Editing Williamsburg, Massachusetts (section)

===The Mill River flood===
On the morning of May 16, 1874, a flood along Williamsburg's [[Mill River (Northampton, Massachusetts)|Mill River]] claimed 139 lives and left nearly 800 victims homeless throughout Hampshire County. The deluge occurred when the [[Williamsburg Reservoir Dam]] unexpectedly burst, sending a twenty-foot wall of water surging into the valley below. Every town and village along the river's normally placid flow was soon devastated by the great rush of water. Much of the flood's force was abated in [[Northampton, Massachusetts|Northampton]], at the Mill River's confluence with the [[Connecticut River]]. Located over twelve miles from the breached dam in Williamsburg, Northampton was the last town to experience the flood's fury, with four additional victims swept away in the swell.<ref>Elizabeth M. Sharpe, In the Shadow of the Dam, Free Press, New York, 2004, pages 238-239</ref>