Search Results


Great Molasses Flood

January 15, 1919
January 15, 1919

Great Molasses Flood

On this day in 1919, people in Boston's North End were startled by a loud rumbling noise. They watched in horror as a five-story tank broke apart, unleashing a wave of molasses 15 feet high...

First Legal Sea Foods Lost to Fire

January 16, 1980
January 16, 1980

First Legal Sea Foods Lost to Fire

On this day in 1980, fire destroyed the original Legal Sea Foods fish market and restaurant in Cambridge. The restaurant re-opened, but the business soon outgrew the neighborhood. Today there are 30 family-owned Legal Sea...

Blizzard Paralyzes Massachusetts

February 7, 1978
February 7, 1978

Blizzard Paralyzes Massachusetts

On this day in 1978, the storm of the century paralyzed the entire state of Massachusetts. The Blizzard of '78 dropped between two and four feet of snow on the Bay State over the course...

Bostonians Respond to Irish Famine

February 18, 1847
February 18, 1847

Bostonians Respond to Irish Famine

On this day in 1847, Boston's leading citizens held a meeting at Fanueil Hall in response to news of the famine devastating Ireland. With the failure of the potato crop several years in a row,...

Blizzard Shuts Down Massachusetts

March 11, 1888
March 11, 1888

Blizzard Shuts Down Massachusetts

On this day in 1888, ordinary life in Massachusetts came to a standstill. One of the most destructive blizzards ever to strike the East Coast raged for 36 hours. Called "the White Hurricane," the storm...

Boston Burns

March 20, 1760
March 20, 1760

Boston Burns

On this day in 1760, the dreaded cry of "Fire!" roused sleeping Bostonians. Over the next ten hours, the worst fire to strike a colonial American city ravaged the capital of Massachusetts. Beginning in a...

Flood Devastates Springfield

March 21, 1936
March 21, 1936

Flood Devastates Springfield

On this day in 1936, the worst flood in the state's recorded history inundated the city of Springfield. An unusually cold and snowy winter, followed by a spell of warm and rainy weather, turned the...

Legislature Designates Day of Remembrance for Armenian Genocide

April 24, 1990
April 24, 1990

Legislature Designates Day of Remembrance for Armenian Genocide

On this day in 1990, the 75th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, the Massachusetts legislature officially designated the date as a Day of Remembrance for the million and a half Armenians killed in the first...

Dam Breaks, Causing Catastrophic Flood

May 16, 1874
May 16, 1874

Dam Breaks, Causing Catastrophic Flood

On this day in 1874, on the Mill River in western Massachusetts, an earthenwork dam gave way. A wall of water between 20- and 40-feet high and 300-feet wide rushed downstream. The flood destroyed almost...

Fire Rages at Myles Standish State Forest

May 25, 1964
May 25, 1964

Fire Rages at Myles Standish State Forest

On this day in 1964, a raging wildfire crossed the boundaries of Myles Standish State Forest, and into the town of Plymouth. Two days earlier flames had consumed 800 acres of the forest, but firefighters...

Mass Moments is a project of Mass Humanities, whose mission is to support programs that use history, literature, philosophy, and the other humanities disciplines to enhance and improve civic life throughout the Commonwealth.

Please consider helping us towards our goals with a donation today.

Interested in sponsoring Mass Moments?

Please calculate 2 plus 6.