Floods of August 1955 in the Northeastern States
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GEOLOGICAL SURVEY CIRCULAR 377 FLOODS OF AUGUST 1955 IN THE NORTHEASTERN STATES MERVIN S. PET(:i<SEN - flood Specialist .jl 1 MERVIN S. PE-1 '""""" f)\ Flood Specialist UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Douglas McKay, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Thomas B. Nolan, Director GEOLOGICAL SURVEY CffiCULAR 377 FLOODS OF AUGUST 1955 IN THE NORTHEASTERN STATES Prepared by Water Resources Division Washington, D. C., 1956 Free on application to the Geological Survey, Washington 25, D. C. PREFACE This preliminary report on the floods of August hydraulic engineers from all sections of the country 1955, has been prepared by the U. S. Geological Sur were brought to the flood area. The assignment of the vey, Water Resources Division, C. G. Paulsen, chief, additional personnel, much of the work of processing under the general direction of J. V. B. Wells, chief, computations of peak discharges by indirect methods, Surface Water Branch. Much of the collection of the and the assembling of this report were performed by basic streamflow records by the Geological Survey has hydraulic engineers of the branch staff, under the been made in financial cooperation with public agencies supervision of Tate Dalrymple, chief, Technical in the States in the area of major flooding, under the Standards Section. direction of the following district engineers: Massa chusetts, Rhode Island, H. B. Kinnison; Connecticut, Several Federal and State agencies contributed B. L. Bigwood; New York, A. W. Harrington; New technical data. The isohyetal maps were adapted Jersey, 0. W. Hartwell; Pennsylvania, J. W. Mangan. from maps furnished by the U. S. Weather Bureau. Damage figures are those provided by the Business Because of the urgent need to perform the field work and Defense Services Administration. and the office computations as promptly as possible,many II CONTENTS Page Page Abstract .............•...................... 1 Flood data- -Continued Introduction ................................ 1 Gaging station records- -Continued General features of the floods ................ 2 Connecticut River basin- -Continued The storms .............................. 2 Burlington Brook near Burlington, Conn. 50 The floods ................•............•.. 2 Farmington River at Rainbow. Conn. 50 New England •............•......•...... 5 Housatonic River basin: New York .................•............ 7 Housatonic River at Gaylordsville, Conn... 51 New Jersey ...............•............ 7 Pomperaug River at Southbury, Conn. 51 Pennsylvania .......................... 8 Naugatuck River near Thomaston, Conn. 52 Summary of flood damage ................. 8 Hudson River basin: Flood data ................................. 8 Rondout Creek near Lackawack, N. Y. 52 Measurement of flood discharges ..•........ 9 Rondout Creek at Rosendale, N. Y. 53 Summary of stages and discharges ......... 9 Wallkill River at Gardiner, N. Y. • . 54 Gaging station records •.. , ..•.............. 30 Wappinger Creek near Wappingers Falls, Merrimack River basin: N.Y.··············-······· 55 Concord River below River Meadow Brook, Raritan River basin: at Lowell, Mass. ..........•..•. 36 South Branch Raritan. River at Stanton, N. J. 56 Charles River basin: Delaware River basin: Charles River at Charles River Village, Delaware River above Lackawaxen River, Mass ................•.......... 36 near Barryville. N. Y. 57 Providence River basin: Middle Creek near Hawley, Pa. 58 Blackstone River at Woonsocket, R. I. ... 37 Lackawaxen River at Hawley, Pa. 59 Thames River basin: Delaware River at Port Jervis, N. Y. 60 Willimantic River near South Coventry, Neversink River at Oakland Valley. N. Y. 61 Conn .......................... 38 Delaware River at Montague, N. J........ 62 Quinebaug River at Westville, Mass ..... 38 Bush Kill at Shoemakers, Pa............. 62 French River at Webster, Mass ......... 39 Flat Brook near Flatbrookville. N. J. 63 Quinebaug River at Jewett City, Conn .... 40 Brodhead Creek at Minisink Hills, Pa. 64 Connecticut River basin: Paulins Kill at Blairstown, N. J. 65 Connecticut River at Montague City, Mass. 41 Delaware River at Belvidere, N. J. • . 66 Ware River at Gibbs Crossing, Mass .... 42 Lehigh River at Stoddartsville, Pa. 66 Quaboag River at West Brimfield, Mass ... 42 Lehigh River at Tannery, Pa. 67 Chicopee River at Indian Orchard, Mass .. 43 Lehigh River at Walnutport, Pa. 68 Middle Branch Westfield River at Goss Lehigh River at Bethlehem, Pa........... 69 Heights, Mass .................. 44 Musconetcong River near Bloomsbury. N.J. 70 West Branch Westfield River at Huntington, Delaware River at Riegelsville, N. J. • . 71 Mass .......................... 45 Tohickon Creek near Pipersville, Pa. • . 