View Single Post
Old 05-25-2010, 01:03 PM
  #1  
Boston1954
Power Poster
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: East Oklahoma - pining for Massachusetts
Posts: 10,477
Default

Do you know of anything that happened in the place where you were born that would stand out from regular historical events?

I once had a book out from the library that described a great flood in Boston, Massachusetts. BUT what stands out is that it was a flood of molasses. A tank holding 2.3 million gallons, gave way on January 15, 1919.

People living in the area said that the popping rivets on the tank sounded like a machine gun. As it started flowing through the streets, the level was between 8 and 15 feet deep. The force threw a truck into Boston Harbor, and pulled a train off of its tracks. Before it was finished flowing, the thick liquid killed 21, and injured about 150 people. I have read that it eventually found its way into the sewer system giving the city's rats a nearly un-ending source of food. The rat population exploded.

Sometimes, when I hear about floods of water, it brings this unique event back to my mind.
Boston1954 is offline