Dark Tide: The Great Boston Molasses Flood of 1919

This is an easy read novel. It gives detail about the early 1900’s in the North End Waterfront. The poor living conditions, tough working conditions and overall poverty. The author gives insight into a few of the families living there, including how the Irish felt about the Italians moving in.

Syrupy, sweet, sticky molasses have long been a favorite treat in America. Actually they were more than a treat because for many years molasses were America's primary sweetener. They also were the base ingredient for rum, America's primary beverage in colonial times. It was in fact a tax on molasses that first aroused colonial ire against Parliament. Molasses were also irrevocably associated with Boston because of the famous triangle trade of molasses, rum and slaves. It was no accident then that United States Industrial Alcohol had a distillery near Boston and therefore decided to build a huge molasses storage tank near Boston harbor. Stephen Puleo has done a masterful job in this book of telling the story of this storage tank; it's construction, use, disintegration and the aftermath. This is a story not just of a disaster but of the social tensions of that era and the callous disregard for human life displayed by big industry in search of war profits. Puelo however, has also managed to make this the story of the victims of this tragedy. The story is riveting in itself but the author's ability to give a human face to the disaster makes this book not only an interesting read but a touching one as well. United States Industrial Alcohol (USIA) used molasses to make it's product and that industrial alcohol was in turn used by companies like DuPont to make smokeless gunpowder and high explosives for artillery shells. World War I had greatly increased the demand for industrial alcohol and as USIA increased it's production they decided that they needed this molasses storage tank. As Puleo tells his readers about the construction of the tank he begins to introduce his audience to some of the people who lived and worked near by. The reader will see the tank placed in a very congested area and the author will explain why it ended up there. He will also show how construction was rushed, poorly tested and never inspected. Basically it was a disaster waiting to happen. When the inevitable did happen and the tank collapsed 2.3 million gallons of molasses surged out in a wave 35 feet high. It is hard to imagine the horror of drowning in molasses but that is exactly what happened to some people while others were crushed in obliterated buildings. Puleo gives us not only the stories of surviving family members as they searched for their loved ones buy also many amazing stories of survival as described by those who were badly injured but survived. The anguish, fear and desperation felt by these people as they struggled to survive is related here with as much feeling and drama as will be found in any novel. The court case that followed is also told in a wonderfully readable way, which is not an easy task when dealing with often-tedious legal arguments. The case against USIA ended up setting a precedent that from then on would force large companies to take responsibility for their actions and for this reason alone this is an important event in American hist

This book was easy to read and very, very compelling. Until I picked this book up, I'd never heard of the Great Boston Molasses Flood, which is odd, because it's one of the most eerie and fascinating disasters to occur in the 20th Century. Even though you know what's going to happen with the molasses tank, the suspense is dreadful and nightmarish. The author did a wonderful job in bringing all of the strange events and principal characters to vivid life and treating the tragedy with pathos and respect. A nail-biter! Would make a great movie!

This book is a must-read for those who love the socio-political machinations of our country in its early industrialized days.Stephen Puleo's non-fiction effort is truly a masterful history lesson wrapped up in a powerful story about greed, arrogance, fear, and just plain stpidity. Puleo weaves a tale around the construction and collapse of a 2.2 million-gallon molasses storage tank resulting in the Great Boston Molasses Flood of 1919.Dark Tide is a detailed look back at the time of WWI, what life was like in Boston, and the part played by both immigrants and anarchists alike.The early 20th Century comes alive as Puleio describes the U.S participation in the war effort, the part played by industrial alcohol, and the need to build a huge storage tank right under the noses of the unsuspecting and unempowered people living in Boston's North End.Not only do we learn the history of this period, but we personally experience the harrowing moments leading up to and during the actual molasses flood. People like Arthur P. Jell, Isaac Gonzales, and families like the Cloughertys, Iantoscas and Distasios come alive and virtually leap off the pages of this sad and sordid tale, with some Sacco and Vanzetti thrown in to the mix.The last part of the book describes the extremely lenghty court case overseen by the Honorable Judge Hugh Ogden. Ten years after the tank's construction, the legal wrangling was settled but the molasses forever stained the streets, wharves, neighborhoods and history of one of the most storied places in our nation.Don't miss Dark Tide!!

As a Massachusetts native, I was naturally drawn to this book, having heard vague references over the years to "spilled" molasses in Boston, but not many factual details about this bizarre disaster. But Dark Tide is a story - and I emphasize the word story - that offers so much more. If you're looking for a dry history lesson, look elsewhere. Like any great story, it brings its characters to life. I challenge you to read Dark Tide and not feel compelled to find out what happens to Guiseppe Iantosca's young son and daughter, who liked to play around the doomed molasses tank, or Martin Clougherty, who lived in the shadow of the tank but was on the verge of moving his family to a better life in the suburbs, or firefighter George Layhe, who thought January 15 would be just another day on the job. Of course, Dark Tide has its less-than-lovable characters too, and you'll be drawn to all the ordinary people whose lives were profoundly changed on a balmy January day in 1919. For a story that takes place more than 84 years ago, it offers themes that could be "ripped from today's headlines" - corporate irresponsibility, regulations to ensure public safety, heroic firefighters, and the threat of terrorism. And the courtroom drama in Part Three will leave you hungry for more information on these fascinating characters, in particular, the cross examination of Dark Tide's "bad guys." Read Dark Tide - not because you're a Massachusetts native or a history buff, but because you like a great story.