The clamor of trains chugging through Tarentum — and perhaps the inconvenience of getting stuck at one of its crossings — is a daily reminder of the role locomotives play in the borough. While the route is no longer used for passengers, that wasn’t the case in the early days.
The concrete locks and dams along the Allegheny River were built in the 1920s and 1930s, but three dams built around 1900 preceded them. Lock and dam No. 1 was located at Herrs Island near the present 31st Street Bridge. Lock and dam No. 2 was built slightly upstream from
Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, many communities throughout the United States fell victim to flooding. In order to control heavy rainfall, states built dams to control lakes and other large bodies of water. In turn, many small villages and towns drowned beneath them.