Gary Gomby: um all right, why don't why don't we begin, because the the presentation runs.
Gary Gomby: About 45 minutes roughly basically what I have here is a pre recorded.
Gary Gomby: it's a PowerPoint presentation, based on.
Gary Gomby: A lot of images that I took you know photographs that I took here in hartford and combined with historical maps and some artwork from the athenaeum and what I the goal here is to offer a possible way of combining.
Gary Gomby: geoscience.
Gary Gomby: With.
Gary Gomby: Like cultural resources that people might have available in their respective communities here in hartford we're fortunate we've got the Connecticut historical society, as well as the athenaeum and.
Gary Gomby: You know within short distances of each other and so there's a long history, the athenaeum said the country's oldest art museum, for example, so there's you know there's a long history here of.
Gary Gomby: The city and it's and it's museum, but I suggest that in most communities, there is a historical group or Center or something like that and there's usually either a local or regional museum of sort a metric.
Gary Gomby: That we can you know geoscientist could use to try to show or to demonstrate anthropogenic change in their own community, and with that with you know maps and you know other historical.
Gary Gomby: items that might be of interest it's just a way of I think of trying to demonstrate to students, the rate of change in their own local community, and I think most people in general don't have.
Gary Gomby: A real appreciation for how fast things change unless you live in an area where there's been like tremendous development over the last decades, or something like that, and you know here in hartford there has been a lot of development, but much of it has occurred in.
Gary Gomby: Post World War Two period, once the city.
Gary Gomby: Basically, got control of its flood flood issues and that's what we're going to spend really this presentation talking about and I would suggest that.
Gary Gomby: You could probably do the same thing in a lot of different communities there ought to be, you know the monster will.
Gary Gomby: You know change to the local landscape that you know you can document with either artwork images, you know historical maps.
Gary Gomby: You know if you lived in a place where they were native American Communities might be able to bring that in.
Gary Gomby: And it's a way of showing people that things aren't static and that there's a dynamic relationship between least in this area, you know urban development.
Gary Gomby: And you know the basic functioning of the River system in this area and that's what we're going to try to do today, this originally obviously would have been a nice day for going for a walk here.
Gary Gomby: The.
Gary Gomby: Convention Center is located right along a river front part of a big urban redevelopment project over the last few decades.
Gary Gomby: And you know we're going to try to take a look at that and see how things have developed over time, so let me this PowerPoint like I.
Gary Gomby: said is is pre recorded so and I believe it's going to be recorded by tsa so you could actually go back and stop and start as you wish, I wasn't sure whether.
Gary Gomby: Exactly how we were going to do this today that's why a pre recorded it so.
Gary Gomby: There are some mistakes in it, but that's the way it goes, I guess, so just let me start with this.
Gary Gomby: That anybody have any questions before I begin.
Gary Gomby: Okay.
Gary Gomby: In a meeting of our system scientists who are more than 20 years ago Nobel laureate pockets and declare that the Holocene it ended.
Gary Gomby: and humanity and entered a new geological age, the anthropocene.
Gary Gomby: Since that meeting the concept that humans have become a global geophysical force capable of moving the earth, you know analog state has now grown to include discussions embracing all of humanity's as well as many other scientific disciplines outside of our system science.
Gary Gomby: But we will attempt to demonstrate with this presentation is that every place has a story first written in stone and written even overwritten by humanity.
Gary Gomby: The rapidity of change that characterizes the anthropocene, particularly in the post World War Two era, starting in the 1950s.
Gary Gomby: What will Stephen has called the great acceleration can be seen locally, as well as globally.
Gary Gomby: humanity's relationship between the built environment and the natural environment is one of both accommodation.
Gary Gomby: And modification, the latter being the dominant force for change and the prophecy humans as agents of landscape evolution, one of the defining characteristics of the anthropocene.
Gary Gomby: can be seen here in hartford by looking at the city's nearly 400 year old relationship with its rivers, the Connecticut and the little river, which is now known as the park river.
Gary Gomby: We propose to explore the nature of the centuries old relationship with the help of science historical maps images in our.
Gary Gomby: The quote call to action and a quarter, but recently released vision and change the future of undergraduate geoscience education.
Gary Gomby: states that as educators, we need to help students build a foundational understanding of how the system works.
Gary Gomby: So they can apply this knowledge to complex and profound issues where geoscience and society intersect.
Gary Gomby: The report stresses the need for new pedagogical approaches that break down the barriers between disciplines and encourage students to think broadly and critically about consistent processes, we hope to demonstrate one method of.
Gary Gomby: accomplishing these goals by so called teaching the anthropocene an idea advocated been awake Paul fruits and Christians driver of the decade ago.
Gary Gomby: cross the street from america's oldest rbc the wadsworth athenaeum and adjacent to the historic ancient burning grounds cemetery from the.
Gary Gomby: 1600s this the unique installation of minimalist sculptor call Andre called the stone field sculpture.
Gary Gomby: sculpture sculpture, which was created in 1977 because consists of eight rows of boulders and a triangular shape, so that the first row contains one large folder and the throw it smaller boulders.
Gary Gomby: The 36 stones, ranging from 1000 pounds to 10 tons or from Bristol corey and were chosen, so that their composition reflects the makeup rock.
Gary Gomby: In our area, for example, there's the same proportion of basalt to Nice in the sculpture, as there is in the hartford area, the rows of stone or reminiscent of tombstones a comparison made clear, because heart fruits ancient burial ground this adjacent to the sculpture.
