Lackawanna State Park dedicated on June 10.  The 1400-acre park in North Abington and Benton Townships, was part of Project 70, a bond supported fund for conservation projects in the Commonwealth during the 1970’s.  South Branch Tunkhannock Creek was dammed to create a 190-acre lake that also receives the waters of   Kennedy Creek and other un-named tributaries.  For more information click here.

Hurricane Agnes swept through northeast Pennsylvania and heavy rainfall continued, causing regional creeks and lakes to flood and sending the Susquehanna River raging over its banks and into thousands of regional properties.  Water swept over the bridges across Tunkhannock Creek.  Bridge Street was covered by a lake and Swale Brook joined Tunkhannock Creek to make a lake over Tioga Street   Some buildings suffered water up to second floor rooms, water covered first floors of many buildings and cellars throughout the area were filled to the brim.  It was the worst natural history disaster in the region’s history. Massive cleanup efforts drew outpourings of help from far and near and the Maytag Highlander Center offered ten free washer loads to “any family with clothes damaged by the flood".

Hurricane Eloise wreaks $5 million worth of damages in Wyoming County.

Gas rationing plan adopted for Wyoming County.  Reacting to cutbacks in allocations to local service stations, the plan will establish that drivers whose license plates end in an even digit may buy gas on even numbered days and those with license plates ending with odd digits may buy gas on odd numbered days.  For some months, many stations have had to close early because of “no gas”.

A rally to stop construction of the Berwick Nuclear Plant was held near the plant site.  The protest has gained momentum since the tragic accident at the Three Mile Island plant at Middletown Pa.

Deer Park Lumber develops the sawmill at the junction of Rts 6 and 92 into one of the world’s leading hardwood suppliers.  The northern tier of Pennsylvania and the southern tier of New York are home to the most diverse stand of mature hardwoods on the planet.  These trees not only give us the flaming foliage for which we are famous, but also a thriving forest products industry that makes a significant economic contribution to the region. Our ash, red and white oak, black cherry, maples and birch are distinguished by unusually fine color, making them a sought after lumber for furniture, kitchen cabinets, flooring, molding, casks for wine-making, hockey sticks, baseball bats, and caskets (our lumber builds the Rolls Royces of the industry in which lie the mortal remains of kings, princes and presidents).  To continue click here.

Chesapeake Bay Program created to be administered by County Conservation Districts.  This program is designed to protect Chesapeake Bay systems that are a hugely important nursery area for the aquatic life of the Atlantic Ocean as well as rich with resources of their own.  To this end, many varied efforts are being made to limit erosion.  Each year, a massive amount of topsoil and nutrient laden water flows off the land, where it has so much value, and is being carried down to streams, rivers and the Bay itself.  For more information click here.

Susquehanna County Agricultural Lands Preservation Board was established to purchase development rights from farmers using state and county funds.  The Board has been working with many farmers (some third generation on the land) and by 2002 had completed their seventeenth project and preserved 3766 acres, 338 of which lie within the watershed of Tunkhannock Creek in Lenox and Herrick Townships.

Lackawanna Agricultural Land Preservation Program was adopted by the County Commissioners to partner with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to purchase development rights from farmers to prevent Pennsylvania farmlands from being paved over and forever lost to agriculture.  Through the efforts of farmers and four townships in the Lackawanna county part of Tunkhannock Creek watershed, 11,951 acres are in designated Agricultural Security Areas and thereby eligible for the program.  By 2002, the Lackawanna County Agricultural Land Preservation Board has preserved 1869 acres on 17 farms in four townships in the Tunkhannock Creek Watershed, through the purchase of development rights (“ag easements”).

Weekend blizzard was called “worst storm of the century,” by meteorologists who recorded 21.4 inches of snowfall at the Wilkes Barre – Scranton Airport.  Accumulations of two to three feet were reported, with some areas noting drifts of ten feet or more.

