# Looking for pic of a town or part of town under water **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 18, 2004, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913 "2004-09-18T22:56:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2004, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/1 "2004-09-18T22:56:06Z")
I was reminded by this thread: > **[Flood Pix! Who wants 'em?](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=276465)** > > So my little town of Marietta is flooding today. It’s maybe 40 feet from the house and if it goes up another 2-3 feet we could have some basement problems. And Lady Chance went around taking snapshots this after. Here you go… of a photo I saw once, of a town that was under water. I think the pic was taken from a road led down into the water, and you could see the ghostly shapes of buildings under the surface. Anybody familiar with this pic and the situation? It didn’t look like a “standard” flood, maybe more like the result of a dam being built (or removed, I suppose). It was a color pic, IIRC. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/2 "2004-09-19T00:11:29Z")
One possible location for this would be the Ladybower reservoir, in Derbyshire, England. Two villages were submerged in the creation of the reservoir, which flooded a whole valley. In the long summer of 1976 (and possibly more recently), the water levels dropped low enough that some of the roofs of the buildings rose above the water. So a photo like you describe could easily have been taken, either before or after the lowest water levels were reached. (I’m searching Google for pictures now) ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/3 "2004-09-19T01:51:46Z")
Thanks G-man. I would have guessed it was an American town, but it may well could have been Derbyshire. Like probably you, I had no luck finding any pics with Google image search that looked anything like my recollection, using ‘Derbyshire’ or ‘Ladybower’ or the names of the two towns which I had found but do not now remember. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/4 "2004-09-19T01:58:15Z")
I had no luck with Google for that, either! Ah well, I suppose it just adds a possibility to your list 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/5 "2004-09-19T02:44:24Z")
Lake Shasta CA has a town under it > [@](#): > > Directly north of the dam and under about 400 feet of water lies the copper mining town of Kennett founded during the gold rush of the 1850s. Kennett’s population boomed to nearly 10,000 residents in the early 1900s due to the high demand for copper which was more prevalent than gold in the surrounding hills. Sulphur damage from the town’s five smelters destroyed nearly all the vegetation within a 15 mile radius of the town and, combined with declining copper prices after World War 1, led to the demise of the town after 1925 and the closing of the smelters. There is also a town under Smith Mountain Lake, VA The town of St Thomas under Lake Mead, NV is dry now. You can hike to the town, used to be under 65 feet of water. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/6 "2004-09-19T03:43:43Z")
Thanks **drachillix**. Just to narrow it down, I suppose the town wouldn’t be completely submerged, or is at least on the edge of whatever body of water it is submerged into, since the pic was taken from dry land. Or it was actually flooding, and not a dam, that submerged just an area of the town. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/7 "2004-09-19T03:47:09Z")
Have you any recollection of what the terrain was like, or the vegetation (was there trees, for instance?) All could help narrow it down. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/8 "2004-09-19T04:01:48Z")
No, I just remember the pic was taken from a dry part of a road, and the road went down into the the submerged part of the town. You could see a submerged street sign of some kind I believe, and buildings. I don’t recall if there mountains or anything. But it had to be at least hilly, for the road go to go steeply into the submerged part of the town. ---
**Author:** ![brianjedi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@brianjedi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brianjedi)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/9 "2004-09-19T04:04:30Z")
Could it be from the Paducah (KY) Great Flood of 1937? That was a serious flood where a good portion of downtown was partially submerged. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/10 "2004-09-19T04:13:51Z")
I don’t think so **brianjedi** , the picture was in color so I think it was something much more recent. Thanks though. ---
**Author:** ![Catfood\_Purrito](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Catfood\_Purrito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catfood_Purrito)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/11 "2004-09-19T04:29:06Z")
I’ve seen the same picture, and I’m pretty sure it was Whiskeytown Lake near Redding, CA. I’ve confirmed with my boyfriend, who lives in Redding, that there is indeed a spot where you used to be able to see the road, complete with yellow line, disappearing into the lake, and there’s submerged road signs and all that. Now it’s mostly covered with rocks and it’s used as a beach. Can’t find the picture, though…☹ ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/12 "2004-09-19T04:46:52Z")
Cool **Mishell**! I also failed to find anything with your info, but maybe somebody else will have better luck. Do you know if the submerged area was part of Redding, or a different city? ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/13 "2004-09-19T05:04:10Z")