Gary Gomby: Already to Andre quote it has something to do with the marriage of historical and geological time because these glacial boulders are probably 330 million years old in hartford is about 300 years old.
Gary Gomby: there's a kind of intersection there between the two, and I was very moved by the graveyard and the peace and sanctuary it offered I wanted to make a kind of parallel peace and sanctuary that trying.
Gary Gomby: Well, under his estimate of the geological agents boulders is about an order of magnitude too small, is controversial monumental sculptured captures the tension between deep time and human time.
Gary Gomby: captures the pace of change ancient and modern historic hartford and contemporary hartford it can be interpreted as a representation of our topic the anthropocene in Connecticut.
Gary Gomby: The juxtaposition of rows boulders millions of years old contrast with the centuries old rows of weathering tombstones.
Gary Gomby: On the other side of the graveyard the windows of the 1975 gold building offer another contrast reflected in its tinted windows, we see the one one of the oldest remaining churches in hartford the Center congregational church adjacent about the boulder field.
Gary Gomby: destruction was built in 1807 but the first century Church was built in 1636 hartford for subtle and it was located in the presence sight of the old state house.
Gary Gomby: The modern skylight of hartford in the 21st century here's a scene from the East hartford side of the Connecticut river looking towards the West reflects in nearly four century legacy of human modification of the local environment.
Gary Gomby: it's turned into a survey on the geologic setting more area.
Gary Gomby: The Connecticut river, which is new england's longest river, which is from the Canadian border to long island sound distance of 410 miles the watershed drains approximately 11,000 square miles the rivers title and notable to hartford which has been an important factor in cities to.
Gary Gomby: connecticut's geologic past is very complex the rock record documents in ancient history of terrains play collisions volcanic activity intense going to morph ISM weathering and clarification.
Gary Gomby: partially based and scene centered and yellow it's a risk based and a half Robin which open during the triassic and Jurassic period.
Gary Gomby: Is bounded on the eastern by the eastern waterfall showing with the magenta line and then filled with plastic sedimentary rocks conglomerate sandstone including bronstein brownstone and shale.
Gary Gomby: bedrock geology of this part of the region.
Gary Gomby: is describing the north hartford quarter.
Gary Gomby: This region is almost underlying entirely underlined by least we're getting sedimentary rock layers mostly stance on can shale.
Gary Gomby: Small awkward our property arrested gauge basalt can be found at the southern edge of the map Trinity College is located there.
Gary Gomby: Lots of wells and testicles have provided basic information about the types of products penetrated.
Gary Gomby: The section of our front facing is underlined by the youngest of the four sedimentary formations found in the heart for base the portland formation, which states too early Jurassic.
Gary Gomby: Like the older some entry East Berlin and shown metal fan formations portland is composed to read months down sandstone and conglomerate Here we see an explanation of the typical core sample within the portland formation of the northern quadrangle.
Gary Gomby: In the 2012 bedrock geology the hartford South quadrangle report.
Gary Gomby: The characteristics of the portland formation.
Gary Gomby: were described these characteristics would based on core is taken from the park river tunnels worse those cores we're located about a kilometer north of our quadrangles southern boundary.
Gary Gomby: The authors describe the lower portland for the information as follows predominant read beds are punctuated by several cycles of great and black shield deputies additional environments alternated between semi arid livio plane and fly us human and perennial links and mud flaps.
Gary Gomby: metrics metropolitan district is now constructing an enormous floor mile long deep rock tunneled van temporarily store excess wastewater and storm water from portions of South African Western.
Gary Gomby: The quarter will extend from hartford water pollution control facility in the south meadows, to tell cut road in West hartford the tunnel is located about a kilometer south.
Gary Gomby: Of the southern edge of our cloud during heavy rain events, the eternal will store wastewater and storm water which will minimize sewage overflows into local waterways, including the Connecticut river.
Gary Gomby: In long island sound these events occur about 50 times a year look at this image, the Center of hartford would live along the right hand side but northwards.
Gary Gomby: Considerable phil movil an inch length deposits and glacier till overlying up for lunch.
Gary Gomby: generalized section of the bedrock through the southern part of our map ears shown here sedimentary rock layers of shall die chromatic.
Gary Gomby: The composer complex succession of sandstone shale, and so stone with variations in grain size partners and structure in all the rock players.
Gary Gomby: The attitude and thickness of the basalt and attitudes positions and relative movements along false are based on data from excavation for the Jefferson street in hartford the Western basalt on the left is projected from Jason Avon quadrangle.
Gary Gomby: let's look more closely at the bedrock geology of the Center of our see the focus of this.
Gary Gomby: extensive areas of artificial phil shown a brown or President along park river quarter and the Connecticut river.
Gary Gomby: Large areas of Wisconsin he, like bottom deposits, which was shot and purple generally overlaid till we're bedrock in some areas, each posits over 250 feet deep.
Gary Gomby: To the south like ground rain deposits appearing thicknesses shown in cream the ISA was paying, so the Connecticut river have extensive areas where official filled, as well as floodplain aluminum and yellow of various thicknesses of 20 to 40 feet underlined by barbed clay and silt.
Gary Gomby: know the Hampton basalt at the bottom left corner of the image, the President location of Trinity College, it is underlying by the East Berlin formation.
Gary Gomby: preferred license for linkedin of glacial lake hitchcock named after Charles hitchcock the 19th century geologists and President of hammers college.
