HISTORY’S FORGOTTEN EVENTS STORY LIBRARY by Rachel A Bailey
1 Molasses Floods Boston’s North End It was a mild winter day on the waterfront On January 15 1919 people in Boston’s North End went about their day City workers ate their lunch Firemen played cards Children walked home from school Nearby molasses leaked from a large tank United States Industrial Alcohol USIA owned the tank The US government needed the molasses to create munitions during World War I The war had ended two months earlier Around 12 30 p m witnesses heard a dull roar and rumble It sounded like something was shaking Within seconds the tank lid burst The circular walls snapped into two giant pieces Molasses plowed A view of the molasses tank before it burst through the city The sticky mass traveled at 35 miles per hour 56 km h It destroyed city blocks toppled buildings and damaged vehicles The molasses reached up to 40 feet high 12 m Twenty-one people were killed in the Great Molasses Flood People and animals drowned trying to escape the hardening syrup Workers were crushed by buildings that fell on 4
The destruction after the flood After the tragedy several lawsuits were filed against USIA It was found that the tank walls were too thin to support the molasses Finally in 1925 the company agreed to pay family members and flood victims 628,000 That’s about 8 million in today’s dollars THINK ABOUT IT Many people drowned in the molasses Was it right to hold USIA responsible Do you think the company paid enough in fines 5 top of them Rescuers found some firemen at their card game They were buried in the wreckage 2 3 million Gallons of molasses 8 7 million L that flooded Boston’s North End The molasses burst out of a large tank Many lives were lost Years later the molasses company paid heavy fines
