An explosion reverberated through lower Manhattan, the culmination of a destructive plot orchestrated by foreign terrorists. The U.S. government had missed the clues indicating this assault was possible, and as a result, America found herself involved in a protracted war overseas. No, this wasn’t September 11, it was July 30, 1916. Black Tom Island, a spit of land in New York Harbor, was essentially destroyed when German saboteurs blew it up on that fateful day.The blast was so powerful that the ground shook in Maryland, and windows from Jersey City to midtown Manhattan to Brooklyn were blown out. The attack was one of the major reasons the U.S. became involved in World War I and yet, few people have heard of the incident. Chad Millman, author of THE DETONATORS: The Secret Plot to Destroy America and an Epic Hunt for Justice, will describe the whole fascinating story. He is currently a senior editor at ESPN The Magazine.