Gary Gomby: Like hitchcock hitchcock have its inception in central Connecticut before 15,600 years ago it was Dan at southern invite solutions Brie.
Gary Gomby: And an outcropping of bed rocket rocket fuel Connecticut and it's level controlled by stable bedrock spillway in new Britain.
Gary Gomby: Initial breaching of the rocky hill damn and drainage like huge conscious thought to have occurred about 12,300 to 12,400 years ago superficial deposits in harford area is a legacy playstation like in stream deposits, but.
Gary Gomby: They heavily urbanized area.
Gary Gomby: Which is shown in grateful hard to see but it underlies most of this map area is underlying by larger sort of artificial fills sand gravel until all these are legacies of deposition left by retreating glaciers and water Brown is artificial phil oranges sand and gravel.
Gary Gomby: yellow shown in San Jo shows the sand area blue large areas of fine grained posits three or is still part pan, which is a fully sorted mixture boulders and covers covers and granules sand silt and clay size particles.
Gary Gomby: today's hartford cityscape has been shaped by its relationship with the Connecticut and little river now, as I mentioned, known as the park river.
Gary Gomby: Native Americans had arrived thousands of years before Europeans and 1633 touch for traders established for you.
Gary Gomby: Know Dutch point at the bottom right call the House hope at the mountain river now cold park river.
Gary Gomby: This corner modern hartford still retains vestiges of its Dutch history, we should avenue in Dutch point or name places that still exist.
Gary Gomby: Desperate soon, followed by English colonists from the mansion Massachusetts colony and 1635 continuously increasing English settlements eventually lead to relinquishment of all Dutch claims to do new Netherlands and 1674.
Gary Gomby: The 1640 map shows the little river, which we call the park river as a central feature of the early settlement, the Connecticut river, the great river is along the eastern edge of the map for Atlanta location to the River navigable from hard for South long island sound help.
Gary Gomby: here's hard for 200 years later, in 1836 a few of the heart of hartford from the East hartford side of the Connecticut river steamboats numerous sailing vessels are on the river and along the bustling waterfront numerous true spires and the old state house.
Gary Gomby: are visible on the skyline smoke rises from stacks of the steamboats and from an industrial building on the waterfront the 970 foot long old truck for toll bridge is visible on the far right constructed in 1880 it served as a primary route for horse drawn traffic for 75 years in.
Gary Gomby: trawling line was added the structure it was long and ugly and it may 1895 spectacular fire burned into the waterline early 20th century the bridge was replaced by the granted bulky.
Gary Gomby: there's a view of hartford a scene from East hartford covered bridge which we just mentioned, is now clearly seen on the Left Center buildings in the city line, the West Bank of the Connecticut river some tissues from several factory chimneys on the right.
Gary Gomby: Is 18 at 1841 to 42 view of hartford again seen from the East hartford side of the Connecticut river, the Left foreground people appear to be doing some fishing to right as a Steamboat moving north.
Gary Gomby: Other Steamboat sailing vessels on a ferry boat or on the River hartford is now city of about 14,000 people as the middle of the 19th century draws.
Gary Gomby: proximity to the little in Connecticut rivers couple prosperity in danger damaging floods for dismayingly frequent.
Gary Gomby: When the Connecticut river flooded the little river with backup blocked by high water from emptying into the Connecticut river both low lying areas.
Gary Gomby: Of the city along the river front, as well as the areas Jason to the river's would be inundated in 1854 as Samuel Colt was building his.
Gary Gomby: Massive factory on the Connecticut river South city Center disaster struck massive late spring floods brought the Connecticut river to 29.8 feet, a stage not reached again until they even more destructive flood of 1930s.
Gary Gomby: And this view looking East on state street market street and the American wrote the Connecticut river is flooded from lower state street to the east hartford sure in the distant background.
Gary Gomby: On the left side is the hartford covered bridge in Steamboat directly below bridge.
Gary Gomby: In 1854 what fan cold was developing the cultural privilege and armory Parker was hit by the biggest flood of the 19th century.
Gary Gomby: cold hire local artists Joseph ropes to create a remarkable panoramic Bureau that captured hartford in the midst of the flood ropes to use the recently invented to get retype.
Gary Gomby: From not eating 39 to take photographs of the area from the top of the Center church on Main Street, which we said earlier in this presentation.
Gary Gomby: Use the images to paint the remarkably detailed landscapes part of the athenaeum collection is four separate narrow paintings show of us from the north east, south and west and are incredibly detailed showing a cityscape at today is 90%.
Gary Gomby: Digital files of these four individual paintings have been stitched together in order to convey a panoramic view of hartford clockwise from the north.
Gary Gomby: As we move clockwise the extent of the flooding will be seen before separate paintings are distinguished by different background lighting.
Gary Gomby: The detail in these paintings is so fine that signage is visible in some places with appropriate enlargement.
Gary Gomby: panorama moves from the north, which is the first panel.
Gary Gomby: clockwise to the east.
Gary Gomby: towards the south.
Gary Gomby: We will see a Western view.
Gary Gomby: coming into place in.
Gary Gomby: The park river is visible in western view three buildings in the Center near the forested area Trinity College, which is now located elsewhere and state capital is now located in spot.
Gary Gomby: is enlarged image of the beast view shows the damage covered bridge on the left and we will steamers visible just behind the congregational church steeple the eastern shore the Connecticut river is largely submerged.
