The Johnstown Flood
Ratings14
Average rating3.8
15
Ratings14
Average rating3.8
At the end of the last century, Johnstown, Pennsylvania was a booming coal-and-steel town filled with hardworking families striving for a piece of the nation's burgeoning industrial prosperity. In the mountains above Johnstown, an old earth dam had been hastily rebuilt to create a lake for an exclusive summer resort patronized by the tycoons of that same industrial prosperity, among them Andrew Carnegie, Henry Clay Frick, and Andrew Mellon. Despite repeated warnings of possible danger, nothing was done about the dam. Then came May 31, 1889, when the dam burst, sending a wall of water thundering down the mountain, smashing through Johnstown, and killing more than 2,000 people. It was a tragedy that became a national scandal.
Reviews with the most likes.
Excellent evocation of late 19th century America and small town life in particular. Unfortunately, maps of the area and a diagram of the dam were inadequate.
TL;DR rich people play; everyone else pays, many with their lives.
This is likely not the first or last time that irresponsible negligence has led to calamity[citation needed]. In fact there's not that much remarkable about this story other than how well chronicled and researched it is. McCullough did a thorough job investigating and cross-referencing every available historical record, and wants to make sure the reader knows it: the book is twice the length it needed to be, with many mind-numbing paragraphs of details that are fascinating to someone. The other half, though, that's good. He writes with a kind voice, focusing more on the best of humanity than on the nastiness.
This book is out of my usually genre and although it was interesting to learn about a historical event it won't be a book I read again thus the 3 stars. I'm glad I read the book as a ton of my relatives live around the area, and it does give me a different perspective of some of the well known persons of the time such as Carnegie. It's funny that back in 1889 we in the US were having some of the same discussions about “the rich” and “the working class” as well as immigration. Back then it was the Hungarians though. I recommend this book as a a great educational one.
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