The first recorded dam failure in the United States occurred on May 16, 1874, in Williamsburg, Massachusetts. A landslide shattered a 43-foot dam on the Mill Creek, a tributary of the Connecticut River, resulting in the death of 144 people and $1 million in damage. Surely this is a small number compared to what could have been without the heroic actions of Mr Cheney.
Known as the Revere of Williamsburg, MA, Mr Cheney, age 35, was the gatekeeper for the Williamsburg dam that provided power for several factories in the towns downstream. On the morning of May 16, 1874, the family heard strange noises and knew something terrible was happening. Mr Cheney ran from the house to the dam and found it had started to crack, to relieve pressure he opened the flood gates.
Knowing that the rushing water would wipe out several towns below the dam he bridled his horse and with no time for a saddle raced to the first town some 4 miles below the dam to warn of the impending doom. He reached the town only ten minutes ahead of the water but it was enough to spread the warning. His horse spent, he had no time for a fresh mount or to make the villages of Skinnerville, Haydenville and Leeds, but a local milk peddler, Colins Graves, hopped into his wagon and took up the cry, thereby saving many persons who otherwise might have been swept away by the raging water.
George Cheney was also a veteran of the Civil War, having served the duration with Co E 60th NY VI.
∼Inscription:
Civil War
George Cheney
Co. E. 66th N.Y. V.1.
Died Oct.8 1918
AE. 74
Known as the Revere of Williamsburg, MA, Mr Cheney, age 35, was the gatekeeper for the Williamsburg dam that provided power for several factories in the towns downstream. On the morning of May 16, 1874, the family heard strange noises and knew something terrible was happening. Mr Cheney ran from the house to the dam and found it had started to crack, to relieve pressure he opened the flood gates.
Knowing that the rushing water would wipe out several towns below the dam he bridled his horse and with no time for a saddle raced to the first town some 4 miles below the dam to warn of the impending doom. He reached the town only ten minutes ahead of the water but it was enough to spread the warning. His horse spent, he had no time for a fresh mount or to make the villages of Skinnerville, Haydenville and Leeds, but a local milk peddler, Colins Graves, hopped into his wagon and took up the cry, thereby saving many persons who otherwise might have been swept away by the raging water.
George Cheney was also a veteran of the Civil War, having served the duration with Co E 60th NY VI.
∼Inscription:
Civil War
George Cheney
Co. E. 66th N.Y. V.1.
Died Oct.8 1918
AE. 74
The first recorded dam failure in the United States occurred on May 16, 1874, in Williamsburg, Massachusetts. A landslide shattered a 43-foot dam on the Mill Creek, a tributary of the Connecticut River, resulting in the death of 144 people and $1 million in damage. Surely this is a small number compared to what could have been without the heroic actions of Mr Cheney.
Known as the Revere of Williamsburg, MA, Mr Cheney, age 35, was the gatekeeper for the Williamsburg dam that provided power for several factories in the towns downstream. On the morning of May 16, 1874, the family heard strange noises and knew something terrible was happening. Mr Cheney ran from the house to the dam and found it had started to crack, to relieve pressure he opened the flood gates.
Knowing that the rushing water would wipe out several towns below the dam he bridled his horse and with no time for a saddle raced to the first town some 4 miles below the dam to warn of the impending doom. He reached the town only ten minutes ahead of the water but it was enough to spread the warning. His horse spent, he had no time for a fresh mount or to make the villages of Skinnerville, Haydenville and Leeds, but a local milk peddler, Colins Graves, hopped into his wagon and took up the cry, thereby saving many persons who otherwise might have been swept away by the raging water.
George Cheney was also a veteran of the Civil War, having served the duration with Co E 60th NY VI.
∼Inscription:
Civil War
George Cheney
Co. E. 66th N.Y. V.1.
Died Oct.8 1918
AE. 74
Known as the Revere of Williamsburg, MA, Mr Cheney, age 35, was the gatekeeper for the Williamsburg dam that provided power for several factories in the towns downstream. On the morning of May 16, 1874, the family heard strange noises and knew something terrible was happening. Mr Cheney ran from the house to the dam and found it had started to crack, to relieve pressure he opened the flood gates.
Knowing that the rushing water would wipe out several towns below the dam he bridled his horse and with no time for a saddle raced to the first town some 4 miles below the dam to warn of the impending doom. He reached the town only ten minutes ahead of the water but it was enough to spread the warning. His horse spent, he had no time for a fresh mount or to make the villages of Skinnerville, Haydenville and Leeds, but a local milk peddler, Colins Graves, hopped into his wagon and took up the cry, thereby saving many persons who otherwise might have been swept away by the raging water.
George Cheney was also a veteran of the Civil War, having served the duration with Co E 60th NY VI.
∼Inscription:
Civil War
George Cheney
Co. E. 66th N.Y. V.1.
Died Oct.8 1918
AE. 74
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