Gary Gomby: The torch in these Martin location of front street one of the original manufacturing areas of hartford now totally vanished during the urban renewal, the last decades.
Gary Gomby: cold factory was located in the Multi storey building his new factory was still under construction, at the time of the flood.
Gary Gomby: On the eve of rapid industrialization that was to characterize the second half of the 19th century rose paintings capture the landscape of advantage.
Gary Gomby: In 1865 hartford had risen to prominence.
Gary Gomby: Previously, as a river port serving as a conduit for goods arriving from we're heading to places like England Bermuda and the Far East.
Gary Gomby: river captains, who met on the wards and in coffee houses often a race to share mortgage risks and profits from these informal arrangements of hartford insurance industry spraying.
Gary Gomby: The first insurance firm the hartford fire insurance company opened an eight to 10 phone by the 1990s numerous wars can be seen on the Connecticut river in this 1860.
Gary Gomby: This might have hartford buy chicken read in mind from 1864 to fix the extent of hartford's growth.
Gary Gomby: The little river, also known as hog river later the park river flows towards the Connecticut and distance.
Gary Gomby: Shops rifle factories in the foreground Samuel Colt factory is to the right of the park river mouse in the distance mark 21 of the city's most famous residents of the time, provided the phone description of hartford in that time period.
Gary Gomby: I am in hartford Connecticut now, I think this is the best built enhancements town, I have ever seen, this is the Center of Connecticut well.
Gary Gomby: hartford dollars have a place in half the great money enterprises of the Union, all those phoenix and insurance companies are located here.
Gary Gomby: The sharps rifle factories here the great soap factory of the sections here the heaviest description publishing houses in the land or here and last and greatest the Colt revolver manufacturing is a hartford institution.
Gary Gomby: Twain Harriet beecher stowe and other influential Members of hartford society lived in the form small neighborhood along the North branch of the part.
Gary Gomby: chicken vitamins city park later renamed bushnell park seen in this large image, the impetus to create the park sprang from a desire to read the area along its banks tenements tanneries in garbage dumps.
Gary Gomby: which will we will see in some later images a little riverhead involved in the mill reverse heart for developed industrial lines.
Gary Gomby: Excellent from homes in factories log its banks fail the River Horace bushnell wish to create a beautiful scenic place where city residents could enjoy themselves, he also wanted to create a pleasing first impression for visitors, as they arrived at the nearby trains.
Gary Gomby: Quote factories on the far right just south of the mouth of the park river numerous boats are seeing the coverage rich destroyed by the 1836 flooded has been rebuilt.
Gary Gomby: Note the numerous churches.
Gary Gomby: Along Main Street.
Gary Gomby: Here we see the cold factory and famous stone scene from the East hartford side of the River a large dyck protects the factory can be seen in front of.
Gary Gomby: The scene from 1872 shows the park river flowing from left to right joining the Connecticut river on the right point of land between them are which are sailing vessels being constructed.
Gary Gomby: Is the shipyard is touch point the Connecticut valley road crosses the park river on a bridge smoke issues from the smokestack and steam locomotive engine on the tracks from smokestacks on industrial.
Gary Gomby: industrial buildings in the city, the dirt road in the foreground is charter oak avenue, which we will visit later on animals graze in the field on the left for round the coverage across the Connecticut river is seen in the distance.
Gary Gomby: john stove arts spectacular 1876 rendering of Connecticut river hartford waterfront the scene here with the state house directly in the Center the river is laughing at the city's edge today the river is walled off.
Gary Gomby: From the.
Gary Gomby: spring flood of 1936.
Gary Gomby: hartford's population continued to grow, the 19th and early 20th century reaching 160 4019 30s so depression grip, the state and the country another natural disaster of.
Gary Gomby: The Connecticut river crested in hartford on march 21 1936 at 37 feet setting the record for the highest recorded flood in hartford.
Gary Gomby: During the preceding nine days 14 inches of rain fell in the River Valley, where the ground was frozen and covered by as much as 30 inches of snow at the reverse CREST approximately 330,000 cubic feet per second of water rush past the city.
Gary Gomby: called perhaps the public will remember the longest that.
Gary Gomby: On Friday march 20 two major utilities were thoroughly crippled at 5:30pm the city was plunged into stygian glue that failure power lines a gloom made more intense by the failure power lines of looming more intense, but the downpour of rain which set in late in the night.
Gary Gomby: More than 40,000 telephones were out of order radio stations were unable to broadcast except by battery.
Gary Gomby: Business and social activities were almost completely throttled indeed the entire life of the city, it was almost did such with the sorry picture of hartford after the great flood the city left an unprecedented upset by the greatest natural catastrophe ever to descend upon him.
Gary Gomby: floodwaters inundated The city is water rose far above any previous stage park river overflows drowning most of bushnell park and adjacent areas, the cold factory area was inundated.
Gary Gomby: scrapbook from a local resident from which that description I just read it was drawn.
Gary Gomby: Also documents, the great flood in series of remarkable.
Gary Gomby: This is an aerial view of East hartford showing the state of inundation.
Gary Gomby: Only slideshows Morgan street with the brooklyn bridge with water nearly up to the road surface in the background.
Gary Gomby: This view looks in the south from travelers tower during the flood showing the Connecticut river and flooding along the waterfront harford as well as each hartford on the Left prominent structures include the Dutch point in South metro stations of the hartford electric light company.
