How Germans almost blew up the Statue of Liberty

On June 30, 1916, around 2 a.m., several explosions rocked New York City. Windows were shattered in a radius of 40 kilometers. The tremors were felt as far away as Philadelphia, almost 80 miles away, and reached 5.5 on the Richter scale. And the aftermath of the explosion even extends to this day.

The event went down in history as the “Black Tom Explosion” because the cause was a fire at a camp on Black Tom Island. Weapons and ammunition were stored there. Although the US was not an active belligerent in World War I at that time, it did supply the United Kingdom, France and Russia with weapons and ammunition.

What was behind the disaster?

Investigators initially assumed it was an accident. But the explosiveness of the goods lost in the fire made people quickly suspect an attack. The tracks always led back to Germany. Despite the unclear evidence, a commission declared in 1939 that Germany was responsible for the attack.

The FBI suspects that then embassy employee Franz von Rintelen was the mastermind behind the operation. It is said that he recruited three men to prevent weapons from being supplied to England.

According to US domestic intelligence, German Lothar Witzke then committed the crime together with US naturalized Kurt Jahnke and Austrian immigrant Michael Kristoff.

The explosions caused enormous damage. Among other things, almost all the windows of the famous Times Square were broken. But the Statue of Liberty also suffered damage. These were so heavy that today they still restrict visitors to the statue.

Liberty Island, the island where the Statue of Liberty stands, is directly across from Black Tom Island, which is actually a peninsula on the New Jersey coast. Therefore, New York’s most famous landmark was not spared from the explosion. The statue’s torch was particularly affected. Flying debris damaged the flame and viewing platform.

That is why, after the renovation, it was decided to no longer allow guests on the torch viewing platform. Although the torch was completely replaced in 1984, this arrangement still exists. Visitors are denied the unique view from the torch. But another arrangement that still exists today dates back to June 30, 1916.

As a result of the explosion, many people wanted to use their insurance to get reimbursed for costs such as repairing broken windows. But the insurers refused. They describe the event as an act of war. This was not covered by insurance.

The dispute could only be resolved before the US Supreme Court. He confirmed that the attacks were an act of war and that they were not covered by insurance. As a result, insurers offered war risk insurance. These are still sold in the US.

The “Black Tom Explosions” continue to impact life in the United States to this day. And even as a tourist in New York City, you can still feel the effects of the attack, which now dates back more than 100 years.

A total of 1,000 tons of ammunition, including 45,000 kilograms of TNT, were blown up that day. Seven people were killed. Total damage was estimated at $20 million. Today that corresponds to a value between $365 and $440 million. Between 1953 and 1979, Germany paid a compensation payment of $50 million.

(t-online/dsc)