Quote:
Originally Posted by richlevy
Here in Pennsylvania we are still paying an "emergency" liquor tax created to handle the 1889 Johnstown flood.
The Johnstown flood was a 'manmade flood' caused by the failure of private dams owned by a number of rich people who were never held responsible. |
I didn't realize that tax was still on the books!
That was a horrible flood; some of the victims were swept to a debris jam which caught on fire and burned many people. I can't remember where the web site was, but I read some very interesting transcripts of interviews done at the time with railroad employees.
That South Fork dam wasn't well built to start with, then the owners futzed around lowering the crest and whatnot. A bad situation.