Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it - Norman Maclean

The Mighty Chemung is a story of tradition, preservation, and mitigation along the Chemung River Valley.

The son of a Coastguardsman, the water has always been a part of my life. From the Savannah Lowcountry to the Gulf of Mexico, I’ve always found solace and homecoming in its welcoming arms.

When I moved to Corning in the Fall of 2012, I immediately fell in love with a river that echoed the mountainous streams of my overseas adventures and the meandering salt marsh tributaries of my youth. Yet I would soon learn that as transfixing as the Chemung was, it was a river seemingly defined by the Flood of 72’, an event that literally and figuratively submerged this region.

With the flood’s 50th anniversary behind us, I sought to explore the Chemung River Valley of today. Was it forever plunged in the past or could it flow unencumbered into the future? I discovered a bit of both.

Over the past year, I traced the river from its beginning in Painted Post to its ending in northern Pennsylvania where it joins with the Susquehanna to continue onward towards the Chesapeake Bay. Eventually my journey took me further into the Southern Tier, beyond and above the river’s banks, to document places and lives intimately tied to the river valley. Along the way I experienced an interconnected ecosystem held together by an untold number of people proactively working to create a thriving, sustainable, and safe watershed. In these waters I encountered joy, resilience, struggle, perseverance, renewal, stewardship, sorrow, and hope. Fishers and Kayakers. Painters and Farmers. Culture Keepers and Tradition Bearers. Activists and Dam Tenders. Archeologists and Engineers. Government and Community. And so many more.

Through environmental portraiture and landscape documentation, I hope to have given authenticity and care to these stories. I invite the viewer to bask in the illumination of the Chemung River Valley, a mighty place where the past is never the past, yet a hopeful future might be just around the next bend. 

The Mighty Chemung will be on exhibit from July 26 to August 30 at 171 Cedar Arts Center in Corning, NY. An opening reception will be Friday, July 26 from 5-7pm with artist remarks at 6pm.