Apparently that particular town was called Heroult. And [here](http://www.themorningnews.org/archives/stories/our_town.php) are a few other leads: > [@](#): > > Countless North American towns have been submerged to make way for dams and the reservoirs they create. Four communities in Massachusetts – Dana, Enfield, Greenwich, and Prescott – were consumed by the Swift River to improve the Eastern Massachusetts water supply. > > … > > In fact, almost anywhere you find a reservoir, the footprints of sunken towns are likely impressed beneath. Sopris, Colorado, was drowned when the Trinidad Dam and Reservoir were built, and the state’s McPhee Reservoir covers the town of McPhee. St. Thomas, Nevada; Heroult, Kennett, Baird, and Copper City in California – all are underwater now, as are several towns beneath the Neversink and Roundout Reservoirs in New York. ---
**Author:** ![Catfood\_Purrito](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Catfood\_Purrito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catfood_Purrito)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/14 "2004-09-19T05:20:17Z")
The town was called Whiskeytown, but I can’t find much information on it, this is the most I could find: “Whiskeytown (SRL 131), on SR 299 between Shasta and Weaverville, was settled in 1849. It was a lively place, as its name might imply, where money was plentiful and freely spent. The U.S.Post Office Department refused to allow the name WHISKEYTOWN as a postal designation until 1952. Prior to that, the post office had been called Blair, later Stella, and finally Schilling. The old town now lies beneath Whiskeytown Lake, created by the Whiskeytown Dam; a new Whiskeytown lies on higher ground on what is now the lakeshore. Whiskeytown Dam was dedicated by President John F. Kennedy on September 28, 1963. on his last trip to California and less than two months before his assassination.” ---
**Author:** ![CrazyFoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e79b87/32.png) [@CrazyFoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyFoo)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/15 "2004-09-19T13:33:31Z")
I’m putting something together, check back later today 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![CrazyFoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e79b87/32.png) [@CrazyFoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyFoo)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/16 "2004-09-19T13:57:10Z")
> [@CrazyFoo](#): > > I’m putting something together, check back later today 🙂 I just got off the phone with my mother in law in Cornwall, Ontario and had a long discussion about the lost villages of the St Lawrence Seaway. The Seaway was created to let large ocean going vassals travel from the Gulf of the St Lawrence all the way to Lake Superior. The government of Canada at the time thought it was a financially viable venture because they believed it would help business greatly. Unfortunately for Canada, the real benefactors of this mammoth project were the coastal American towns around Mesena, NY. The entire St Lawrence between Cornwall and Montreal was deepened and widened, as a result, many towns and villages were flooded and lost. Many of the buildings were removed and transferred to a outdoor museum called “Upper Canada Village” The lost towns were Aultsville Farran’s Point Dickensen’s Landing Moullinette Milleroches Woodlands There may be a couple more… My wife and I sometimes camp at Woodlands Park, and from there, on a clear sunny day, you can see sidewalks and roads under water, it’s really a creepy feeling to see old Highway #2 disappearing under water right before your eyes. Also when you get out on the river, in certain areas you can see the tops of chimneys coming straight up from below, but not protruding the water of course. A little info about the SEAWAY: [http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/world/A0843098.html](http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/world/A0843098.html) More info [http://www.legionmagazine.com/features/canadianreflections/03-05.asp](http://www.legionmagazine.com/features/canadianreflections/03-05.asp) I’ve tried in vain to find photos, but to no avail. Next time I’m there I can take some photos of the roads underwater, if that would help. Good luck ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/17 "2004-09-19T14:24:46Z")
Wow, thanks for all the info guys! If you were to take some pics next time you’re there, that would be great **CrazyFoo**. Don’t go to too much trouble though. ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/18 "2004-09-19T17:10:15Z")
I remember a small article in a National Geographic within the last ten years regarding a village in Italy which was submerged when a dam was built nearby. The dam was being serviced and the waters were let loose, allowing the sunken village to see daylight once more: An elderly local gentleman took great joy in re-exploring the houses and streets of his childhood. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/19 "2004-09-19T17:37:35Z")
I’m sure I saw that too! I’ll fire up my copy of “The Complete National Geographic” and see if I can find the article, perhaps the pic was from there. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2004, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913/20 "2004-09-19T18:07:08Z")
Found the article, the Italian town is (was) Fabbriche di Careggine. There’s some good pics on the web of it being exposed: [http://www.ursea.it/gite/fabbriche\_careggine/fabbriche\_di\_careggine.htm](http://www.ursea.it/gite/fabbriche_careggine/fabbriche_di_careggine.htm) [http://xoomer.virgilio.it/djiokfdm/djiokfdm/fabbriche\_di\_careggine.html](http://xoomer.virgilio.it/djiokfdm/djiokfdm/fabbriche_di_careggine.html) Not what I’m looking for, but still cool pics! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-pic-of-a-town-or-part-of-town-under-water/264913.md?page=2)