True Tales THE BOSTON MOLASSES FLOOD OF 1919 by Tony Sakalauskas The United States Alcohol Company owned the largest molasses storage tank in Boston. The steel structure was ninety feet in diameter, fifty-two feet in height and was filled to the top with 2.3 million gallons of molasses. Then, shortly before noon on January 15, the vat exploded with a tremendous roar. Chunks of metal flew ...