(c) Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, Deerfield MA. All rights reserved.
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On May 16, 1874, in the hills of western Massachusetts, the Williamsburg reservoir dam broke, devastating a narrow valley lined with factories and farms and leaving 139 dead. At the time, it was the most deadly dam failure on record in the United States. Franklin H. Williams, of Sunderland, Massachusetts, recorded the event as well as his contribution of $5.00 to aid the victims in his diary.

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Page from the"Franklin H. Williams Diary from 1852 to 1891"

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