It was November 9, 1965 when the lights went out.

The Great Blackout of the Northeast occurred at 5:16 PM when a a small surge of power coming from Lewiston, New York’s Robert Moses generating plant, tripped a misset relay, disabling a main power line heading into Southern Ontario. Within seconds other lines were overloaded and relays tripped, generators shut down and the Northeast was plunged into darkness for the next twelve hours.

The blackout affected Ontario, Canada, and Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont, New York and New Jersey in the United States. Around 25 million people were left without electricity.

The blackout inspired the 1968 film Where Where You When the Lights Went Out? and figured in the plots of many a 60s sitcom, being featured in such shows as Bewitched and Green Acres. In the early 90s it was the subject of an episode of the time-traveling sci-fi show Quantum Leap.

So, where were you when the lights went out?