Gary Gomby: And the cold firearms company the mouth of the park river is adjacent to the Dutch point station, but cannot be seen since this areas in.
Gary Gomby: march 20 1936 the aerial view of the cold complex during the flood the memorial Church of the good shepherd and it's accompanying parish House can be seen in the Center foreground the depth of the water can be better appreciate it with this next view.
Gary Gomby: The Church of the good shepherd Nichols parking will the street looking from the rear of the church towards the Northwest.
Gary Gomby: This is the image today.
Gary Gomby: This area proceed down charter oak avenue towards the cold fan.
Gary Gomby: Following images capture the extent of the flood damage in 1936 Here we see record calls.
Gary Gomby: And area within the cold conflict is almost completely submerged while buildings.
Gary Gomby: It smokestack.
Gary Gomby: can be seen here.
Gary Gomby: From the same vantage point if we turn around.
Gary Gomby: back towards the city, we can see the travelers location.
Gary Gomby: But in it 1936 that look like this whole area was totally inundated.
Gary Gomby: or to the cold factory and other neighborhood buildings are still submerged for the floodwaters the travelers tower can be seen in the distance.
Gary Gomby: Proceeding down, and I can.
Gary Gomby: See down bad like happening to you see the flow of factory factory, the main entrance.
Gary Gomby: here's today's for you.
Gary Gomby: 1936 in towards the downtown far right.
Gary Gomby: same you today the downtown is now considerably develop code largely looking the same.
Gary Gomby: Looking down from the balcony of the colts office building across the street to submerge Stan.
Gary Gomby: The barn no brainer company buildings and the banks of the Connecticut river have completely overflowed looking down river from the cold building the power plant it's a real image and we saw a few slides is just.
Gary Gomby: mentioned Center on charter of avenue turning right on Columbus avenue processing the Whitehead highway however in 1936.
Gary Gomby: This was front street totally flooded, also known as hartford's lower East side near the Connecticut river waterfront.
Gary Gomby: possibly more than any other hartford street front street has undergone numerous changes in appearance and function since late 1800s when assertive should be important for sure.
Gary Gomby: In undergoing get more changes in the early 1960s, when it became a corporate Center extending from the southeast.
Gary Gomby: tip of constitution Plaza to the vicinity, the bridge over the Whitehead highway which now links to interstate 91 to blocky circle near the eastern edge bushnell park.
Gary Gomby: During this last transition from St was renamed Columbus boulevard in honor of the Italian immigrants who last occupied this avenue when it was primarily residential.
Gary Gomby: same area today the Convention Center we should have had our meeting can be seen on the right.
Gary Gomby: If you're crossing the Whitehead, I highway we turn left onto the street and proceed towards corner prospect and arch some of hard for truth factories were located on our street.
Gary Gomby: We proceed up the block to stop stop at that plaque closely and look at that and says the high watermark indicates the height of water during the flood of 1936.
Gary Gomby: If we proceed South on prospect, the Cross back over the white hat highway to we reached the corner charter out avenue, where we turn left and East on.
Gary Gomby: As we proceed down charter oak avenue, we can see the renovated capewell nail factory on the right and the Polish national phone on the left.
Gary Gomby: As we age your buildings to resemble what they may look like in 1936.
Gary Gomby: During the flood, we can see how high the water was in this area.
Gary Gomby: Note.
Gary Gomby: To light fixtures.
Gary Gomby: on the side of the Polish national phone.
Gary Gomby: return to modern era.
Gary Gomby: walk down the block towards those lamp fixture.
Gary Gomby: and looking closely to the right of lamb fixture you'll see a small great dot placed on the wall about the size of perhaps a quarter it's about 10 feet or so off the ground.
Gary Gomby: is actually a flood marker perhaps the only one remaining on a privately on building showing the water level from the flood of Nike.
Gary Gomby: In this detail from a fema flood map shows the flood zone, which is now protected by levees post National Park entrances shown by the error now without the levees if we were.
Gary Gomby: If we trade backup charter oak cabinets continuing West Main Street return right proceeding past the athenaeum until we reach the silence street turning left heading West towards the train station in the real road overpasses distance just ahead on the right, you see.
Gary Gomby: oversight of the hotel bond hartford's most prestigious hotel built in two stages in 1913 to 1921 it was the place to stay until the hotel statler opened in 1954 but getting to the bond was a bit challenging during.
Gary Gomby: You see, the railroad overpass in the distance of the block.
Gary Gomby: And if you've already checked in and perhaps wanted to get to the train station up the block the friendly staff would provide transportation.
Gary Gomby: Water extended up asylum street.
Gary Gomby: From the.
Gary Gomby: hey we see the same.
Gary Gomby: me.
Gary Gomby: We need your attention sorry about that let's see much across the park in the far left corner, you can see, this little triangular shape.
Gary Gomby: here's the SN at building at the corner trouble street.
Gary Gomby: today's view of the park.
Gary Gomby: You from high street looking towards the state Capitol.
And then.
Gary Gomby: This image is an aerial view.
Gary Gomby: taken two years later, during the flood of 1938 still struggling with the depression and devastation from the 1936 flood September of 1938 brought another weather related disaster up to nine inches of rain.
Gary Gomby: fell on the Connecticut river valley during the second week of September, and then without warning a massive hurricane work through New England on September 21 dropping eight inches of rain in a single day, two days later, the River crested in hartford an elevation of nearly 35 feet.
Gary Gomby: cold facts factory is visible on the lower left of this aerial photograph of hartford in East hartford.
