On this day in 1927, 10 days of extremely heavy rain in New England lead to flooding; the floods went on to kill 200 people and cause millions of dollars in damages. Vermont’s Green Mountain region was particularly hard hit by the storm.
Weeks earlier, a tropical storm had hit the Caribbean. As this storm moved north, it collided with a cold front from Canada. It then stalled over the Hudson River Valley of New York, bringing overwhelming rain to northern New York, Vermont and western Massachusetts.
The Winooski River in Vermont was most affected by the rain—major flooding occurred all along the river’s path. Thousands of people had to flee their homes as the waters rose. Many small towns were uninhabitable for weeks after the flooding began. In total, it was estimated that $28 million in damages were incurred.
The New England flood of 1927 was not the first major flood in the country that year. From April to August, the Mississippi River experienced some of its worst floods in recorded history.
