Collect pond was the primary source of potable water for the settlers in lower manhattan and had been there for thousands of years, until 1785. A tannery was built next to it and caused massive amounts of contamination.
The Back Bay of the Charles River is reclaimed, mainly in order to eliminate the vile stench coming from the pollution of the mudflat. Gravel, sand, and garbage are used to fill in the land, and infrastructure including housing is built.
After the war of 1812 there was a large migration from the countryside to the city and many brought along their rural ways of life, including wild animals.
Commonly thought of as the most advanced highway project in the United States, the Big Dig replaced Boston's deteriorating six-lane elevated central highway (I-93). It did so with an underground highway and two new bridges over the Charles River. It also extended I-90 to Boston's Logan International Airport, and Route 1A. This project created more than 300 acres of open land while reconnecting downtown Boston to the waterfront, and helped clean up emissions due to more efficient traffic flow.
Thomas Dongan, the mayor of Manhattan at the time, signed the Dongan charter in 1686 allowing for additional building out onto the New York Harbour, influencing and increasing international trade.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the store’s disposal practices led to the spread of tetrachloroethene (PCE) “into the indoor air environments of nearby buildings and the groundwater, resulting in a significant threat to human health.” the EPA added the site to the Superfund program’s National Priorities List in 1999.
Great Neck’s Board of Trustees adopted the Great Neck Estates Commission for Conservation of the Environment. The commission was tasked with monitoring the preservation and development of natural lands through studies and surveys as well ensuring there was sufficient public information programs to educate the local community with regard to environmental problems.
The rise of automobiles led to less of a need for railroads and eventually the abandonment in 1928 of the Marlborough Street Railway Line. This led to the improvement of roads across the city and a rising of auto-related facilities such as gas stations and auto-shops throughout Marlborough. These roads still exist today.
The establishment of railroads in the 1850s allowed for Marlborough’s agricultural and shoe-industry products to reach new markets. With easier access to trade, Marlborough's growth during the 19th century was exponential.
After the Queen Anne’s War in 1713, farming in Marlboro began to reach new markets. The settlers grew out of subsistence methods and started using nature to their advantage for economic gains. The most prominent farming activity in Marlborough was focused on apple orchards. Cider and brandy became Marlborough’s largest exported goods throughout the 18th century and sparked the market revolution in Marlborough.
In 1675, the Marlborough meeting house was the subject of an attack from the Indians during the King Phillip War. Though no one was killed, the Indians destroyed much of the infrastructure of the town, as well as burned the crops and killed the livestock of the town inhabitants. The King Phillip War ended a year later in 1676 and although the town was able to recover, the attack on the Marlborough meeting house caused tensions to rise between the Colonists and the Indians from the surrounding areas.
In May of 1656, a group of men from Sudbury, led by John Howe, Edmund Rice, and John Ruddocke went to the Massachusetts General Court to petition for more land. They received a grant of 6 sq. miles of land southwest of Sudbury and named it Whipsufferadge, after the Indian Hill Whipsuffenicke. This land would later go on to be known as Marlborough. The environment of this area would forever be changed.
In 1944 a massive hurricane struck the island causing millions of dollars in damage and killing two individuals. Unsurprisingly, homes near the outwash and on the water were the hardest hit and some were even washed away. As the island rebuilt in the wake of these storms, its layout was altered to better equip it for future disasters. These precautions helped it to combat damage sustained during Hurricane Sandy in 2012.
Beginning in 1835, hundreds of Methodists traveled to Edgartown each summer to repent at “campground meetings;” living originally in nine improvised tents around a speaker’s platform, that was made of driftwood, the Methodists found the island’s surroundings to be uplifting. Held each year, the meetings rapidly gained popularity. The island’s first true tourists, many of the Methodists at first rented houses before becoming property owners. This contingency would go on to build 318 gingerbread house type homes in Oak Bluffs that together were called, “Cottage City.” To support these homes, many of which still exist to this day, shops and restaurants were built and slowly the Oak Bluffs of today was born.
Cleveland E. Dodge buys the factory site for Dodge Fibers, a Teflon/plastics producing company. After this point, the factory site would forevermore be used as a plastics company, which played a major role in the PFOA crisis.
Walter A. Wood Mowing and Reaping Machine Co. was bought. This company employed 2,000 people by 1890 and was developing approximately 90,000 machines. This was one of the most successful companies Hoosick Falls had seen and left a lasting impact on the town.
Jean Baptiste Point du Sable was the first non-native settler of Chicago. Du Sable set up a successful fur trading post which involved interaction between settlers and the indigenous Potawatomi tribe who hunted beaver. Du Sable built his home at the mouth of the Chicago river.
Prior to the canal's construction, nearly all of the city's sewage was pumped directly into the lake. This posed a problem once the water cribs were built because drinking water came from the lake through these water cribs. Fears of Typhoid and Cholera led the city to construct a massive drainage canal to divert sewage all the way to the Des Plaines River in order to preserve drinking water.
An act of incorporation, allowed the opening of the Cold Spring Harbor whaling company. This set up a thriving whaling industry in Cold Spring Harbor, that operated as the epicenter of the village's economy. This whaling period flourished in Cold Spring Harbor until 1862, when the last of the 9 whaling voyages that left from Cold Spring Harbor occurred.
In 1907, the John C. Walters' property was divided into 38 plots and 3 streets were laid out. These roads made transportation through the village easier, and the plots of lands had homes built on them and promoted migration to Cold Spring Harbor. This is the first subdivision of land in Cold Spring Harbor that is classified as suburbanization.
Due to high levels of mercury and other toxins in the waters, Northport Middle School was shut down. The Northport Power Station is suspect, however they claim that they have not found any evidence of toxins in the air. This is up for debate as to whether their claim can be given any weight, as they have in the past hidden their pollution of the environment from the public.