Gary Gomby: This was connecticut's worse natural disaster during the 20th century, for hurricanes coastal and river flooding to.
Gary Gomby: 682 lives caused enormous property damage and led directly to the construction of the deck system in hartford in East hartford which saved the city from yet another devastating flood in 1955 when another hurricane struck and the Connecticut river crested nearly 31 feet.
Gary Gomby: plaques on the bulk leverage pillars and Jason to the walking path along the West Bank, the Connecticut river show the depth of water from these floods.
Gary Gomby: Flood waters in all three instances were only a few feet below the underside of the bridge the average daily level is in the middle just under.
Gary Gomby: 503 feet enormous height of the three major floods can be seen, he averaged spring flood of 20.3 feet is warfighting is catastrophic events.
Gary Gomby: flood control comes to hartford.
Gary Gomby: Floods 1936 1938 across the city gear.
Gary Gomby: And carolyn.
Gary Gomby: carolyn any further development after the devastating 36 and 30 the army corps of engineers constructed an intricate flood prevention system comprising seven miles profane and vain.
Gary Gomby: And more than five miles tunnels this collective flood protection assemblies regardless largest and most complex New England.
Gary Gomby: and has capably provided protection from the Connecticut river flooding, since its construction.
Gary Gomby: and major part of this project was very only the park river enormous conduit under bushnell park reaching all the way to the kind of river.
Gary Gomby: that's eliminating the continued spread of floodwaters backing up in inundating the areas around the river.
Gary Gomby: army corps of engineers came up with a plan that would contain the main branch the park river in a huge underground conduit or tunnel.
Gary Gomby: During much of the 1940s, they literally changed the course of the River bearing in a huge concrete box shape struck shaped tunneled 30 feet high and 45 feet wide.
Gary Gomby: underneath the pump house Polanski circle and mainstream under the hartford public library and the Whitehead highway finally arriving at the Connecticut river.
Gary Gomby: bushnell park section of the flood control project was completed in 1949 later sections were completed after the major sort of.
Gary Gomby: With.
Gary Gomby: towards the capital, which can be seen over the right.
Gary Gomby: Sorry brick and frame buildings over, then the multifamily dwellings line abroad streaming are reflected in the water.
Gary Gomby: Some buildings have strong foundations some I wouldn't purchase and rather dilapidated addition we can see the laundry hanging on the clothesline struggle, the river, including some long underwear.
Gary Gomby: Have a scene from the same year, looking East from the Main Street bridge frame and brick buildings line streaming are reflected in the water.
Gary Gomby: Again, we have some stone foundation wouldn't Porches period to be in these multi family homes, some have some fires feet escapes.
Gary Gomby: painting advertising sign reads wash your clothes with personal self harming oxygen washing compound triple art stonebridge no longer in existence is in the background.
Gary Gomby: This is the park river looking East towards the stone arch Main Street bridge frame and the brick buildings apparently again multi family dwellings live streaming are reflected in the water.
Gary Gomby: submit probably shows the mainstream British with men working on the conduit, which will in turn the river and the next image taking from plus key circle at the eastern corner personal part we see the mainstream bridge the same bridge over the Whitehead highway park river.
Gary Gomby: carpet or conduit is directly Bruce hello, the road.
Gary Gomby: This bridge.
Gary Gomby: and moral arch it's emotional Turk.
Gary Gomby: Well, the arch still remains the bridge seen clearly in this image.
Gary Gomby: No longer exists the river is buried below it.
Gary Gomby: The only thing we can see here is what was formerly the top of the bridge seen in the previous image.
Gary Gomby: hello, the sound for the South branch the park river which reaches bushnell park advantages underground here the Channel live stream can be seen at the handles street overpass looking downstream.
Gary Gomby: Looking upstream before it interest to kind of wood, which is just a short distance ahead, we can see the fully channelized park river.
Gary Gomby: intrepid kayakers occasionally have made the trip through the conduit during low flow.
Gary Gomby: proverbial light at the end of the tunnel.
Gary Gomby: your mouth from the park river, as it meets the Connecticut river.
Gary Gomby: trip to Singapore distance below that entrance taking from charter oak landing the look up river towards the founders bridge which links hartford on the left in East hartford on the right.
Gary Gomby: taken from the pedestrian walkway on top of founders bridge you see the Convention Center on the left.
Gary Gomby: walkway which leads to pedestrian access on the hartford side of the River that across to the east bank of the River the bridge massive floodwall can be seen in the middle between trees, along with extensive shoreline modifications.
Gary Gomby: crossing the founders breaching towards walking towards East hartford you're looking east and south words the top floodwall and lovey lovey issue is clearly seen the cold building a seat on the far right.
Gary Gomby: This shows the living long East river drive on the east hartford side and riverside park south of founders bridge.
Gary Gomby: Back north.
Gary Gomby: pass the founders bridge.
Gary Gomby: Seen On top of that living.
Gary Gomby: just north of the bridge, we can see the tramp rock rap rap covering the size of letting.
Gary Gomby: A panoramic view of the city on it on the West side bulkeley bridges seen on the right.
Gary Gomby: And the levee can be seen clearly.
Gary Gomby: So one of the future challenges that are in East hartford let's continue with.
Gary Gomby: maintaining and enhancing so to control along the rivers, will be a significant challenge for cash strapped periphery.
