1856 Atlantic hurricane season

none Atl 1856 1856 Atlantic hurricane season summary map.png August 9, 1856 September 22, 1856 One 1 934 130 6 4 2 ≥400 total 1854, 1855, 1856, 1857, 1858 The 1856 Atlantic hurricane season was a deadly Atlantic hurricane season that featured six tropical cyclones. The first system, 1856 Last Island hurricane, was first observed in the Gulf of Mexico on August 9. The final storm, Hurricane Six, was last observed on September 22. These dates fall within the period with the most tropical cyclone activity in the Atlantic. The season also had an accumulated cyclone energy (ACE) rating of 48.96.Hurricane Research Division National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration May 2024 Atlantic basin Comparison of Original and Revised HURDAT March 1, 2025 http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/hurdat/comparison_table.htmlThere is an undercount bias of Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE) before the satellite era (prior to the mid–1960s), due to the difficulty of identifying storms. "note" Only two tropical cyclones during the season existed simultaneously. Five of them struck land, while one of the cyclones has only a single known point in its track due to a sparsity of data. Operationally, another tropical cyclone was believed to have existed in the Wilmington, North Carolina, area in September,Fernández-Partagás (1995), p. 40. but HURDAT – the official Atlantic hurricane database – excludes this system. Another tropical cyclone that existed over the Northeastern United States in mid-August was later added to HURDAT. Four tropical cyclones reached hurricane status, including two which became major hurricanes, Category 3 or higher on the modern-day Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale. However, in the absence of modern satellite and other remote-sensing technologies, only storms that affected populated land areas or encountered ships at sea are currently known, so the actual total could be higher. An undercount bias of zero to six tropical cyclones per year between 1851 and 1885 has been estimated.Hurricanes and Typhoons: Past, Present and Future The Atlantic hurricane database re-analysis project: Documentation for the 1851–1910 alterations and additions to the HURDAT database Christopher W. Landsea Richard J. Murname Kam-biu Liu 2004 https://www.google.com/books/edition/Hurricanes_and_Typhoons/4jC6ljADbsIC?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=1851%201886%20zero Columbia University Press New York 0-231-12388-4 195 March 1, 2025 The strongest cyclone of the season struck Louisiana at peak intensity, with sustained winds of 150 mph km/h on. This was the strongest hurricane, in terms of sustained winds, to strike the state until Laura and Ida tied it in 2020 and 2021 respectively. It also - the 1856 Last Island hurricane - brought devastation to southern Louisiana. At least than 400 people were killed after a storm surge submerged Last Island, making it one of the deadliest hurricanes in Louisiana history.http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/NWS-NHC-1995-47.pdf The Deadliest Atlantic Tropical Cyclones, 1492 – 1994 Edward N. Rappaport José Fernández-Partagás National Hurricane Center January 1995 United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Weather Service 7; 23 January 13, 2013 https://web.archive.org/web/20130301223758/http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/NWS-NHC-1995-47.pdf March 1, 2013 live NOAA Technical Memorandum NWS NHC-47 Hurricane Two brought heavy rains and squalls to Barbados and Grenada, causing "considerable" damage. Tropical Storms Three and Four had a minor impact on the Northeastern United States and Cuba, respectively. Additionally, Hurricane Five caused four deaths in Inagua, Bahamas and had a minor impact on Cuba and the United States. __TOC__ Timeline Systems Hurricane One Atl One 1856 path.png August 9 August 12 130 934 The Last Island Hurricane of 1856 1856 Last Island hurricane On August 9, a minimal hurricane was observed near the Dry Tortugas. The storm moved northwestward and strengthened, becoming a Category 2 hurricane about 12 hours later. The hurricane reached Category 3 strengthened late on August 9. It continued to deepen and became a Category 4 hurricane on the following day. At 1800 UTC on August 10, the hurricane attained its peak intensity with maximum sustained winds of 150 mph km/h on and a minimum barometric pressure of 934 mbar inHg on on. Simultaneously, the storm made landfall in Last Island, Louisiana. It rapidly weakened inland and fell to tropical storm intensity on August 11. The system then drifted northeastward, until dissipating over Mississippi early on