of U.S. flags complements the plaque, which stands east of the visitors' center. The inscription on the plaque reads: Explosion at Liberty! On July 30, 1916 the Black Tom munitions depot exploded rocking New York Harbor and sending residents tumbling from their beds. The noise of the explosion was heard as far away as Maryland and Connecticut. On Ellis Island, terrified immigrants were evacuated by ferry to the Battery. Shrapnel pierced the Statue of Liberty (the arm of the Statue was closed to visitors after this). Property damage was estimated at $20 million. It is not known how many died. Why the explosion? Was it an accident or planned? According to historians, the Germans sabotaged the Lehigh Valley munitions depot in order to stop deliveries being made to the British who had blockaded the Germans in Europe. You are walking on a site which saw one of the worse [sic] acts of terrorism in American history. A stained-glass window at Our Lady of Czestochowa Catholic church memorialized the victims of the attack. See also List of German sponsored acts of terrorism during WWI Anton Dilger Largest artificial non-nuclear explosions List of accidents and incidents involving transport or storage of ammunition Kingsland explosion SS El Estero, fire and averted explosion near same location in World War II United States in World War I Zimmermann Telegram Halifax explosion References Bibliography Ron Semple (2015). Black Tom: Terror on the Hudson. Top Hat Books, p. 514. External links Black Tom Explosion (1916), Liberty State Park Sabotage in New York Harbor, Smithsonian.com The Black Tom Explosion, History.com GenDisasters Black Tom 1916 1916 crimes in the United States 1916 in New Jersey Acts of sabotage Crimes in New Jersey Disasters in New York City Explosions in 1916 Explosions in New Jersey Hindu–German Conspiracy History of Jersey City, New Jersey July 1916 events Mass murder in 1916 People killed in intelligence operations Port of New York and New Jersey State-sponsored terrorism Terrorist incidents in the United States in the 1910s United States home front during World War I