On November 9, 1965, The Great Blackout of the Northeast plunged much of the United States into darkness. The blackout began at a power plant on the Niagara River and cascaded across the northeastern United States and parts of Canada. Over 30 million people were affected, as cities like New York, Boston, and Toronto were left without power for up to 13 hours. Despite the widespread disruption, the blackout was met with remarkable calm, prompting necessary improvements in power grid infrastructure.

Fun Facts:

• The blackout began at 5:16 p.m. when a small problem at a power plant on the Niagara River in Ontario caused a domino effect across the electrical grid. The failure was due to a faulty relay setting that overloaded the system and caused power plants to trip off.
• Within minutes, the blackout spread to seven U.S. states, including New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and parts of Ontario, Canada. Over 30 million people were left without power, affecting major cities like New York City, where 800,000 people were trapped in subway cars.
• Connecticut, Canada, New Jersey, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts were among the affected areas.
• The blackout lasted anywhere from a few hours to 13 hours, depending on the area. New York City remained dark for over 10 hours, while other places like Toronto and Boston saw power restored sooner.