Livermore Former Borough
Livermore Former Borough is a ghost town in Derry Township, Pennsylvania. Former borough removed during development of the Conemaugh flood-control reservoir. A transcription of 1958 Census Bureau correspondence records Livermore Borough’s dissolution for the Conemaugh flood-control project. The project reconstructs a 1951 merger into Derry Township.
Public West Penn Trail access at Livermore is dawn–dusk and subject to rapid flooding; former town parcels and cemetery access are separate.
· in your passport — stamped · open it
Is Livermore Former Borough haunted?
No claims are filed here — the record keeps this place for its documented history, not for a haunting on file.
The record — long form
Livermore is the drowned — the 'St. Patrick's' that's the '36 flood, the '18 feet' that's the water's depth. The 'rowboats' is the fled — the 'March 17' that's the evacuation's date, the 'roofs clung' that's the residents' grip. The '57 moved' is the emptied — the 'early '50s' that's the demolition's date, the 'dam built' that's the town's grave.
The 'witch cursed' is the told — the 'burned alive' that's the legend's frame, the 'flood promised' that's the curse's word. The 'cemetery moved' is the restless — the 'souls roam' that's the belief's claim, the 'above water' that's the walk's place. Livermore is the under — the 'reservoir' that's the town's now, the 'canal trail' that's the river's ghost.
The file keeps Livermore: the drowned town, the witch's curse, the moved dead, and the lake's cover.
Livermore is the archive's Pennsylvania file — the town sacrificed to save Pittsburgh.
Why this file matters
Livermore is the archive's Pennsylvania file — where the cure for flooding was drowning.
A town keeps its curse — the file's suggestion being that Livermore's hold is the ironic: the 'flood stopped' that's the dam's job, the 'town drowned' that's the method's cost, and the 'souls roam' that's the legend's keep.
Documented history
A transcription of 1958 Census Bureau correspondence records Livermore Borough’s dissolution for the Conemaugh flood-control project. The project reconstructs a 1951 merger into Derry Township. The town's documented rise and abandonment is the record the rest of the file stands on. The record holds it as fact — documented, not retold. '1950–1960 Census Minor Civil Division Correspondence:…' documents the entry. Documented ground is what separates this file from pure legend — this is part of it.
Verified historyLocal Geohistory Project
Sources on file
- 011950–1960 Census Minor Civil Division Correspondence: Westmoreland CountyLocal Geohistory Project · library archive · A1
- 02West Penn TrailConemaugh Valley Conservancy · official site · A2
Field notes & open questions
Source references National Archives RG29 UD100/ARC5634448; 1951 dissolution date is reconstructed rather than an inspected decree. Do not merge with Livermore NH or assume cemetery relocation/film-location legends are true.