August 12. Offshore, at least 183 people drowned after steamers and schooners sunk in rough seas produced by the hurricane. Last Days of Last Island: The Hurricane of 1856, Louisiana's First Great Storm Bill Dixon 2009 University of Louisiana at Lafayette Press 978-1-887366-88-5 A storm surge between 11 and 12 ft m lashed Last Island, Louisiana. The island was completely submerged, with virtually every structure destroyed, including the hotels and casinos, while all crops were ruined. Additionally, Last Island itself split in two. Inland, heavy rainfall caused the Mermentau River to overflow, destroying crops and every house in Abbeville. The storm produced up to 13.14 in mm of precipitation to New Orleans. In Plaquemines Parish, rice fields were under several feet of water, while many orange trees lost their fruit.https://www.weather.gov/media/lch/events/lahurricanehistory.pdf Louisiana Hurricane History David M. Roth National Weather Service National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration January 13, 2010 August 30, 2021 Camp Springs, Maryland The storm resulted in at least 200 fatalities,Edward N. Rappaport José Fernández-Partagás The Deadliest Atlantic Tropical Cyclones, 1492–1996: Cyclones with 25+ deaths National Hurricane Center National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration April 22, 1997 July 24, 2013 http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pastdeadlyapp1.shtml? making it one of the deadliest tropical cyclones in the history of Louisiana.Ludlum (1963), p. 165-171. Hurricane Two Atl Two 1856 path.png August 13 August 14 70 A hurricane with winds of 80 mph km/h on was initially observed about 750 mi km on 5 northwest of the coast of Venezuela on August 13. The cyclone tracked due westward and crossed Grenada, before entering the eastern Caribbean. Heavy rain and squalls were reported in Barbados and Grenada. This system was last noted near La Orchila, Venezuela on August 14.Fernández-Partagás (1995), p. 37-38. Tropical Storm Three Atl Three 1856 path.png August 19 August 21 50 The third tropical storm of the season developed on August 19 about 170 mi km on 5 southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina. At 1100 UTC that day, it made landfall near Cape Lookout with winds of 60 mph (95 km/h). The storm traveled north and emerged into the Chesapeake Bay near Norfolk, Virginia. The storm continued travelling northward just offshore of the east coast of the US before finally dissipating off Rhode Island on August 21. Heavy rains and strong winds were reported in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and Washington, D.C. This system was known as the Charter Oak Storm, because it felled the famed Charter Oak in Hartford, Connecticut.Christopher W. Landsea etal May 2015 Documentation of Atlantic Tropical Cyclones Changes in HURDAT National Hurricane Center, Hurricane Research Division http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/hurdat/metadata_master.html#1856_1 March 1, 2025 Climate researcher Michael Chenoweth proposed the removal of this storm from HURDAT, noting "Weather map analysis indicates low came from Ohio and deepened east of Massachusetts drawing in much colder air behind it".Chenoweth, Michael A New Compilation of North Atlantic Tropical Cyclones, 1851–98 Journal of Climate December 2014 27 12 8674–8685 10.1175/JCLI-D-13-00771.1 American Meteorological Society 2014JCli...27.8674C free Tropical Storm Four Atl Four 1856 path.png August 21 August 21 50 A limited number of sources indicate that a tropical storm was briefly active in the vicinity of Havana, Cuba on August 21. The storm probably originated from the Bahamas.Fernández-Partagás (1995), p. 38. Chenoweth considers information on this storm to have actually been related to the following cyclone, due to "bad data from Tannehill (1938)". Hurricane Five Atl Five 1856 path.png August 25 September 3 100 969 The Southeastern States Hurricane of 1856 A hurricane formed north of Hispaniola on August 25. It moved westward, passing over the Inagua Islands before striking the north coast of Cuba as a Category 2 hurricane on August 27. The cyclone weakened to Category 1 strength as it crossed the island, close to Matanzas, but regained first Category 2 and then Category 3 strength as it moved north through the Gulf of Mexico. The cyclone made landfall near Panama City, Florida, on August 31 as a Category 2 hurricane. Thereafter, it then quickly weakened to a tropical storm while moving northward through Georgia and South Carolina. The storm entered the Atlantic from the state of Virginia on next day and dissipated on September 3. The hurricane destroyed thirty houses on Inagua and four people died there. Several