Labor Day Weekend 1940
By Linda Jones, Millville Historical Society
Labor Day, a day set aside to honor workers and recognize their contributions to society, is synonymous with end-of-summer barbecues and picnics with friends and family. The allure of last-chance beach days entices some to head to the shore.
But in 1940, as residents of Millville and the Jersey Shore areas made plans for summer’s final fling, a powerful tropical storm dropped more than 24 inches of rain in less than 12 hours on parts of South Jersey. Dams collapsed in neighboring communities upriver from Millville.
Accounts of the flooding conditions state that Union Lake was six feet above normal, and 65 tons of water per minute rushed over the spillway. For two tense days, Millville residents wondered if the 73-year-old Union Lake Dam would burst. Many townspeople were evacuated from their homes, and volunteers representing all walks of life shoveled sand through the night and piled sandbags along the canal and river.
Headlines across the United States highlighted the unfolding crisis. The Sharp Street Bridge suffered heavy damage, and sections were swept downstream. Turbulent and swift-moving flood waters hammered away earthen supports and undermined the West Side Garage, pulling part of the structure into the river and threatening destruction of the Main Street Bridge.
The “Gangway Bridge,” a narrow, wooden footbridge that crossed the Maurice River from the end of Mulford Avenue over to the rear of Millville Manufacturing Company, was washed away by ravaging waters. The Millville Manufacturing Company, Millville Electric Plant, and Millville Water Company all faced imminent destruction.
After high tide in the early morning of September 3, the surging waters finally began to recede. Remarkably, the damage was limited given the scale of the threat: Union Lake Dam had held, and Millville was spared from disaster. Bridges needed repair and buildings were damaged, but there were no casualties.
Labor Day weekend in 1940 had left its mark and with a collective sigh of relief, Millville residents had escaped the devastating power of nature and had emerged resilient.
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September’s Third Friday Exhibit at the Millville Historical Society—The Flood of 1940: Bridges Over Troubled Waters
The Millville Historical Society’s upcoming Third Friday exhibit, “Bridges Over Troubled Waters: The Flood of 1940,” opening on Friday, September 19, revisits that stressful weekend when the city’s fate depended on a 73-year-old concrete and earthen structure.
This informational and visual exhibit will be on display at the MHS’s Genealogical & Historical Research Library (200 E. Main Street in Millville) from 6 to 8 p.m. Primary source materials, including newspaper articles from across the nation, personal accounts and photographs taken by Millville residents, images from the Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News, and aerial views from the Hagley Digital Archives, will provide an in-depth look at the 1940 flood.
