The town of Somerfield, Pennsylvania was once a normal rural community laid out in about 1816 by Philip Smyth, who the town was originally named after as Smythfield. The name was changed because a town already existed named Smythfield. In the 1940s, the U.S. government bought the land, and the entire town was abandoned with 176 people forced to move. The town was then razed and flooded as part of the construction of the Youghiogheny Dam.
Somerfield, Pennsylvania is now one of the abandoned places in the state. The destruction of Somerfield has garnered some interest over the years as this underwater ghost town is like Pennsylvania’s own Atlantis. At the end of this article, enjoy a video from YouTube channel “Stuffthats Gone,” revealing the drowned city.
This photo of a map of Somerfield, Pennsylvania in Somerset County, was taken in 1860 by Edward L. Walker. The town only had two streets: Bridge Street and River Road.
Edward L. Walker, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons When the water is low, the outline of the streets where the businesses were located is visible along with some tree stumps.
The video shows old foundations, roads, and objects that have been underwater for years. In its heyday, many towns and hotels were built providing stops for stagecoaches.
YouTube/Stuffthatsgone It is easy to imagine what life must have been like all those years ago, before the destruction of Somerfield. Some people say one house remains, a two-story frame structure on a hill above town.
And every once in a while, the water level in the dam becomes low enough to expose something really special: part of the original 1818 Somerfield bridge.
YouTube/Stuffthatsgone The stone Great Crossings Bridge of the National Road, which crossed the Youghiogheny at Somerfield, is a triple-arch sandstone bridge built between 1815 and 1818 by James Beck, James Kinkead, and Evan Evans. The 40-foot-high, 30-foot-wide bridge spanned 375 feet made of locally-quarried sandstone and helped the town grow.
This phenomenon is extremely rare. Not many people have spotted this bridge since the town was drowned.
YouTube/Stuffthatsgone
Here is the finished product of Youghiogheny Lake and Dam on the Youghiogheny River — near Confluence, Pennsylvania. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built the dam for flood control.
Margaret Luzier, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons The river and dam span the border between Somerset and Fayette counties.
For more information, check out the footage below.
Edward L. Walker, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
When the water is low, the outline of the streets where the businesses were located is visible along with some tree stumps.
YouTube/Stuffthatsgone
It is easy to imagine what life must have been like all those years ago, before the destruction of Somerfield. Some people say one house remains, a two-story frame structure on a hill above town.
The stone Great Crossings Bridge of the National Road, which crossed the Youghiogheny at Somerfield, is a triple-arch sandstone bridge built between 1815 and 1818 by James Beck, James Kinkead, and Evan Evans. The 40-foot-high, 30-foot-wide bridge spanned 375 feet made of locally-quarried sandstone and helped the town grow.
Margaret Luzier, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
The river and dam span the border between Somerset and Fayette counties.
It’s such a shame that an entire town had to be flooded to make way for the Youghiogheny Dam. Did you know about the destruction of Somerfield? If so, share your story in the comments below.
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Address: Youghiogheny Dam Outflow Recreation Area, 1579 Mae West Rd, Confluence, PA 15424, USA
The OIYS Visitor Center
Somerfield, Pennsylvania July 21, 2022 Carolyn Harmon Where is another one of the abandoned places in Pennsylvania? Pennhurst State School and Hospital in Spring City, originally called Eastern Pennsylvania State Institution for the Feeble-Minded and Epileptic, closed after 79 years on Dec. 9, 1987. The first buildings were constructed from 1903 to 1908 on about 634 sprawling acres of Crab Hill. The cause for construction came from a 1903 decision of the Pennsylvania Legislature to authorize its creation, and a commission was formed to find the quantity and status of the epileptic and feeble-minded people living in the state. The result was the discovery of 1,146 feeble-minded people in insane hospitals, 2,627 living in almshouses, reformatories, prisons, and county-care hospitals, who were in immediate need of this specialized care. In 1977, a U.S. District Judge ruled the conditions at the institution violated patients’ constitutional rights, led and followed by lawsuits representing victims living there. Since then there have been other developments about the buildings and the property. Where is another outdoor adventure in Pennsylvania?