vessels were run ashore on the Cuban coast. In Florida, high tides were reported along the coast. Tides generated by the storm reportedly washed away all land on Sand Key, although the lighthouse survived.Dean Love Reef Lights: Seaswept Lighthouses of the Florida Keys 1982 The Historic Key West Preservation Board Key West, Florida 0-943528-03-8 45–59 The SS Florida was tossed ashore at St. Joseph Bay and completely destroyed, while streets were inundated with water in Apalachicola. Inland, strong winds and heavy winds brought significant damage, especially at Marianna, which was considered "a wreck." by people in the area. In Georgia, flooding damaged numerous bridges, dams, and corn and cotton crop fields. Many streets and sidewalks in Columbus were blocked by falling trees.Jay Barnes Florida's Hurricane History University of North Carolina Press Chapel Hill, North Carolina 2007 65–66 978-0-8078-3068-0 https://archive.org/details/floridashurrican00barn registration florida's hurricane history. September 16, 2015 At Norfolk, Virginia, on September 1, the spire of a church was blown down by the storm.David M. Roth Hugh Cobb July 16, 2001 Virginia Hurricane History National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration January 14, 2008 http://www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/research/roth/valate19hur.htm Ludlum (1963), p. 171-173. Hurricane Six Atl Six 1856 path.png September 18 September 22 70 A sixth tropical storm was first observed by the brig Caroline E. Kelly on September 18, which experienced a heavy gale while located about 930 mi km on 5 east-southeast of Bermuda. With initial winds of 60 mph (95 km/h), the storm slowly strengthened while moving north-northwestward. At 1200 UTC on September 19, it reached hurricane status and peaked with winds of 80 mph km/h on. The storm decelerated and remained at this intensity for over 24 hours. Late on September 21, the system re-curved westward and weakened to a tropical storm. It was last seen by the Pride of the Sea on September 22,Fernández-Partagás (1995), p. 41. while located about 695 mi km on 5 south of Cape Race, Newfoundland. Season effects This is a table of all of the known storms that formed in the 1856 Atlantic hurricane season. It includes their duration (within the basin), areas affected, damages, and death totals. Deaths in parentheses are additional and indirect (an example of an indirect death would be a traffic accident), but were still related to that storm. Damage and deaths include totals while the storm was extratropical, a wave, or a low, and all of the damage figures are in 1856 USD.center1856 North Atlantic tropical cyclone center cat4 One August 9–12 150 (240) 934 Louisiana and southwestern Mississippi Unknown 400http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/NWS-NHC-1995-47.pdf The Deadliest Atlantic Tropical Cyclones, 1492 – 1994 Edward N. Rappaport José Fernández-Partagás National Hurricane Center January 1995 United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Weather Service 7; 23 January 13, 2013 https://web.archive.org/web/20130301223758/http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/NWS-NHC-1995-47.pdf March 1, 2013 live NOAA Technical Memorandum NWS NHC-47cat1 Two August 13–14 80 (130) Unknown Lesser Antilles Unknown None storm Three August 19–21 60 (95) Unknown East Coast of the United States Unknown None storm Four August 21 60 (95) Unknown Cuba Unknown None cat3 Five August 25 – September 3 115 (185) 969 Southeastern United States Unknown None cat1 Six September 18–22 80 (130) Unknown Southeastern United States Unknown None 6 August 9 – September 22 150 (240) 934 Unknown ≥400 See also Tropical cyclones Lists of Atlantic hurricanes Tropical cyclone forecasting HURDAT – A comprehensive record of tropical cyclone tracks since 1851. Atlantic reanalysis project – A project to improve historical hurricane data for past storms. Notes References General http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/Landsea/Partagas/1851-1857/1856.pdf Year 1856 José Fernández-Partagás Henry F. Diaz 1995 Climate Diagnostics Center National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration July 24, 2013 Fernández-Partagás Early American hurricanes 1492-1870 American Meteorological Society David Ludlum https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015002912718&seq=1 9780933876163 Boston, Massachusetts 1963 February 24, 2025 Ludlum External links Atlantic hurricane reanalysis project page for 1856 1850 Atlantic hurricane 1856 Category:Atlantic hurricane seasons Category:1856 natural disasters Category:1856 in the United States Category:Articles which contain graphical timelines Category:Meteorological events in 1856