72 Westfield River near Westfield, Mass ... 46 Delaware River at Trenton, N. J. • . 73 Connecticut River at Thompsonville, Conn. 47 Neshaminy Creek near Langhorne, Pa..... 74 Scantic River at Broad Brook, Conn ...•.. 48 Little Schuylkill River at Tamaqua, Pa.... 74 West Branch Farmington River near New Susquehanna River basin: Boston, Mass .................. 48 Lackawanna River at Old Forge, Pa. 75 Still River at Robertsville, Conn ........ 49 Wapwallopen Creek near Wapwallopen, Pa.. 76 ILLUSTRATIONS Page Plate 1. Map of locations of flow determinations .......................................... Inside back cover Figure 1. Map of area of severe flooding August 18-19 ·................................................ 2 2. Map of rainfall in flood area.,August 11-15.................................................... 3 3. Map of rainfall in flood area, August 17-20 . 4 4. Relation of unit discharge and size of drainage area, east of Hudson River . 31 5. Relation of unit discharge and size of drainage area, west of Hudson River . .• 32 6-8. Discharge at selected gaging stations. August 10-25 ......................................... 33-35 TABLES Page Table 1. Summary of flood damages and casualties.................................................... 9 2. Summary of flood stages and discharges..................................................... 10 III ABSTRACT proportions in a broad arc from south of Philadelphia to Boston. The loss of life and the property damage The floods of August 1955 were an unprecedented were great because of the relatively thick settlement disaster in a arge area of the northeastern United of the valleys and the concentration of industries along States. They rank among the most destructive in the the streams. country's his ory. Augmented by the antecedent hurricane sto m of August 11-15, the rainfall of Actually, there were two sets of floods in August August 17-20 accompanying hurricane Diane reached 1955. The first, resulting from hurricane Connie, maximum val es of 17 to 19 inches in south-central occurred mostly in the coastal plain, from North Massachusett • Record-breaking floods resulted with Carolina to New England, on August 12-13. The second in a broad re ion extending from southeastern Pennsyl set of floods were those of August 18-19, following vania to east rn Massachusetts. hurricane Diane. They affected a zone farther inland but essentially concentric with the coastline (see fig. The floods were outstanding in four categories: The 1). large geogra hie area covered by floods of such mag nitude; the ex ensive damage and loss .of life ranking This report covers the floods of August 18-19, with the grea est recorded in this country; the degree principally, because of the great destruction wrought to which prio records were exceeded; and the distri by those floods and because the need exists for some bution which as such that the greatest floods occurred data on them at an early date. Reference is made in predominate! on the smaller streams. Property dam the report to a limited amount of data for the earlier age has been stimated to be about half a billion dollars floods in August as collateral information--the first and was most~y concentrated in the heavily industria floods set the stage for the second floods and in some lized valleys f New England. A death toll of 179 per places the first floods were the greater. sons was attr"buted to the floods. Peak discharges ex ceeded previ usly established maxima by 2. 2 and 2. 3 The technical evaluation of the floods of August 18-19 times respec ively, on Blackstone River at Woonsocket, and the reporting of them were complicated by the R. I. , and Q inebaug River at Putnam, Conn.; 4. 1 occurrence of other major floods in the northeastern times on Nau atuck River near Thomaston, Conn. ; and States on October 15-16, and by lesser floods on 4. 5 times on 1 ush Kill at Shoemakers, Pa. A unit run October 5, on October 30, and on November 5. In off of 2, 300 c hie feet per second per square mile oc addition. the eastern part of North Carolina had severe 1 curred from ~· 50 square miles on Powdermill Brook floods September 20. The complex interrelations of the near Westfiel , Mass. Although the floods were gen four major floods, the overlapping areas involved. erally greate t on the smaller streams, Connecticut and the timing of the floods, made a comprehensive River at Hart ord reached the third highest stage since preliminary report impracticable. A report is in prep settlement an Delaware River between Port Jervis and aration (December 1955) that will cover the three-month Trenton exce ded the previous historic flood of 1903. flood period and the area from North Carolina to Mas sachusetts. This adv ce report has been prepared to supply preliminary · formation needed for immediate planning. The purpose of