The Great

Boston

Molasses

Flood

January 15th

1919

January 15th

1919

A molasses tank owned

by the Purity Distilling

Company

(50 feet tall and 90 feet in

diameter)

Explodes!!!

Causes?

1. Shoddy Planning and

Construction• In 1915 construction of the tank, which held more

than 2 million gallons of molasses when full, was rushed due to deliveries which were scheduled to be made to the tank even before the tank was constructed.

• Due to financial considerations and time constraints the project leader Arthur Jell failed to appropriately test the tank after construction.

• Prior to the tanks collapse it was noted that pieces of steel fell from the tanks and molasses seeped out from the tank.

• Requests to fix the tanks went unanswered, once again due to financial concern.

2. Failure to Establish

Mitigation Practices• Aside from the construction issues no

consideration was given to the natural fermentation process of molasses.

3. Failure to Account for

Extreme Weather Changes

First week of January 1919: 0 degrees

Fahrenheit

Week of January 15th: 40 degrees

Fahrenheit

Recap of

Issues

on

January 15th

19191-Cracks in the tank.

Recap of

Issues

on

January 15th

19192. Expanding gasses within the tank

Recap of

Issues

on

January 15th

19193. Sudden change in temperature

The Result

The Aftermath• An 8 to 15 foot wall of molasses which washed

through the North End of Boston.

• 2.3 gallons of molasses flooded the North End at 35 miles per hour

• 21 deceased

• Over 150 injured

The North End

Event AnalysisThe tank was built in a very crowded neighborhood in the North End community of Boston.

Poverty, Politics, and

Racism• The immigrant community of the North End

was 80% Italian.

• Only 25% of this Italian immigrant population had become naturalized citizens.

• The Italian population had come under scrutiny during World War I after Italian Anarchist in America perpetrated terrorist activities such as the bombing of the Salutation Police Station.

Poverty, Politics, and

Racism• The poverty level and the lack of political capital of

the Italian immigrants in the neighborhood lead to three key issues

– The construction of the tank in such a crowded neighborhood was not contested as most members of the neighborhood were not eligible to vote.

Poverty, Politics, and

Racism• The poverty level and the lack of political capital of

the Italian immigrants in the neighborhood lead to three key issues

– The poverty level of the neighborhood prevented the adequate maintenance of infrastructure- a common theme in tenement buildings.

Poverty, Politics, and

Racism• The poverty level and the lack of political capital of

the Italian immigrants in the neighborhood lead to three key issues

– The lack of political capital in the neighborhood and the mistrust of Italian American’s at the time lead to a breakdown in communications between community members and local authorities.

The Second String

was Playing

• World War I and an influenza epidemic took many of the valuable and trained workers from the Purity Distilling Company.