The Seasonal Rhythm of Howard Falls This August has had unusually wet periods (as well as dry ones) in Erie County, and Howard Falls has certainly shown it. Those heavy rains sent the waters of Falls Run surging over the brink, scenes more reminiscent of spring than late summer, when the waterfall is typically atContinue reading “When the Falls Runs Low”
Category Archives: Geology
Rocks of Ages
From the mid-1930s onward for over 10 years, a general interest column, “Wandering with Walter Jack,” appeared in the Erie Daily Times. It was a popular feature, often appearing once to three times a week. The column documented local history as well as significant events within the regional community. Walter Eugene Jack (1883–1966) was aContinue reading “Rocks of Ages”
Erratically Speaking
If you travel through any rural area in northwestern Pennsylvania, you will invariably see large boulders dotting the landscape. Most often, they have become lawn ornaments of a sort in homeowners’ yards, marking the entrances to driveways or delineating property lines. These boulders vary in size all the way up to as large as aContinue reading “Erratically Speaking”
The Portage Escarpment
Background In our earlier Blog, “Formation of the Falls Run Gorge,” we discussed the potential dynamics of how the Gorge and Falls formed during the end of the Laurentide Ice Age over 12,000 years ago. Further review of literature on similar gorges in Ohio and New York allowed us to refine these dynamics further andContinue reading “The Portage Escarpment”
Early Scientific Research at Howard Falls
Over the past 200 years, Howard Falls and the Falls Run Gorge have attracted scientists of varied interests. Most recently, the Falls Run area has been investigated extensively by the Western PA Conservancy, resulting in The Falls Run Gorge being named a Natural Heritage Area of Pennsylvania. But in the 1800s and early 1900s, severalContinue reading “Early Scientific Research at Howard Falls”
Formation of the Falls Run Gorge
Waterfalls, such as Howard Falls, are dynamic formations but can maintain their vertical faces over long periods of time. A classic example of such a waterfall is Niagara Falls, where over 100,000 cubic feet of water flow over the escarpment every second, yet the waterfall remains vertical because of a hard sandstone layer at theContinue reading “Formation of the Falls Run Gorge”