
The Blizzard of ’78 resulted in significant snowfall throughout New England. (photo/Courtesy)
SHREWSBURY – The Blizzard of ’78 was a hot topic on Jan. 22, as a crowd gathered at the Shrewsbury Historical Society to relive the infamous blizzard and hear from New York Times bestselling author Michael Tougias.
Tougias has written two books on the blizzard, “The Blizzard of ’78” and “Ten Hours Until Dawn,” which chronicles a daring ocean rescue during the peak of the storm. After a presentation that “brought the blizzard back to life,” Tougias signed books for the audience.
On Feb. 6 and 7, 1978, New England was hit with a historic nor’easter. Over 70 people died, schools were shut down for weeks, and the storm caused over $1 billion in damages.
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“It was the only winter I ever missed in New England. I missed that storm, and when I heard about it, I thought that people were exaggerating,” Tougias told the Community Advocate. “What I heard was that the people who made it home — it was a wonderful experience. Neighbors pitched in, everybody helped each other. If you didn’t make it home, it was a nightmare. Sleeping in a movie theatre for four nights.”
Many of the attendees also had strong memories about the blizzard.

The Blizzard of ’78 led to intense waves along the coast.(photo/Courtesy)
Shrewsbury Historical Society President Erik Larson was attending Worcester State College during the storm. He remembered that school was canceled for a whole week.
“We couldn’t get out there to plow cars out, because we needed machinery to haul snow and get it off the roads. People couldn’t move around. Interstate 290 was a parking lot — cars just abandoned,” said Larson.
The talk was part of the Shrewsbury Historical Society’s ongoing presentation series. There will be a discussion on travel and transportation in early-19th-century New England on Feb. 26, Belva Lockwood on March 26, and SAC Park’s 100th anniversary on April 23.
“There’s a wide range of interests in history throughout the community, so you try to offer a wide variety of programming so it meets everyone’s needs within the community and they can all be involved. We have performers, we have authors, we have original research about the town of Shrewsbury,” said Shrewsbury Historical Society Vice President Kris Gustafson.
For more information on the Shrewsbury Historical Society, visit https://www.shrewsburyhistoricalsociety.org/.

On Jan. 22, Michael Tougias spoke with the Shrewsbury Historical Society about the Blizzard of ‘78. (Photo/Evan Walsh)