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The Mighty ChemungThe warmth of the early summer sun shines down upon the mighty and majestic Chemung as cloud shadows freckle the hills and farmland of the Big Flats countryside. Fitch's BridgeNear Fitch’s Bridge, summer raindrops begin to dot the becalmed waters to bring relief to the low water level. West ElmiraFrom the vantage of a Cessna, the river meanders underneath Fitch’s Bridge as it proceeds south past West Elmira neighborhoods. Lake Street BridgeCompleted in spring 2023, the Lake Street Bridge spans the north and south sides of Elmira. An award-winning pedestrian walking bridge, it’s part of Elmira’s continued renewal. Centerway BridgeSummer thunderclouds build upon the horizon line, ready to sweep in and envelope Corning’s Centerway Bridge. FallA last vestige of Fall lingers in the cool air as fallen leaves scatter about the rapid-fed shallows. EternalThe river flows eternal in long exposure as the final remnants of the setting sun illuminate the waters and sky in ethereal wonder. TashlichBrasha Smith and members of Congregation Kol Ami gather at the Grove Street Boat Launch in Elmira to participate in the Tashlich ceremony, a symbolic casting away of sins during Rosh Hashanah. The SourceThe confluence of the Tioga, Canisteo, and Conhocton rivers near Painted Post marks the beginning of the Chemung River. The MouthJust south of Sayre, PA, the Chemung completes its 46-mile journey as it empties into the Susquehanna. In 2025, tourism and recreation efforts will unite the two rivers with the launch of the New York Susquehanna Basin Water Trail. A collaboration between multiple tourism agencies and the Friends of the Chemung River Watershed, it will shepherd forth a new chapter in the river’s storied history. The PalisadesAs majestic from the air as they are from land, The Palisades are an icon of the Chemung River Valley. Home to bountiful wildlife including families of Bald Eagles, this counter-lined hillside was acquired by the Finger Lakes Land Trust in 2019, preserving it for future generations to come. Kim & ElliotKim Thatcher and her grandson Elliot enjoy a late summer afternoon near the Benjamin Patterson Bridge. For them, and so many others, the river is a place of solace and refuge, exploration and discovery, relaxation and peace. Phyllis KehoeAt the edge of a Golden Glow cul-de-sac, Phyliss Kehoe stands at the entrance to her namesake’s nature preserve. Long sought after by land developers and loggers, Phyliss donated the land in 2016 to the Finger Lakes Land Trust. The donation ensured this 40-acre forested expanse would forever remain a permanently protected wildlife refuge. UnhousedThe river and its many bridges increasingly exist as shelter for many in our region. Save Round TopIn the distance lies Round Top, a site sacred to the Big Horn Lenape Nation and home to a 575-acre township park treasured for its scenic beauty. Just below Round Top, a proposed gravel pit would pave the way for the blast mining of Round Top, below which resides the ultimate prize – valuable deposits of Pennsylvania Bluestone. On her property in Athens, PA, Deb Allen stands in solidarity with community members Jaimee Alsing and Head Chief Grandfather Tamakwanaxk, Medicine Chief Hitakonanoolaxk (Tree Beard), and Sam Savon of the Big Horn Lenape Nation. Along with many others, this coalition of community members is waged in a lengthy legal battle to prevent Round Top’s destruction and to preserve the beauty and heritage of this land. The PreserveAt the edge of a Golden Glow cul-de-sac, Phyliss Kehoe stands at the entrance to her namesake’s nature preserve. Long sought after by land developers and loggers, Phyliss donated the land in 2016 to the Finger Lakes Land Trust. The donation ensured this 40-acre forested expanse would forever remain a permanently protected wildlife refuge. Community Archaeology ProgramCommunity participants join faculty members from Binghamton University’s Public Archaeology Facility (PAF) for a week-long excavation at an undisclosed site just beyond the Chemung River Watershed. This program is one part of PAF’s professional survey work conducted before public works projects commence. Working together, they help to identify, protect, and preserve this precontact site and others like it throughout the Chemung River Valley. Community Archaeology ProgramCommunity participants join faculty members from Binghamton University’s Public Archaeology Facility (PAF) for a week-long excavation at an undisclosed site just beyond the Chemung River Watershed. This program is one part of PAF’s professional survey work conducted before public works projects commence. Working together, they help to identify, protect, and preserve this precontact site and others like it throughout the Chemung River Valley. Community Archaeology ProgramCommunity participants join faculty members from Binghamton University’s Public Archaeology Facility (PAF) for a week-long excavation at an undisclosed site just beyond the Chemung River Watershed. This program is one part of PAF’s professional survey work conducted before public works projects commence. Working together, they help to identify, protect, and preserve this precontact site and others like it throughout the Chemung River Valley. Community Archaeology ProgramCommunity participants join faculty members from Binghamton University’s Public Archaeology Facility (PAF) for a week-long excavation at an undisclosed site just beyond the Chemung River Watershed. This program is one part of PAF’s professional survey work conducted before public works projects commence. Working together, they help to identify, protect, and preserve this precontact site and others like it throughout the Chemung River Valley. The PumpsTwo stories underground, giant pipes rise to meet the ground level pump station located at the end of Sullivan Street in downtown Elmira. In the event of inland flooding, this giant, basketball court sized cistern will collect flood waters from the city and discharge them back into the river. The FarmerAt the edge of his pastureland, Anthony Marko spoke of the August 2021 flash flood that overwhelmed the Tuscarora Creek flowing just beyond the tree line. Chest high waters swept across his land, taking with them life and property. As we walked his property line, Anthony reflected on a creek still prone to flooding and regulations that leave piles of debris untouched to this day. With a mixture of perseverance and vulnerability, farmers like Anthony, the backbone of the Chemung River Valley, take one step at a time into an uncertain future. Sewer ConsolidationNear Dunn Field in Elmira, the river’s flow is dammed to install new piping underneath the riverbed. With a price tag north of $275 million, Chemung County is undergoing a massive project to consolidate aging sewer infrastructure to meet current and future discharge regulations. While steep increases to sewer bills have caused resistance to the project, the resulting upgrades will pay ecological dividends for generations to come. The ProtectorsEMS Captain Whitney Polovick, 1st Assistant Chief Robby Polovick, Lieutenant Danielle Adams, and Chief Stephan Adams of the Golden Glow Volunteer Fire Department are among many others that are the first to respond to river-based emergencies. Part of the River Rescue Task Force, the Golden Glow Volunteer Fire Department is responsible for the longest swath of the Chemung River. Friends of the WatershedOver two and half hours into their journey, a Friends of the Chemung River Watershed led paddle makes its way downstream. Trips like these, often done in partnership with local outdoor recreation companies, help to educate and enlighten the public. The River MonitorsSince 1981, Emergency Environmental Services (EES) has worked to mitigate the risk of flooding along the Chemung River Valley. Comprised of county and city emergency management personnel, first responders, community members, and more, they work in cooperation with national and state organizations to provide up to the minute river monitoring data as well as develop emergency preparedness plans. The DamCompleted in 1978 and operated by the Army Corps of Engineers, the Tioga Hammond Dam is a vital instrument in flood mitigation. Inside this control tower, the flow of water into the Tioga River is monitored and regulated before being released to flow north towards the Chemung. The unheralded number of people operating this and other dams throughout the region have prevented over $500 million in flood damages and saved an untold number of lives. The FishersLate Spring anglers line the waters just below the Chase-Hibbard Dam in downtown Elmira. En Plein AirJust downstream from what was once Rorick’s Glen Park in West Elmira, artist Jeff Perrault carries on the tradition of painting “in the open air”. South CorningFarmland and the Four Lane follow the river’s contours through South Corning. One MileFishing several times a week, Sky Moss casts his line in the early morning, ever flowing waters of the Chemung. Born and raised in Lowman and a longtime resident of Elmira, except for time away at college Sky has never lived more than a mile from the Chemung.