Jan. 15, 1919: A tidal wave of
molasses inundates BostonOld-timers in Boston still talk about the molasses flood that engulfed
the city`s north end. It occurred on a warm winter day that had brought many Bostonians outdoors to bask in the unseasonable thaw. Some lunched in the in the shadow of of the Purity Distilling Corporation`s massive
molasses tank. The steel-sided structure, 50 feet high and 90 feet in the diameter, was filled nearly to the brim with 2,300,000 gallons of molasses intended for rum. And it was about to come part. First, molasses sweated through the tank`s looser rivets- they popped out of their holes a sound like machine-gun fire. Then, with a muffled roar, the weakened seams split, and tons of molasses spewed out in a sudden pitch-black flood. The first wave. about 30 feet high, overpowered everything in its way, reducing buildings to rubble. Helpless men and animals were carried off like driftwood. A housewife died when her home collapsed around her.A boy buffeted by the surge was unable to call his mother because his throat was clogged with molasses. A man was swept into Boston Harbor, which was fast becoming a brown, murky mess. The tank wreaked havoc too, launching pieces of metal into the air like shrapnel. Flying shards sliced through a pillar of the Boston Elevated Railway, and an oncoming train braked just in time to avoid plunging into the ocean of goo. After the flood had subsided, molasses clogged the streets, up to three feet deep in places. Victims continued to be found. A small girl still clutched firewood she had gathered. The corpse of a wagon driver was a molasses-coated statue. Survivors had to have their molasses-stiffened clothing cut off. Trapped horses had to be shot. The
disaster left 21 dead (most of them drowned) and more than 50 injured. In the ensuing weeks of cleanup, the citizen of Boston tracked molasses over the city. People stuck to benches and sidewalks, or grappled with phone receivers glued to their ears. The molasses odor lingered for months-some say years. Even today people claim that on a hot afternoon there is a hint of it in the air.