Gary Gomby: city is financially responsible for maintenance repairs and the army corps of engineers has identified numerous deficiencies, including leakage under some sections of the levees that have to be.
Gary Gomby: have to be repaired, the flood chemical structure to for protection to larger is both hard for us, Turkey has shown to the purple shaded areas, the levy is shown in magenta.
Gary Gomby: we've discussed the complex nature flood control structures previously numerous conduits pumping stations floodwalls and levees have to be maintained and strengthen.
Gary Gomby: each other shows how many structures are included in the flood control protection scheme.
Gary Gomby: The army corps of engineers notified heard from 2014 that the system which is now more than 75 years old, was no longer time with minimum standards.
Gary Gomby: That is their existence significant efficiencies that substantially reduce the system's ability to provide flood protection.
Gary Gomby: record requires that the system now must have for protection flow for floods exceeding the 500 year flood level that would be the equivalent of the 1936 flood.
Gary Gomby: Not merely for the 100 year event which at the President does it does meet the 500 year event would inundate all the pink and yellow areas.
Gary Gomby: failure of the system would be catastrophic flood damages to East hartford are estimated to exceed 360 million dollars in order to reach.
Gary Gomby: depths of 24 feet far more damage would occur in hartford the 2016 feasibility study study enumerated numerous risks.
Gary Gomby: Over 25% of the city's land basis in the wedding protection zone, including important commercial institutional residential properties about 20% of the entire grand list.
Gary Gomby: Major public infrastructure throughout the city is also at risk, the most vulnerable, which is the MDC regional sewage treatment system, which is in the process, about $3 billion EPA method mandated upgrade.
Gary Gomby: The interstate 8491 interchange the regional airport the MDC water distribution system military jet fuel supply pipeline and numerous major employers are also at increased risk.
Gary Gomby: failure of the city to make the necessary appears to be enormous costs, estimated at nearly $80 million risk.
Gary Gomby: Equally enormous financial penalties penalties if the levee system failed the city would not receive compensation from the Federal Government for flood damages and repairs.
Gary Gomby: there's also the possibility that female may respond ellerbee protected sounds as high risk flood zones which could cause severe consequences for property owners within this.
Gary Gomby: This would result in requirements for expensive flood insurance product for property owners limit use of state and federal funds within these high risk zones and generally hinder economic development, once these areas are considered to be high risk flood zones.
Gary Gomby: Funding for these repairs now awaits Congressional actual Congressman Larson is long sought federal appropriations for these i've reached out to his office, I am not sure where we stand at this time.
Gary Gomby: In conclusion.
Gary Gomby: let's try to summarize what we've.
Gary Gomby: gone through over the past hour hartford's long history has been very much influenced by its proximity to the Connecticut can talk rivers.
Gary Gomby: record flooding it's always been an issue, but the city develop, despite the constant threats, the floods of 1936 1938 created the impetus for major flood control efforts.
Gary Gomby: which lasted for decades Parker conduit and levy projects that extended through the post for years overlaps with them, the Greek acceleration illustrate the ability of humans to act as great forces of nature, one of the defining characteristic of the.
Gary Gomby: consequences of these flood control projects and profoundly shaped hartford's urban landscape.
Gary Gomby: Once the most valuable parts of the city were made safe from recurrent floods massive urban redevelopment commenced which obliterated sections of the city near the Connecticut river.
Gary Gomby: Polish and Italian communities were displaced the African American Community shifted into the North and the first.
Gary Gomby: One writer writer describe a process as the Guinean was ation of hartford city was effectively disconnected from its rivers which has been the defining natural system shaping harford system for.
Gary Gomby: Historical images maps and our dual forward and effective integrated method of communicating anthropogenic change, particularly if contrasted with contemporary landscapes.
Gary Gomby: The harford experience offers an opportunity to explore how natural systems shaver human, socio economic systems and, in turn, are modified it altered by human activity.
Gary Gomby: The ability of humans to greatly modify and ultra natural systems in the mid 20th century era is exemplified by the hartford flood control projects that have had those significant environmental and socio economic.
Gary Gomby: Consequences global anthropocene can be illustrated by the local introducing.
Gary Gomby: And that would conclude this presentation i'm just going to run through this last slide, since this is being recorded and you can you wanted to refer back you'd have the credits and other vocational.
Gary Gomby: maps available.
Gary Gomby: I know that wasn't the smoothest presentations but I wasn't sure whether I was actually going to be able to do this, live today, so I wanted pre recorded anyway um.
Gary Gomby: So if you guys have any questions or comments I obviously am.
Gary Gomby: happy to entertain those I appreciate your patience with going through that.
Michael Wizevich: Good there's a question in the chat.
Gary Gomby: Oh yeah go ahead.
Gary Gomby: No.
Bill Burton: hi Gary thanks for a vacation what.
Bill Burton: What vantage point where those great panoramic paintings.
Bill Burton: done from is that does that the basalt rigid Trinity College.
Gary Gomby: No it's from that the Church, that is in.
Gary Gomby: want to get to it.
Gary Gomby: That image, if you can still see them that's the Center church right across the street from the athenaeum and downtown hartford it's one of the last remaining churches from that era.
Gary Gomby: ropes climbed up to the top took us to get retype two pictures, all the way around developed the images and then painted based on those Gareth types that's why his paintings were like so extraordinarily detail the originals of the digger types have been lost.
Gary Gomby: But cold was a you know was fascinated and you know, very much in tune with technological change and wanting him to use the data types and told or you know Commission bros, who is a local resident well known, artists and.
