Nantucket

Video shows truck slamming into historic Nantucket fountain, driving off

The fountain originally dates back to the nineteenth century, and is used these days as a landmark and planter

A truck seen slamming into a historic fountain on Nantucket's Main Street on Oct. 29, 2023.
Fisher Real Estate

A truck driver slammed into a historic fountain on Nantucket's Main Street late Sunday night — leaving the landmark in pieces and prompting a police investigation to find the person who drove off, according to the Nantucket Current.

Video captured by a webcam belonging to Fisher Real Estate captured the moment when a white Chevrolet Silverado drove straight into fountain, and then kept driving over the rubble.

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The Current reported that the crash happened at around 10:30 p.m. The fountain is at the corner with Union Street.

The truck was tracked down to a parking lot behind a laundry business on Vesper Lane, the Current reported, which also said that a person was apparently taken into custody there. The media outlet reported that a man was arrested at that scene and charged with drunk driving and negligent operation of a motor vehicle, citing police logs.

Michael K. Holdgate, 55, of Nantucket, faced a judge for an arraignment on Monday morning, according to the Current.

The monument is a former drinking fountain that was donated to Nantucket in 1885, and later repurposed and dedicated to a lieutenant killed in the Spanish-American War who lived on the island named Max Wagner, according to the Nantucket Historical Association. These days, it's filled with flowers and greens.

Someone else hit the fountain and knocked it over back in March of 2020, the Current reported. The fountain was repaired by a company in Rowley, Massachusetts, and returned to its spot the next year.

NBC10 Boston has contacted the Nantucket Police Department to learn more about Sunday night's crash.

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