
- 🌉 Small stone bridge on 26th street between French and State created a dam, leading to water backing up several blocks
- 🚒 Firefighters attempted to clear debris, but evacuation orders came too late
- 🌊 Two-block wall of water 20 feet high, travelling 25 miles per hour, swept through the city
- 🙏 Firefighter John Donovan saved many lives before sacrificing his own
Music from #InAudio: inaudio.org/

[@breacat]

Using satellite maps of Erie gives us a better picture of how catastrophic the flood was.

[@ileanarestivo1425]

Wow..I just moved here to Erie from Durham , North Carolina. Hope this does not repeat itself..

[@breacat]

@@ileanarestivo1425 Seeing as how part of Mill Creek runs under the city now it's unlikely. The places where it's still above ground runs through places that aren't heavily populated.

[@sandrakleinman7215]

@@breacat and is in a pretty deep gorge

[@lucylucy9945]

My Great Grandma and Great Great Grandma lived next door to each other. Great Grandma's house was wood, Great Great Gram's was brick so they took valuables and put them in the brick home. That house collapsed and They lost everything. Also Baby Cornelia got pneumonia and died! They always called Her the flood Baby.

[@christinecarlson4071]

Excellent! Really helps those of us who had relatives who lived through this tragedy visualize what happened. Thank you!

[@eriexchick]

This is God damn cinematic excellence!!!!!!

[@ProjectAlgerine]

Thanks for watching!

[@fododude]

My grandpa was a photo hobbyist. He toured the area the day after the flood and took a nice album of pictures, including that wrecked trolly car.

[@cortneydaKing]

This is so sad 😢.

[@ThePathOfLeastResistanc]

Why was it called the millcreek flood when this wasn’t even in millcreek?

[@ProjectAlgerine]

Mill Creek was named after the first flower and grist mills that were scattered along the creek. Millcreek Township was named after Mill Creek, which runs through it, south of the city.

[@matthewcook4256]

@@ProjectAlgerine the conductor says this at the zoo in erie pa on the train