At Hickory Falls Family Entertainment Center in Hanover, Pennsylvania, indulge in virtual reality, video games, mini bowling laser tag, arcade games, and go-karts. You won’t run out of things to do at this family-fun spot near me. Have a long, cold drink at Alex’s Original Lemonade Stand to wash down a pizza, cheeseburger, or soft pretzel with crunchy salt flakes. In addition, a special play area is put aside for the little ones ages 12 and under, for climbing, swinging, bouncing, and sliding. Where is one of the best restaurants in Pennsylvania? Zahav, which means gold in Hebrew, landed on the Philadelphia food scene in 2008, bringing the flavors of Israel to Philadelphia. The main ingredient in Israeli cuisine is warm and generous hospitality. Start each delicious meal with Laffa bread baked in the taboon, served with salatim, hummus, and mezze. The extensive cocktail and wine list is impressive, as are the skewers cooked over charcoal, the pomegranate lamb shoulder, and special homemade desserts.
The OIYS Visitor Center
Somerfield, Pennsylvania
July 21, 2022
Carolyn Harmon
Where is another one of the abandoned places in Pennsylvania? Pennhurst State School and Hospital in Spring City, originally called Eastern Pennsylvania State Institution for the Feeble-Minded and Epileptic, closed after 79 years on Dec. 9, 1987. The first buildings were constructed from 1903 to 1908 on about 634 sprawling acres of Crab Hill. The cause for construction came from a 1903 decision of the Pennsylvania Legislature to authorize its creation, and a commission was formed to find the quantity and status of the epileptic and feeble-minded people living in the state. The result was the discovery of 1,146 feeble-minded people in insane hospitals, 2,627 living in almshouses, reformatories, prisons, and county-care hospitals, who were in immediate need of this specialized care. In 1977, a U.S. District Judge ruled the conditions at the institution violated patients’ constitutional rights, led and followed by lawsuits representing victims living there. Since then there have been other developments about the buildings and the property. Where is another outdoor adventure in Pennsylvania?
At Hickory Falls Family Entertainment Center in Hanover, Pennsylvania, indulge in virtual reality, video games, mini bowling laser tag, arcade games, and go-karts. You won’t run out of things to do at this family-fun spot near me. Have a long, cold drink at Alex’s Original Lemonade Stand to wash down a pizza, cheeseburger, or soft pretzel with crunchy salt flakes. In addition, a special play area is put aside for the little ones ages 12 and under, for climbing, swinging, bouncing, and sliding. Where is one of the best restaurants in Pennsylvania? Zahav, which means gold in Hebrew, landed on the Philadelphia food scene in 2008, bringing the flavors of Israel to Philadelphia. The main ingredient in Israeli cuisine is warm and generous hospitality. Start each delicious meal with Laffa bread baked in the taboon, served with salatim, hummus, and mezze. The extensive cocktail and wine list is impressive, as are the skewers cooked over charcoal, the pomegranate lamb shoulder, and special homemade desserts.
The OIYS Visitor Center
The OIYS Visitor Center
Pennhurst State School and Hospital in Spring City, originally called Eastern Pennsylvania State Institution for the Feeble-Minded and Epileptic, closed after 79 years on Dec. 9, 1987. The first buildings were constructed from 1903 to 1908 on about 634 sprawling acres of Crab Hill. The cause for construction came from a 1903 decision of the Pennsylvania Legislature to authorize its creation, and a commission was formed to find the quantity and status of the epileptic and feeble-minded people living in the state. The result was the discovery of 1,146 feeble-minded people in insane hospitals, 2,627 living in almshouses, reformatories, prisons, and county-care hospitals, who were in immediate need of this specialized care. In 1977, a U.S. District Judge ruled the conditions at the institution violated patients’ constitutional rights, led and followed by lawsuits representing victims living there. Since then there have been other developments about the buildings and the property.
Where is another outdoor adventure in Pennsylvania?
At Hickory Falls Family Entertainment Center in Hanover, Pennsylvania, indulge in virtual reality, video games, mini bowling laser tag, arcade games, and go-karts. You won’t run out of things to do at this family-fun spot near me. Have a long, cold drink at Alex’s Original Lemonade Stand to wash down a pizza, cheeseburger, or soft pretzel with crunchy salt flakes. In addition, a special play area is put aside for the little ones ages 12 and under, for climbing, swinging, bouncing, and sliding.
Where is one of the best restaurants in Pennsylvania?
Zahav, which means gold in Hebrew, landed on the Philadelphia food scene in 2008, bringing the flavors of Israel to Philadelphia. The main ingredient in Israeli cuisine is warm and generous hospitality. Start each delicious meal with Laffa bread baked in the taboon, served with salatim, hummus, and mezze. The extensive cocktail and wine list is impressive, as are the skewers cooked over charcoal, the pomegranate lamb shoulder, and special homemade desserts.
