Disaster and Friends

     Disasters really reveal your friends.  Sometimes disasters ARE your friends.  But, sometimes disasters are man made:  like the Boston molasses spill.  A wave of molasses 40 feet high roared through the streets of Boston killing 21 people and knocking over buildings.  Or, the Galveston hurricane- the deadliest natural disaster in U.S. history with 10,000 people killed.  But, the response of Galveston to that disaster was nothing less than spectacular.

Note:  Each disaster outlined is 100% true.  Google 'em.  I don't make this stuff up....

    Click on TRANSCRIPT, above, to read.  Or, just click play.  Thanks for being here!

Transcript

                                                     Disasters… and Friends

      I think that folk musicians, more than other musicians, tend to be focused on history. That was once how history was once passed down through generations: through stories and songs around the campfire. History and folk music go together. The story is how many folk musicians does it take to change a light bulb…. Six, of course. One folk musician to change the bulb and five more to stand around and reminisce how much better it was in the days of the old bulb.

     Now, folk artists, including myself, really appreciate a good disaster. We just can’t leave a good disaster alone. And, mankind accommodates us with a long line of disasters, from small disasters like the crash of Casey Jones….

     Did you know that Casey Jones was a real engineer? Born John Luther Jones in Kaycee (hence, the nickname), Kentucky. You can google it and learn about the crash on the Illinois Central Railroad, from the cause of the crash to the settlements paid out by the railroad. Google it. I don’t make this stuff up. I couldn’t.

     Now, a bigger disaster was the Boston Molasses Flood of 1919. Yes, a molasses flood. A company’s molasses tank exploded, sending over two million gallons of molasses down the Boston street. Now, I suspect a few of you have heard of it.

     According to the official historical plaque in Boston, it created a wave of molasses over 40 feet high that swept through Boston streets. While some folk dispute the size of the wave, it is known that buildings were knocked over, and 21 people were killed by this wave of molasses.

     Yes, the molasses massacre…. Molasses massacre…. Try saying THAT real fast 3 times…. I just call it the Boston Molass-acre, is a true piece of American history.

     But, that was a man-made disaster. Nature also provides disasters when people fall down on the job. And have you noticed lately that natural disasters keep getting worse? Fire, floods, storms, everything seems to be getting worse. Even mudslides are going downhill.

     And, hurricanes? Hurricanes seem to be getting worse. But, the Hurricane of Galveston, Texas, of 1900, an incredible hurricane, is still the single most deadly natural disaster in American history. Killed around 10,000 people, give or take a soul or three.

     Since Galveston was only 8 feet above sea level, and the storm surge was 18 feet, the hurricane knocked over most of the city. Over 3,500 homes were destroyed, countless buildings were destroyed, and over 10,000 people lost. Now, there is nothing amusing about that. But, Galveston’s response was nothing less than incredible.

     You see, Galveston had what was then considered the best port on the Gulf Coast. So, they decided to re-build their city. They could still be rich with Galveston. 

     So, they decided to protect the city by building an 18 foot sea wall, and (NOW GET THIS!), RAISING THE CITY about 18 FEET behind it. Yes, every remaining building, 500 city blocks, over 3,000 buildings, including the St. Patrick’s Cathedral, would be raised up 18 feet on stilts. Now, the idea was that after raising the entire city 18 feet, to pump in 18 feet of mud from the sea, wait a year for it to dry, and then lower the over 3,000 buildings back down. It took quite a while for it to dry because the sea mud, naturally, had sea life in it that STANK when drying.

     The amazing part of this is not that they thought it.  Not even that they accomplished it (which is fairly amazing....). The truly amazing part is that anyone actually followed the guy who suggested it. I mean, raise the entire city of 3,000 buildings 18 feet, pump in the thousands of tons of mud, wait a year for it to dry and air out….    Who would vote for an idea like that???

     I think I know what happened. I know because when I first learned of the town raising 500 blocks of 3,000 buildings, my jaw dropped, and I could not say a thing. I was speechless. And that does not happen very often.

     I figure when the guy in charge outlined his plan, all the jaws in the city just dropped, and every citizen was speechless. He asked if anyone objected, but everyone just stared, open mouthed and speechless. Going once, going twice, a few jaws moved but nothing came out. And so the city council decided to raise the entire city of 3,000 buildings 18 feet, pump in the thousands of tons of mud, wait a year for it to dry and air out, and lower the city back down.

     But, while Galveston was doing all this, Houston built a new harbor, and Galveston was not needed again for its port. After all, any port in a storm…. I’m guessing the guy that suggested this Galveston plan needed a friend after Houston built their port.  Poor guy, I can feel for him.