May 16th, 2025, is the 151st anniversary of the historic 1874 Mill River Flood. Interest in the events that led to the disaster and the aftermath of the flood remain high. That tragic flood marked a watershed in the life of Williamsburg, Skinnerville, Haydenville, and Leeds. Early that morning, the poorly constructed and neglected Williamsburg Reservoir Dam gave way—and a wall of water moved with lightning speed down the narrow Mill River riverbed all the way to Florence Meadows, killing 139 people, and wiping out homes and factories on its banks. Elizabeth Sharpe, in her riveting book, “In the Shadow of the Dam”, tells the stories of this disaster—the background, the calamity, the heartbreak, the heroes and the people, whose lives were changed forever.
Last year, in May of 2024, there was a month of 150th commemorative events that remembered the people and the towns that still bear the marks of this calamity. From a memorial cascade of bells, to two powerful commemorative events in Williamsburg and Leeds with original music and historical readings, to talks and presentations by local historians, to an interactive story map with historical markers, to hikes to the site of the dam, to visits to the local cemeteries where the victims are buried, to exhibitions of works by local artists and school children, the anniversary was packed with events that brought the community together. Many events were recorded and documented. Connect to the resources on the Historic Northampton website.
Want to know more about the 1874 flood now? The Meekins Library is the place to go. The library has multiple copies of the book “In the Shadow of the Dam” ready to borrow. In addition to the regular book, you will find the 2006 Burgy Reads audio recording of the book by community members: Elizabeth M. Sharpe (Prologue and Epilogue); Ralmon Black (Chapter 1 – The Mill Valley); Pam Acheson (Chapter 2 – Building the Williamsburg Dam; Chapter 7 – The Verdict); James Parsons (Chapter 3 – The Flood); Eric W. Weber (Chapter 4 – The Aftermath); Jim Locke (Chapter 5 – Rebuilding); Mary Bisbee (Chapter 6 – The Inquest); Lisa Wenner (Chapter 8 – The Change).
And there is more. Edward Jacob’s 1999 volume “One Morning in May: The Mill River Disaster of 1874” is available for readers of all ages. Elizabeth Sharpe’s April 2006 talk “On the Eve of Destruction” is available on DVD, as is the May 1993 WCVB Boston television program “Chronicle: Mill River Disaster”.
Artist Fran Kidder’s book, “The Mill River Flood”, full of illustrations of her powerful paintings and artist Nancy Meagher’s illustrated book (and video) about the flood, created especially for children, “Millicent and the Day it Rained Buttons: A Mill River Fish Tale”, are both here at Meekins.
Take a look at additional digital and online materials. You will find Eric Weber’s 2024 flood anniversary talk, “The 1874 Mill River Flood” available on the Library’s dedicated local history computer. Online you can see the original 1874 dam failure engineering report. The local history computer has the Williamsburg Flood Chorus May 2006 performance, with an introductory talk, “The Legacy of the Flood” by Elizabeth Sharpe. The 2016 Hilltown Charter School’s play “The Mill River Flood”—together with many resources can be found on the Meekins website.
On a sunny day walk the 1.5-mile Williamsburg Woodland Trails Historic Dam Trail in the woods north of Williamsburg. You can also follow the path of the flood with the self-guided Historic Mill River Tour, created by the Mill River Greenway Initiative and Smith College. Just want to browse the flood route from the comfort of a soft chair at Meekins, come see the compilation volume of the historic markers in the library.
For those who want to own the book or a poster of the path of the flood, Meekins has copies of “In the Shadow of the Dam” and a facsimile of the 1874 “Harper’s Weekly” illustration available for sale. Visit the Meekins Local History area in person or virtually, as you explore more about the 1874 flood. Daria D’Arienzo, Meekins Archivist. #throwbackthursday; #tbt.
Posted to Facebook 5/1/2025
