﻿HYDROLOGY 
  OF 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  441 
  

  

  March, 
  1896. 
  was 
  nearly 
  as 
  high. 
  At 
  this 
  time 
  water 
  flowed 
  over 
  

   the 
  State 
  dam 
  at 
  Tonawanda, 
  with 
  a 
  head 
  of 
  4.82 
  feet, 
  indicating 
  

   a 
  discharge 
  of 
  9600 
  cubic 
  feet 
  per 
  second. 
  At 
  the 
  same 
  time 
  there 
  

   was 
  3 
  feet 
  of 
  water 
  flowing 
  over 
  a 
  waste-weir 
  directly 
  into 
  Niagara 
  

   river 
  and 
  representing 
  a 
  discharge 
  of 
  about 
  1000 
  cubic 
  feet 
  per 
  

   second, 
  making 
  the 
  total 
  discharge 
  on 
  March 
  30, 
  1896, 
  of 
  Tona- 
  

   wanda 
  creek 
  at 
  Tonawanda 
  10,600 
  cubic 
  feet 
  per 
  second 
  (catch- 
  

   ment, 
  610 
  square 
  miles), 
  or 
  at 
  the 
  rate 
  of 
  about 
  18 
  cubic 
  feet 
  per 
  

   second 
  per 
  square 
  mile. 
  This 
  value 
  of 
  the 
  flood 
  discharge 
  is 
  prob- 
  

   ably 
  due 
  to 
  the 
  natural 
  storage 
  in 
  the 
  flat 
  and 
  swampy 
  portions 
  

   of 
  the 
  creek 
  valley 
  west 
  of 
  Oak 
  Orchard 
  dam, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  

   diversion 
  of 
  some 
  of 
  its 
  waters 
  through 
  the 
  Oak 
  Orchard 
  cutoff 
  

   during 
  this 
  flood 
  — 
  probably, 
  the 
  entire 
  flood-flow 
  on 
  March 
  30, 
  

   1896, 
  was 
  from 
  20 
  to 
  22 
  cubic 
  feet 
  per 
  second 
  per 
  square 
  mile. 
  In 
  

   the 
  upper 
  reaches 
  of 
  this 
  stream 
  the 
  flood-flows 
  may 
  be 
  expected 
  

   to 
  approximate 
  anywhere 
  from 
  60 
  to 
  80 
  cubic 
  feet 
  per 
  second 
  per 
  

   square 
  mile. 
  

  

  Floods 
  in 
  Niagara 
  river. 
  As 
  shown 
  by 
  table 
  No. 
  45, 
  the 
  natural 
  

   regulation 
  of 
  this 
  river 
  is 
  so 
  perfect 
  that 
  floods 
  are 
  unknown. 
  

   During 
  the 
  entire 
  year 
  1895 
  the 
  flow 
  of 
  Niagara 
  river 
  varied 
  from 
  

   195,578 
  cubic 
  feet 
  per 
  second 
  to 
  177,852 
  cubic 
  feet 
  per 
  second, 
  the 
  

   extreme 
  variation 
  for 
  the 
  year 
  being 
  only 
  17.726 
  cubic 
  feet 
  per 
  

   second. 
  

  

  Floods 
  in 
  Genesee 
  river. 
  The 
  following 
  account 
  of 
  early 
  floods 
  

   in 
  this 
  stream 
  is 
  mostly 
  taken 
  from 
  the 
  report 
  on 
  Genesee 
  river 
  

   storage 
  surveys, 
  dated 
  January 
  1, 
  1897. 
  

  

  Great 
  floods 
  have 
  occurred 
  in 
  this 
  river 
  in 
  1815, 
  1835, 
  1857, 
  

   1865 
  and 
  1896. 
  At 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  times 
  between 
  1865 
  and 
  1896 
  the 
  

   river 
  has 
  also 
  been 
  very 
  high, 
  but 
  at 
  no 
  time 
  since 
  1865 
  as 
  severe 
  

   as 
  in 
  1896. 
  

  

  Beyond 
  the 
  mere 
  fact 
  that 
  a 
  very 
  severe 
  flood 
  occurred 
  in 
  1815, 
  

   which 
  overflowed 
  the 
  'flats 
  in 
  the 
  valley 
  between 
  Avon 
  and 
  Mount 
  

   Morris 
  and 
  the 
  black 
  ash 
  swamp 
  which 
  then 
  covered 
  the 
  area 
  now 
  

   included 
  in 
  the 
  first 
  and 
  third 
  wards 
  of 
  the 
  city 
  of 
  Rochester, 
  

   little 
  is 
  known 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  flood 
  of 
  that 
  year. 
  

  

  The 
  next 
  great 
  flood 
  of 
  which 
  we 
  have 
  record 
  occurred 
  in 
  1835. 
  x 
  

  

  iSee 
  report 
  of 
  F. 
  C. 
  Mills, 
  relative 
  to 
  the 
  Genesee 
  valley 
  canal, 
  Assembly 
  

   Document 
  No. 
  73. 
  1837, 
  p. 
  GO. 
  

  

  