In August of 1955, Connecticut was hit by one of the worst natural disasters in the state’s modern history. Over the course of one week, two hurricanes – Hurricane Connie and Hurricane Diane – collectively dropped more than two feet of water and raised the Farmington River by over eighteen inches. These two storms, and the subsequent Flood of 1955 that resulted, ended up causing over 680 million dollars worth of damage across the Eastern Seaboard, with 350 million dollars of that being dealt to Connecticut alone. In response to these damages, Governor Ribicoff declared a state of emergency, requested federal assistance from President Eisenhower, and activated the state’s National Guard. By the end of the Flood of 1955, 87 Connecticut residents had perished, 668 dwellings were destroyed, and over 200 dams suffered partial or total failure. Avon, located adjacent to the Farmington River, was not able to escape the impact of the hurricane, suffering extreme damage to its public infrastructure, farms, and houses. For this episode, we are joined by Janet Carville of The Pickin' Patch Farm who, being a lifelong resident of Avon, was able to experience the Flood of 1955 first-hand. Avon Talks is available on: Spotify Apple Podcasts YouTube Music Podcast Index Amazon Music Avon Talks is a monthly podcast about Avon, CT's history, landmarks, and current events from the Avon Historical Society and Town of Avon. It is hosted by Ethan Guo, an Avon Resident and current undergraduate student at Tufts University. Find more Avon Talks info on https://avontalks.buzzsprout.com Have any questions, concerns, or comments? Reach out to:
[email protected] Want to learn more about the Avon Historical Society? Visit www.avonhistoricalsociety.org
