Monadnock Moment No. 138

Era 6: Development of the Industrial United States -
           1870 to 1900

Living Through the Blizzard

New England school children are familiar with tales of the Blizzard of 1888. They have been told of the three feet of snow, 12 to 15 foot snowdrifts, and impassable roads. But how did the people who were alive at the time cope with this historic three-day storm?

Emily Mark of Gilsum recorded the story of the storm in her diary. On the second day of the storm she wrote that it snowed and blew fearfully and that the snow was piled up to the back eaves. The only team on the road carried the town clerk to the hall so he could post a notice that the annual meeting would not be held. As the storm came to an end, she recorded that no one could get to neighboring towns and that there had been no mail for three days. She also stated that this was the greatest storm ever known in this vicinity.

Clara Bowen of Richmond remembered that her father stepped onto the snow from the upstairs window of the house so that he could get to the barn to feed the animals. Five year old Mary Whitney lived in Hancock at the time. She remembered that the snow was piled over the windows of the house and her mother had to break through the drifts with a broom to get some air in the house.

George Seaver was one of three town supervisors of the checklist stranded in the Swanzey town hall over night. He was able to begin his three-mile journey home the next afternoon. Although Seaver nearly perished in the attempt, he finally arrived at home 6 ½ hours later.

These and many other stories of the Blizzard of '88 have been passed down from generation to generation, an experience our ancestors never forgot.