The blackout of the Northeast that struck in 2003 was hardly the first to strike the region. Electricity demand has been growing nonstop nearly since its inception, as more and more products become adapted to work on electricity. Cities switched to lighting via electricity rather than flammable liquids. The early manual machines like typewriters became electric ones, and added to them were televisions, radios, air conditioners and other products that made up a middle class lifestyle. The power generation and transmission system was built to provide just enough power to meet those needs; and if anything happened to tip the balance one way or another, an event like what happened in 1965 occurred.

On this day November 9th, 1965, a malfunction in one of the power generating stations in New York caused a cascade of failures that plunged the entire state and part of six others, along with and eastern Canada, into darkness.

An accidental surge of electricity on a line flowing into Ontario tripped a safety mechanism that cut off power flowing along it. That extra electricity moved to the surrounding lines, overloading them as well, and save for a few islands, New York was enveloped in darkness. With the event coming at the height of the cold war, some concluded the power failure was an attack. Others attributed the blackout to UFO activity. Most residents just remained civil, helping to direct traffic and rescue stranded elevator passengers, and sharing candles and flashlights with each other.