Today is the 99th anniversary of the sweetest human tragedy in American history

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In January of 1919 Purity Distilling Company of Boston, maker of high-grade rum, was working three shifts a day in a vain attempt to outrun national Prohibition. The company’s huge iron tank along the water’s edge at 529 Commercial Street in the North End was filled with more than two million gallons of molasses. Pipes entering the tank were heated to aid the flow of the dense liquid. A solitary vent was the only outlet for the fermenting gases.

It was just after noon on January 15 when the great molasses tank exploded with a ground-shaking blast.

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Those nearby who survived the ensuing catastrophe reported strange noises coming from the tank just before it let go. “It was like someone was on the inside hammering to get out,” said one witness.

A massive tidal wave of molasses swept across Commercial Street, smashing into a house at 6 Copps Hill Terrace, demolishing the building and killing Mrs. Bridget Clougherty.

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Scores of buildings, vehicles and bystanders were swept away. In all, 11 people were killed and more than 50 injured by the initial explosion.

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GREAT MOLASSES FLOOD | FAST FACTS
Gallons of molasses that flooded the North End on January 15, 1919: 2.3 million
Estimated height of the wave of molasses: 30 feet
Estimated speed of the wave of molasses: 25 miles per hour
Number of people who died of drowning or suffocation in the molasses flood: 21
Number of people injured: 150

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