1888 — Mar 11-14, Mid-Atlantic/New England Nor’easter, esp. NY, MA, maritime–298-301

Also known as “Blizzard of 1888” “The Great White Hurricane”

–298-301 Blanchard tally based on data below.
—<800 Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). 1982, p. 269. -->400 Allsop, Harry. “Nemo: Top ten worst blizzards to hit the US.” Telegraph, UK, 2-8-2013.
— 400 BBC Weather. “Great Storms – White Hurricane 1888.” (Source not cited.)
–~400 Celebrate Boston. “The Blizzard of 1888.” (Source not cited.)
— 400 FEMA. Principle Threats Facing Communities and Local EM Coordinators. 1993, p. 42.
–~400 Gelber, Ben. The Pennsylvania Weather Book. 2002, p. 46. (Source not cited.)
–>400 Grabianowski. “10 Biggest Snowstorms of All Time. The Blizzard of 1888 [NE US]”
–~400 Gunn. A Student Guide to Climate and Weather: Weather Extremes. 2009, 38. Source not cited.
–>400 Heidorn. Weather Almanac. “The Great Blizzard of ’88.” (Source not cited)
–>400 High, Linda Oatman. City of Snow: The Great Blizzard of 1888. 2004. Source not cited.
—<400 History.com. This Day in History, Disaster, March 11, 1888. Great Blizzard of `88. -- 400 Lott (NCDC/NWS/NOAA). “The Big One!” May 14, 1993. (Source not cited.) -->400 McCain. It Happened in Connecticut. “The Great Blizzard of 1888,” 2008, p. 104.
–>400 Newspaper Archive. “A Historical Newspaper Perspective.” [On mid-March 1888 blizzard.]
–>400 Nichols, Bill. “Blizzard was problem ‘600 miles across.’” USA Today, 3-16-1993.
— 400 NWS Milwaukee WFO, NOAA. 2005. (Source not cited.)
–>400 NWS FO, Philly/Mount Holly. “Historical Weather Facts…Philadelphia/Mt. Holly…”
–>400 Schwartz. Hurricanes and the Middle Atlantic States. 2007, p. 88. (Source not cited.)
— 400 Simonds. The American Date Book. 1902, p. 92. (Source not cited.)
— 65 Middle Atlantic States. Evening Herald, Syracuse, NY. “Record of…Year,” 12-31-88, 3.

Summary of State and Maritime Fatalities

At Sea ( 8) North Carolina ( 4)
Chesapeake Bay ( >20) Pennsylvania ( ~42) 9 land; ~33 maritime.
Connecticut ( 30) Virginia ( 16) All maritime.
Delaware ( 25) Total: 298-301
Delaware Bay ( 1)
Maryland ( 22) All maritime. Maritime ( 121) Included above.
Massachusetts ( 55) 45 on land; 10 maritime.
New Jersey ( 14) 11 on land; 3 maritime.
New York (61-64) 42 on land; 19-22 maritime.

Mid-Atlantic Nor’easter/Blizzard Fatalities by State and Maritime

At Sea ( 8)
— 1 Sch. Warren B. Potter. US Life-Saving Ser. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 443.
— 7 Sch. William G. Lewis. US Life-Saving Ser. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 443.

Chesapeake Bay ( >20)
— >20 Hayden. The Great Storm…1888, 38.
— 4 Schooner Eastern Light. US Life-Saving Ser. An. Rpt.…Ending Jun 30, 1888. 1889, 431.

Connecticut ( 30)
–20 Statewide, other than New Haven. Dunkirk Observer, NY. “The Deadly Blizzard,” 1888.
— 3 Derby. Evening Herald, Syracuse. “Stories of Suffering,” 3-16-1888, p1.
— 7 New Haven (exposure). Dunkirk Observer, NY. “The Deadly Blizzard,” 3-16-1888, p. 1.

Delaware ( 25)
–~25 The World (NYC). “Fatal Marine Disasters Reported from Delaware…,” 3-15-1888, p.2.
— 4 ~Hen and Chickens Shoal, Cape Henlopen. Sch. C. B. Hazeltine. US Life-Saving Ser.
— 2 Schooner Allie H. Belden, ~Lewes. Morgan. Pirates…Tales of the Delaware Coast, 2005. 139.

Delaware Bay ( 1)
— 1 Sch. John H. Krantz. US Life-Saving Ser. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 443.

Maryland ( 22 Maritime)
— 2 Off Castle Haven, Brig I. Logan (MD) NYT. “Enormous Damage Done…in MD” 3-15-88.
— 3 Crisfield Harbor Pungy Leading Breeze,. NYT. “Its Most Awful Trail,” 3-17-1888.
— 1 Crisfield, Schooner Mary C. Ward (exp.) NYT. “Its Most Awful Trail,” 3-17-1888.
— 8 Schooner John T. Merrow. US Life-Saving Ser. An. Rpt.… FY June 30, 1888. 1889, 443.
— 2 Off Hills’s Point. Schooner Lavinia North. US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.…1888. P. 443.
— 6 Schooner Vineyard, Chester River. NYT. Its Most Awful Trail,” 3-17-1888.