Pennsylvania DEP initiates a program to help farmers fence livestock out of the living waters of the Commonwealth.  In the Tunkhannock Creek watershed they completed ten projects, erecting 29,270 feet of fence along 17,835 feet of stream corridor, thereby protecting 20-25 acres of habitat in the riparian buffers in the seven years of the program.

Tornado cuts a swath through the heart of the watershed, creating a path of destruction remarkably similar to the path of a tornado at the beginning of the century.  It struck the Lake Carey area, Lemon Township, Keystone College, LaPlume and parts of North Abington and East Benton.  Winds of 158-206 mph whipped through a .3 mile wide path 3 miles long; killing two people and hospitalizing 10, damaging 400 homes affecting 1200 people in the Lake Carey area.  Thousands of trees were twisted, uprooted and dropped like pick-up sticks, some in piles 15 feet high across roads.  All utility lines at Lake Carey were downed and roads blocked throughout the neighborhood.  Massive rescue efforts were mounted and reconstruction and tree planting continue.

Wyoming County Agricultural Lands Preservation Board established to purchase development rights on best farmlands, using state and county funds.  Within the Tunkhannock Creek Watershed, six municipalities enrolled 20,409 acres in Agricultural Security Areas, making them eligible for the program.  Since then, two farmers in the watershed have sold the development rights on 390.24 acres, protecting them, in perpetuity, from conversion into industrial or residential use and keeping them available for food production.

EQIP grants target Susquehanna and Wyoming County Tunkhannock Creek Watershed nutrient management projects, in an effort to meet a goal of 40% reduction of nutrients reaching Chesapeake Bay by 2000.  For the next five years they spent $300,000 on projects, with participating farmers footing 20% of the project cost.  In addition, $3000 was spent each year on educational outreach to the region.  (See other entries on Chesapeake Bay projects)

Tunkhannock Bypass officially under way as Governor Ridge attended a ceremony along Rt. 92.  New bridges were needed to carry Rt. 6 and Rt. 92 over Tunkhannock Creek in order to reroute through traffic away from Tioga Street.  Construction estimates suggest completion of the one-mile eastern phase of the project by the fall of 1999, with the 2.3-mile western section to be completed by late summer or fall of 2000.

Willary Water Resource Center established through a cooperative agreement between Keystone College and the Lackawanna County Conservation District.  Located on the Creekside Campus of Keystone College, the Water Resource Center is a focus for watershed issues and educational programs for Tunkhannock Creek Watershed.  It is the originator of the Watershed Atlas for Tunkhannock Creek, and uses the latest technologies for greater educational outreach and better understanding of watershed systems as they affect individuals, organizations and communities.

Chesapeake Bay Foundation initiates a program to protect the waters of Chesapeake Bay, the largest estuary in the United States.  It is a beautiful body of water, rich and diverse in marine and wetlands life.   Its watershed is home to 16 million people and many varied efforts are being made to protect the health and beauty of the Bay by working with people and communities throughout the large Watershed area.  Click here to continue.

Earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale was felt in this watershed on May 20, although the epicenter was in the Adirondack region of New York.

Field stone and blue stone became the largest and most income-producing industry in Susquehanna County.  In one of the largest regional stone yards, Kilmer’s in Kingsley, 60 men are employed to handle the output of 50–60 quarrymen, each of whom employs 5-10 helpers.  In the Kilmer yard, they deal about equally with field stone, used to build stonewalls, and quarried bluestone, used for construction, building facing, patios, curbs and steps; they also ship tumbled, broken and irregular stone.  Every day 15-18 trailers, each loaded with 23 tons of stone, leave the yard destined for markets all over the U.S and Canada.  This goes on five days a week, eight months a year.  The remaining four winter months are somewhat slower. There are 40-50 other similar dealers in the region, which includes Bradford, Susquehanna, Lackawanna and Wyoming Counties as well as parts of southern New York.  All of them are in business to buy stonewalls and blue stone quarried out of these endless mountains in order to ship them to construction sites and garden centers all over the country.