The Great Molasses Flood of 1919

1919年波士顿糖浆大洪水

American English Podcast

2026-03-04

26 分钟
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单集简介 ...

In this episode, we explore the Great Molasses Flood of 1919, one of the strangest and most tragic disasters in U.S. history. On a cold January afternoon in Boston’s North End, a massive steel tank holding 2.3 million gallons of molasses burst, sending a deadly wave of syrup through the streets. You’ll learn what molasses was being used for, why shipments kept arriving after World War I, and how Prohibition played a surprising role in the story. We’ll walk step by step through what caused the tank to fail, and how this disaster helped shape modern building inspections and safety codes. Along the way, I explain key vocabulary like seep, debris, dense, rivets, bootleg, and up to code — so you’ll build your English while learning about U.S. history and culture. ⭐ Get the full transcript, vocabulary list, quiz, and bonus lesson on the third conditional inside the Academy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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单集文稿 ...

  • It sounded like a machine gun.

  • Then a roar.

  • And then everything was brown.

  • Hi everybody!

  • My name is Shawna and this is the American English Podcast.

  • My goal here is to teach you the English spoken in the United States.

  • Through common expressions, pronunciation tips, and interesting cultural snippets or stories,

  • I hope to keep this fun, useful, and interesting.

  • Let's do it!

  • Hi everybody!

  • Welcome back!

  • Today's episode is about one of the strangest and possibly one of the most tragic disasters in US history.

  • It doesn't involve earthquakes, tornadoes, or hurricanes.

  • Those are what we call natural disasters.

  • No, it involves molasses.

  • Talk about an unnatural disaster.

  • If you're not familiar with molasses, It's a thick,

  • dark syrup that's produced during the process of refining sugar.

  • When you refine something, you purify it to make it usable.

  • So molasses is sticky, it's sweet and somewhat bitter,