Bridge, town remnants emerging from Youghiogheny River Lake as water recedes
ADDISON, Pa. (KDKA) — Have you ever wondered what's at the bottom of a lake?
At the bottom of the Youghiogheny River Lake, the answer is an old bridge and the remnants of an old town.
It may seem like a once-in-a-lifetime thing to see structures from our region's past emerging from under the water, but according to Vince Klinkner, the Resource Manager of U.S. Amery Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District, the organization that oversees the Youghiogheny River Lake, this old bridge and part of this old town have been visible before.
"I looked back at our records today and saw at least seven or eight different news articles spanning from the 1970s until today," said Klinkner.
It is rare to see the remains of the town of Somerfield and the bridge that used to run through it. It's normally under 50 feet of water, but due to drought conditions, water levels on Yough Lake have dropped so low that the historic structures are now visible.
What is the story behind the structures?
"The name of the bridge is Great Crossings Bridge," said Jacob Miller, a curator with the Historical Society of Somerset County. "Now that name comes from George Washington's reference to the area during certain marches along Braddock's Road and before that, that was known as the Great Crossings of the Youghiogheny River."
Somerfield was officially settled in 1818 as 'Smythfield,' named after the town's founder Philip D. Smyth. It is also the year the Great Crossings Bridge was completed as part of The National Road, which connected the Potomac and Ohio Rivers, and was the first highway built entirely with federal funds. When the bridge was completed, it was christened by President James Monroe and his entire cabinet.
The town was officially renamed Somerfield in the 1830s in honor of Reverend Somerfield and remained so for over 100 years.
In the 1930s, to help mitigate and control flooding in the region, a decision was made to build a nearby dam, raze the town, and flood the small valley.
Somerfield and the Great Crossings Bridge seemingly slipped beneath the waters into history.
On days like this, that history has floated back to the surface for hundreds of visitors, like Gerald O'Brien, who peddled over from Uniontown just to take in this sight.
"This is very unique," said O'Brien. The structure of that, and I haven't traveled a whole lot of places, I have been around the world, but to see stuff like this, from our own country. You expect to see this in Europe and that, but to see this in our own country, to see the structure, it's amazing."
You can see this amazing site for yourself but come sooner rather than later. Once the waters rise, this site will be covered once again.
Parking can be found at the Lakeside Marine at 110 Cornish Circle, Addison, Pa. 15411.