The construction of the Quabbin reservoir was necessary despite being morally wrong. The Quabbin was vital for the expansion of Boston and to keep the city supplied with clean water. The people of the Quabbin (formally known as the swift river valley) had their history and memories stolen.
The year was 1930, The reservoirs that supplied water to Boston were becoming overused and the population of the city was continuing to grow. (The Making of Quabbin’s reservoir) The legislature of Massachusetts decided that they would need to figure out a way to keep the ever growing city supplied with water. A plan was proposed to construct a man-made reservoir. A solution was proposed and named the “swift river conservation act” this would mean the swift river will be dammed off and the swift river valley located in western Massachusetts will be deconstructed and cleared.(Quabbin and Ware) As a result of this, the Quabbin was constructed in 1936 and finally filled in 1939 to serve as a drinking water supply to the city of Boston Massachusetts. (Quabbin and Ware)The Quabbin reservoir became the biggest lake in Massachusetts and at this point in time the biggest man-made reservoir in the world. The Quabbin holds an astonishing 412 billion gallons of water. (Quabbin and Ware)With which it supplies the city of Boston and the towns of Cambridge, Watertown, Brookline, and a number of others with fresh water. The Towns (That Were Lost So Boston Could Have Clean Water) The water is moved the over 100 miles from western Massachusetts through the Wachusett reservoir and into Boston via the massive underground tunnel called the Quabbin aqueduct system.(The Making of Quabbin reservoir)
The Swift valley from which the Quabbin originated from was at the time was home to 4 individual towns. Dana, Enfield, Prescott, and Greenwich. (Under Quabbin) The towns were all reconstructed and the residents of each were forced to relocate. The government took their homes and land through the 8 amendment of the constitution. In this text, the constitution states that ”nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.”(Fifth Amendment) This effectively saying that the government reserves the right to express eminent domain onto its citizens as long as they are paid to leave. The people of the 4 towns were given the market value to which was determined by the government and asked to leave their homes.
The decision by Beacon Hill to condemn the swift valley was morally wrong. The people of the swift valley had been there for a real long time. The town of Enfield was founded in 1819 and was over 111 years old when it was disbanded by the government. (Enfield) This was enough for 3 generations to grow up and live in an area. All the memories of the town of Enfield were destroyed and washed away from these people.
The people of the Quabbin weren’t adequately compensated for their homes and property. The government only looked at what the property around the house was worth. This means that an individual who owned a golf course was paid significantly more for their property than a person with the same amount of property that was used for farmland. This didn’t hold true for people who owned places of business. (Quabbin Reservoir Documentary) Asses of the property such as gas pumps, warehouses, lumber cutting machines, or store space were not considered into the purchase of the property.
The sacred grounds were violated and the dead were disturbed. All 34 cemeteries in the valley were required to be moved. (Quabbin Reservoir) The people of the Quabbin had to watch as their loved ones were unearthed and moved to a new place. This must have been horrible to watch and brought back memories that most people would want to forget, this violates all kinds of thinking. As a human being we bury our dead, once a person is put to rest they should remain that way forever.
The construction of the Quabbin also had a huge impact on the environment. In order for the valley to be filled with water, it must be clean cut and all its timber removed. The total amount of land cleared was around 24,000 acres.(Quabbin and Ware) This had a tremendous impact on the landscape at the time and the land was forever changed when it was flooded.
The construction of the Quabbin also came at the height of the great depression, I time when jobs were few and far in between in western Massachusetts. The construction of the quabbin wasn’t an opportunity for employment for the community it shattered. Most of the jobs were given to people from the city, most which were educated men new to manual labor and no experience in logging.(Quabbin Reservoir Documentary) The quabbin also closed the railroad that connected Athol, the Swift Valley, and Springfield. So even the people to took the train to Athol or Springfield to who would now have to give up their jobs for Boston to have its water. (Quabbin Reservoir Documentary)
The people of Boston should know where their water comes from and be thanks for the sacrifices the two thousand people made with their homes and their property to fill the valley they once called theirs so that Boston could have a drinking water supply. The Quabbin was necessary to the growth of Boston but was still morally wrong.
History: Quabbin and Ware – MWRA.” http://www.mwra.state.ma.us/04water/html/hist5.htm. Accessed 14 Mar. 2017.
“The Making of quabbin reservoir – Digital Scholarship @UNLV.” http://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1037&context=iste. Accessed 14 Mar. 2017.
“Fifth Amendment | Wex Legal Dictionary / Encyclopedia | LII / Legal ….” https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/fifth_amendment. Accessed 14 Mar. 2017.
The Towns That Were Lost So Boston Could Have Clean Water ….” 14 May. 2014, http://news.wgbh.org/post/towns-were-lost-so-boston-could-have-clean-water. Accessed 14 Mar. 2017.
Video: Under Quabbin | Watch WGBY Documentaries Online | WGBY ….” http://video.wgby.org/video/2365046325/. Accessed 14 Mar. 2017.
Enfield (Mass.) – Special Collections and University Archives – UMass ….” http://scua.library.umass.edu/ead/mums010. Accessed 14 Mar. 2017.
Quabbin Reservoir Documentary – YouTube.” 20 Oct. 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuerxmlFG8k. Accessed 14 Mar. 2017.
“Quabbin Reservoir – Mass.Gov.” http://www.mass.gov/eea/agencies/dcr/massparks/region-central/quabbin-reservoir.html. Accessed 14 Mar. 2017.
The Price of Water 
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