Massachusetts ( 55 – 45 on land and 10 maritime)
— 55 Statewide, land (45) and maritime (10). Tyrone Daily Herald, PA. 3-19-1888, p. 1.
— 1 Adams (freezing) NYT. “North Adams’s [MA] Experience,” 3-15-1888.
— 1 Buckland (hit by snowplow). NYT. “North Adams’s [MA] Experience,” 3-15-1888.

New Jersey ( 14 – 11 on land and 3 maritime)
— 2 ~Barnegat. Sch. Flora Woodhouse. US Life-Saving Ser. An. Rpt.…1888. 1889, p. 443.
— 1 ~Boynton Beach, (cook frozen, unnamed sch.). NYT. “Lost in Snowdrifts,” 3-16-1888.
— 1 Brookdale (frozen) NYT. “New Jersey’s Plight. Many Deaths in Newark,” 3-15-88
— 1 Elizabeth (exposure). NYT. “Perished in the Blizzard,” 3-31-1888.
— 1 Hackettstown (RR engine). Evening Herald, Syracuse. “Four Engines Tumble,” 3-16-1888.
— 1 New Brunswick. (exposure). NYT. “Found Dead In A Shed,” 3-19-1888.
— 4 Newark (freezing/exposure). NYT. “New Jersey’s Plight. Many Deaths in Newark,” 3-15-88
— 1 Piscataway (milkman lost). NYT. “Lost in Snowdrifts,” 3-16-1888.
— 2 Raritan Township (freezing). NYT. “Lost in Snowdrifts,” 3-16-1888.

New York (61-64 – 42 on land and 19-22 maritime)
— 4 Coleman’s Station~ (RR snow plow). NYT. “Four Men Killed,” 3-17-1888.
— 1 Cohoes (exposure) NYT. “He was Frozen To Death,” 3-22-1888.
— 1 New City (exposure) NYT. “A Victim of the Storm,” 3-24-1888.
–>200 New York City Cornell. The Great International Disaster Book (3rd Ed.). 1982, 269.
–>200 “ CUNY Graduate Center. Virtual NY, “Blizzard of 1888.”
–~200 “ Gelber. The Pennsylvania Weather Book, 2002, p. 46.
— 200 “ Heidorn. Weather Almanac. “The Great Blizzard of ’88.”
–~200 “ Hevesi. “The Blizzard of ’93…” NYT, 3-14-1993.
–~200 “ History.com. “Great Blizzard of `88 Hits East Coast.”
— 200 “ NCDC/NWS/NOAA, 1993.
–~100 “ Keller. “Long-Ago Snow,” NYT, 12-31-2006.
— 35 “ Gunn. A Student Guide to Climate and Weather. 2009, 38.
— 6 “ NYT. “The Big Blizzard of 1888,” 2-10-1895.
By Date “
— 12 “ Mar 13. Bodies at Coroner’s office. NYT. “Deaths and Accidents,” 3-14-1888, p3.
–1 “ G.D. Baremore, 35, exposure. NYT. “Deaths and Accidents.” 3-17-1888, p.3.
–1 “ Annie Halpin Fisher, 30, found dead, hallway of 429 West Thirty-ninth-street.
–1 “ Casper Wenzel, 48, 257 West Thirtieth; exposure; found in street by neighbors.
–1 Thomas Sullivan, 70; collapsed and died after walking through snow from his home.
–1 Thomas Gleason. Taken to jail for intoxication, thinly clad, died an hour later.
— 3 “ Mar 13 (Mr. Conklin, two women) NYT. “A Chapter of Accidents,” 3-13-1888.
— 1 “ Mar 13 (Train collision in snow.) NYT. “Smashed by a Rear Train,” 3-13-1888.
–4 “ by Mar 14 NYT. “Deaths and Accidents. Some Fatalities…, 3-14-1888.
— 1 “ Mar 15 Peter Reilly, exposure. The World, NYC. “His Spree Ended…” 3-15-1888, 1.
— 30 “ by Mar 17 Titusville Herald, PA. “Perished in the Storm,” 3-17-1888, 1.
— 1 Shokan, Ulster County. Dug out of snowbank March 14; body of Henry Goldman.
— 2 Staten Island (frozen) NYT. “New Jersey’s Plight-Many Deaths…Newark,” 3-15-1888.
— 1 Yaphank, L.I. Evening Herald, Syracuse, NY. “Stories of Suffering,” 3-16-1888, 1.
— 2 Between Yorktown & Amawalk (RR employ.). Evening Herald (Syracuse). “Falling”
–9-10 Pilot boat Enchantress. Blanchard range based on two sources below.
–10 “ Hayden. The Great Storm…1888, 23.
— 9 Schooner “ US Life-Saving Ser. An. Rpt. …June…1888. 1889, 443.
— 1 Schooner David Carll. US Life-Saving Ser. An. Rpt. …June…1888. 1889, 443.
— 5 Staten Island Sch. Mary Heitman. The World. “A Schooner Disappears…,” 3-15-1888.
— 4-6 Schooner/pilot boat Phantom. Blanchard range based on two sources below.
–6 Schooner Phantom. US Life-Saving Ser. An. Rp. t…June…1888. 1889, 443.
–4 Pilot Boat “ Logansport Daily Journal. “The Year’s Disasters,” 1-2-1889, 4.

