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Date: 8/11/2021
LONGMEADOW/ENFIELD – On Aug. 24, Author Peter Sorenson will do a reading from his new book, “Hazard Powder: The Powder Hollow Explosion of 1913” at the Richard Salter Storrs Library at 693 Longmeadow St. at 6:30 p.m. The book outlines the history of the Hazard Powder Company, one of the largest gun powder manufacturers in the country located on a small river in Enfield, CT.
During the early 1900s the company had a tragic explosion that killed its workers and destroyed most of the mill. The site was permanently closed, and the equipment moved to Valley Falls, NY. Sorenson also includes in-depth stories of the people involved, from business founders to the men and women who made their living working at the mill. “More than a book about a powder mill explosion, it recounts the lives and death of the men and women who defined themselves by the work they chose and the turbulent times in which they lived," Sorenson stated. "The real story is about the people, the places and the events that created the richness and the demise of the mill.”
Though Sorenson's day job is a training director at Pfizer, he explained that writing allows him to be creative, open-minded and free flowing. He has lived in Connecticut for his entire life, and moved to Enfield three years ago into a colonial home with his wife Lyn and dog Oscar.
Sorenson first learned about the story of the explosion when he left the Scantic River Park, after walking along its banks, and read a sign that a peddler bought 500 acres of land in 1835 and had constructed a gunpowder mill. "This story captured my imagination," Sorenson explained. "I asked myself, ‘Where did a peddler get enough money to buy 500 acres and why did he choose to construct a gunpowder mill?’ There had to be more to the story,” he said.
“I never considered writing specifically about gunpowder, but it was really the story and the question as to why this gun powder mill was built on this river in Enfield of all places, which seems to be remote and removed from an easy way to deliver product to market." He continued, "My intrigue was fueled by the backstory; answering the question ‘why’; and that question why just expanded into an interesting novel. It's important to know the history of your town and the region, how it was founded and how it was constructed. The underpinnings of the area itself. It helps you understand why the town is and the some of the past successes and challenges of the town."
In total, Sorenson said, it took two years of research and writing for the novel. A year and a half of onsite research at different locations, local and state libraries to accumulate the data necessary to reconstruct the story. Then another five to six months during COVID-19 of digital research.
With this book, Sorenson said he hopes to spark peoples' interest in understanding that towns and regions aren’t created in a vacuum; things aren't the way they are just because they are, but are due to historical events and a need to encourage a sense of interest for those to do their own research.
“The most rewarding part of writing this book is the completion of the story and a feeling that I’ve done this story justice,” said Sorenson. “That I’ve set the record straight on a number of different points and have done a good job of integrating all of the stories, each interesting enough on an individual basis and have interleaved them so they expose their value to a greater story.” He concluded, “I hope the site and the individuals involved can rest easy knowing that their story has been told and will be available for individuals to enjoy and reflect on for years to come.”
Hazard Powder: The Powder Hollow Explosion of 1913 is available on Amazon as kindle and paperback and at hazardpowder.com. Sorenson currently has several scheduled readings aside from the Longmeadow reading, however two are local: Southwick Library on Sept. 15 from 6 p.m.- 7:30 p.m., Enfield Public Library on Oct. 23 at 6:30 p.m.
The other two readings are further travel for Western Mass. Residents – one in Savannah, Georgia where Augustus Hazard lived and had a paint/supplies store, the other in Faversham and the Royal Gunpowder Factory in England where powder mill workers were encouraged to leave for work at Hazard Powder in Enfield.