Gary Gomby: To you know paint and document the flood, and I think.
Gary Gomby: I think, though, is they were actually in colts home at some point.
Gary Gomby: And then they.
Gary Gomby: eventually ended up at the athenaeum.
Bill Burton: They kind of need to make a cyclorama.
Gary Gomby: yeah it would be.
Gary Gomby: there's virtually nothing left today had of what was in those paintings there's the cook McCormick House can be seen in one of the paintings that still exists on Main Street but virtually everything else is gone.
Gary Gomby: And you can, if you enlarge them sufficiently you could actually read on on the building that's cold original factors is colts office on the side of it in black and white and, apparently, it is those paintings, are one of the very few.
Gary Gomby: sets of paintings of any city pre industrial era in the United States are only like a handful of cities that have been that were so documented so it's it's really a fairly extraordinary.
Gary Gomby: set of paintings at the athenaeum possesses.
Gary Gomby: They were on that I happen to see them when they were on display a couple of years ago and then they're gone they're not on display anymore, so I had to contact museum, you know get copyright permission from them to use them, but the real I mean they're really remarkable.
Gary Gomby: Thank you sure.
Gary Gomby: mean what what was what were your impressions about you know, using this kind of approach to.
Gary Gomby: You know, try to you know demonstrate change over time.
Bill Burton: I guess i'd speed it up a bit and show it would be interesting, you talked about the displacement of the ethnic neighborhoods it would be interesting to show that in a movie you know plan view.
Gary Gomby: I know you know I originally had wanted to put this into like an A movie I just like I just couldn't manage it, and I know this thing was long.
Gary Gomby: But.
Gary Gomby: You know yeah I would agree with that it has to be speed it up, but.
Gary Gomby: i'm more interested in like what people thought about like using this kind of idea, you know, taking.
Gary Gomby: maps and actual paintings and things like that that you could obtain from state local museums or historical.
Gary Gomby: places and then tried to combine it yeah I mean you would do like a you know, a class on say flood control or you know you know the way of rivers, you know river flow and then you, you know show now, things have changed over time.
Bill Burton: what's like the famous Duke Professor his name now escapes me right now, you exhibit shoreline change, he would show postcards of the classical.
Bill Burton: You know, hotels, like in Miami beach.
Gary Gomby: yeah hopefully exists for it hard for you, yes, the same so so exactly.
guilty.
Bill Burton: yeah right Thank you.
Margaret Thomas: I think the photographs are really effective, you know and and the way you tie those to the maps that's that's it that's really.
Margaret Thomas: impactful and you had a lot of content there so.
Gary Gomby: No, I know.
Gary Gomby: I know.
Gary Gomby: yeah right to go back to the same places that those pictures were taken as best I was able to.
Margaret Thomas: yeah I think it works pretty well.
Michael Wizevich: It was fascinating Gary I don't know what else you could do it, I mean it was effective in that you.
Michael Wizevich: Know took us through time with the with those images in in juxtaposing with the present day, is extremely effective, I think I mean it.
Gary Gomby: Thank you, I just you know it's.
Gary Gomby: Like when I went through this I mean really and I, my wife and I live down here, you know we live like right, we could have walked to the Convention Center it's around around the corner from this meeting, so we walk around this area all the time and.
Gary Gomby: You know there's such a profound break between the urbanized area and the riverfront I mean I know they've connected through some friction and you know some pathways, but it is.
Gary Gomby: Think about what the city was like historically, it was so intimately tied to the river and now it's really you know broken away from it it's it's really unfortunate.
Michael Wizevich: yeah well that's that's the big mistake of 91.
Gary Gomby: That says yeah it's a huge mistake, I know Larson wants to bear the the highways, you know with a billion dollar.
Gary Gomby: But.
Gary Gomby: I mean if they don't fix the levees that's all going to be for not, I mean the letter, the legacy the levees are leaking they're being undermined.
Michael Wizevich: that's interesting where did you get that.
Gary Gomby: That information from there's a big report from the army corps that they and they documented all these problems with the levee system and there's leakage they did these peasy amateur.
Gary Gomby: readings along the levees and so along the Morgan street part of it, like basically where.
Gary Gomby: The bulk of the bridge comes into the city it's leaking under there and water, when the.
Gary Gomby: river level rises the PC amateur readings, on the other side of letting fights start going up so there's there's flow, you know underneath the levees in certain places.
Gary Gomby: which, according to the army corps is I mean if there happened to be a club again with the levels as high as 36 they're saying on the webpage system could fail well yeah.
Margaret Thomas: So maybe with the big push for infrastructure now's the time to try to get.
Margaret Thomas: Funding for that.
Gary Gomby: I call larson's often see you're supposed to get back with me, but you know busy doing whatever they do in DC so I never heard that.
Michael Wizevich: Leave that one alone.
Margaret Thomas: Well, thank you so much Gary.
well.
Gary Gomby: I appreciate your patience, I know it was a little you know, maybe a little tedious and choppy but.
Gary Gomby: i'm sorry we can do it i'm sorry we couldn't do it live within you know, a nice day to be walking around down here.
Michael Wizevich: So you know we might get you might get a on ground meeting in a few years so maybe then you could do it.
Gary Gomby: yeah anyway all right, thank you very much, everybody.
Michael Wizevich: All right, bye.
Gary Gomby: bye now. Gary Gomby: bye now.