The Electric War by Mike Winchell
Author:Mike Winchell
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
The Blizzard of 1888 led to the mandate that all wires in New York City be buried
While most people slept through the worst of the storm—what would later be termed the “Great White Hurricane”—all forms of travel had shut down by sunrise, and the towering snow had trapped those who had been caught in the storm. These unlucky souls would either be rescued by good Samaritans with ladders or rope or fall victim to the elements, like the four hundred people on the East Coast who lost their lives as a result of the storm.
Yet another problem that had come with the storm was the impact of the rain and snow—and the severe winds—on the overhead wires. Places like Manhattan had lost communication with the outside world when telephone and telegraph wires sagged. Low temperatures combined with the overwhelming weight of the snow and the high winds and went on to break many lines altogether and scattered the remnants on the white surface not too far below. For the next few days, all modes of mass transportation were suspended, later resulting in the idea and discussion that perhaps there was a need for a manner of underground travel. Less than a decade later, subways found their way into major cities.
Major publications like the New York Times took the baton from the great storm and brought forth a tempest of reports and editorials attacking the manner in which high-voltage wires had been carelessly spread above almost every square inch of the city. “The city is liable to be put into darkness and the consequent perils,” concluded the Times, urging—like many other papers—that all high-voltage wires be buried. The Times and a plethora of other periodicals focused on the inconveniences of electric wires, but this wasn’t altogether unusual, since the electric wires and the nuisance that came with them had been a major topic of discussion since late in 1887, when the Edison Electric Company’s many red books had been sprinkled around by one Thomas Alva Edison. Free of charge, of course.
This new wave of negative press for AC systems didn’t help George Westinghouse’s cause. Unfortunately for Westinghouse, it was only the beginning.
* * *
April 15, 1888
East Broadway, New York, New York
Moses Streiffer skipped his way down East Broadway toward Catherine Street, fully enjoying the nice weather that had taken over from the tragic storm a month prior. The boy was a peddler, selling buttons and combs and other small trinkets from a nearby stand.
The fifteen-year-old Romanian immigrant noticed a dangling telegraph wire by his side. As the boy approached the broken wire hanging down from the cedar post high above, he grabbed it. The sun was going down and the arc lights were showering their artificial rays toward the street, mixing in with the faint rays of sunshine soon to retire for the night.
Witnesses later said Moses had immediately continued skipping around and around the pole with wire in hand, as if he was involved in an entertaining game. The game was cut short, as was the boy’s life, when a burst of sparks engulfed his body.
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