Last week's storm had a tremendous impact on our City, with many residents, myself included, enduring round the clock supervision of sump pumps and basement cleanouts. Ward One fared much better than the West Quincy neighborhood you've probably seen on the news. Representatives from Massachusetts Emergency Management (MEMA) will be attending a meeting TONIGHT at the Common Market at 6pm to discuss relief options available for residents. I will be picking up copies of any literature being distributed. If you're unable to attend, but would like information, please let me know.

 

At last week's City Council meeting, I introduced a resolution asking that the Public Works director provide an update relative to areas of Chronic Flooding in Ward One. I introduced a second resolution requesting the MWRA attend an upcoming City Council meeting to address the release of 15 Million gallons of untreated wastewater, of which an estimated 1.5 Million gallons was raw sewerage, into Quincy Bay via the outfall pipe at the Nut Island Treatment Plant. On Tuesday, I met with the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Water Resource Authority, Fred Laskey, State Representative Steve Tobin, and via phone, State Senator Mike Morrissey. While the decision was made to protect our homes and prevent sewerage from backing up into homes from Nut Island on Houghs Neck all the way to East Milton Square, the MWRA will provide us with updates as to the results of their required water quality testing and visual shoreline reports and next steps to remediate any negative environmental impact.

 

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SHIPBUILDING: The Southers who operated the tide mills in the 1840s also worked as shipbuilders. It is believed in fact that some of the timber in the Grist Mill still survives from the days when they built the brig SOUTHER in Souther Shipyard in 1840. In addition to this brig, the Southers built approximately twenty vessels, mostly schooners, sloops and brigs (some designed to haul granite and other types of cargo). The site was one of the scenes of the earliest shipbuilding in Quincy; it was also the last site where the Southers built wooden ships in Quincy.

 

GRANITE INDUSTRY: The Souther Tide Mill site is unique because it had an extremely rich industrial and commercial industry. The canal and canal lock near the mills were built in the 1820's to facilitate maritime transport of granite. Special types of vessels were built in Quincy to move the granite, which was the premier building material in America before concrete and steel were developed in the 20th century. Canals were the major means of cargo transport before railroads were developed. Quincy granite shipped out of the Souther Shipyard site, has been used in notable sites, e.g. Boston Custom House, Bunker Hill Monument, Minot's Light off Cohasset's shore and King's Chapel.

 

LUMBER INDUSTRY: The Souther Tide Mill site is also historically significant because it was used to import, market and produce millions of board feet of lumber, timber and lumber products between the 1840's and 1940's. The Southers, Larkins, Johnsons, and Quincy Lumber Company all contributed to lumber import, production and manufacture on this site. Up until 1941, three and four-masted gaff rigged schooners arrived at the Souther site with imported lumber from Down East Maine and the Canadian Maritime Provinces.