Lots of history with this man made dam. In 1931 The governor of Pennsylvania Governor Gifford Pinchot wanted to build a dam for a recreational lake. At the time this was mostly marsh and many of the local residents grew onions in the perfect soil. The onions were rather large and the locals wanted the marsh to remain and this to become known as the Onion Capitol because of the large crop. But those who were for expanding industry not only in the area but downstream as well, won out and the dam was built. Inside this building is a large concrete overflow that controls the amount of water that is allowed to flow under the dam that feeds the Shenango River. I love the look of this old stone building. The lake is named for the chief of the Lenape Indians who lived in the area at the time, Pihmtomink. No need to comment as I wanted to fill in a number of gaps in June's calendar.
Dams when created do cause a great deal of controversy and opposition as I well know from the time dams were created in mid Wales and you can feel empathy towards the locals . In spite of this , the buildings are so beautiful built in I assume local stone.