North Carolina ( 4)
— 4 Off Hatteras. Sch. Rachael A. Collins. US Life-Saving Ser. An. Rpt. …1888. 1889, 431.

Pennsylvania ( ~42 – 9 on land; ~33 maritime)
— 1 Clifton, Mar 14. Snow-bound train hit by another; Philadelphia, Wilmington, Delaware road.
— 1 ~Easton (RR exposure). Dunkirk Observer, NY. “The Storm in Penn.,” 3-16-1888, p. 1.
— 1 Emmaus Evening Herald, Syracuse, NY. “Stories of Suffering,” 3-16-1888, 1.
— 3 Philadelphia (freezing). NYT. “…Philadelphia’s Terrible Condition…,” 3-14-1888.
— 3 Three Bridges (RR snowplow). Dunkirk Observer, NY. “Three Men Killed…,” 3-16-1888.
–~33 Philadelphia “Waters”. Heidorn. Weather Almanac. “The Great Blizzard of ’88.”

Virginia ( 16 – all maritime)
— 1 Hampton Roads. Sloop Two Sisters. US Life-Saving Ser. An. Report…1888. 1889, p. 431.
— 1 Cape Henry. Sch. Henry R. Tilton. US Life-Saving Ser. An. Report…June…1888. 1889, 443.
–14 Chincoteague Bay (bodies washed ashore). NYT. “Its Most Awful Trail,” 3-17-1888.

Maritime Losses (121)
— 121 BWB tally based on data below.
— >100 Overall. Lott (NCDC/NWS/NOAA). “The Big One!” May 14, 1993.

–22 Bark Briminger. Logansport Daily Journal. “The Year’s Disasters,” 1-2-1889, 4
— 2 Brig I. Logan (MD) NYT. “Enormous Damage Done…in Maryland,” March 15, 1888.
— 1 Unnamed sch. ~Boynton Beach, NJ (cook frozen). NYT. “Lost in Snowdrifts,” 3-16-1888.
–10 Pilot Boat Enchantress. Daily Journal (Logansport). “The Year’s Disasters,” 1-2-1889, 4.
— 9 Schooner “ US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 443
— 4 Sch. C. B. Hazeltine. US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 431
— 1 Schooner David Carll. US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 443
— 4 Schr. Eastern Light. Logansport Daily Journal. “The Year’s Disasters,” 1-2-1889, 4.
— 4 “ US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 431
— 2 Schooner Allie H. Belden, ~Lewes. Morgan. Tales of the Delaware Coast, 2005. 139.
— 2 Sch. Flora Woodhouse. US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 443
— 7 Schooner G. Logan. Logansport Daily Journal. “The Year’s Disasters,” 1-2-1889, 4.
— 1 Sch. Henry R. Tilton. US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 443
— 1 Sch. John H. Krantz. US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 443
— 8 Sch. John T. Merrow. US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.… FY June 30, 1888. 1889, 443.
— 4 Schr. Joseph Allen. Logansport Daily Journal. “The Year’s Disasters,” 2Jan1889, 4.
— 8 Schooner Julia Cook. Logansport Daily Journal. “The Year’s Disasters,” 2Jan1889, 4
— 2 Schooner Lavinia North. US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.…1888. P. 443.
— 1 Sch. Margaret A. May. US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 443
— 5 Sch. Mary Heitman. World. “A Schooner Disappears Seaward, Helpless…,” 15Mar88.
— 7 Schooner Mermaid. Logansport Daily Journal. “The Year’s Disasters,” 2Jan1889, 4.
— 6 Schooner Phantom. US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 443
— 4 Pilot Boat “ Logansport Daily Journal. “The Year’s Disasters,” 2Jan1889, 4.
— 2 Schooner Savenia. Logansport Daily Journal . “The Year’s Disasters,” 2Jan1889, 4.
— 1 Sch. Warren B. Potter. US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 443
— 7 Sch. William G. Lewis. US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 443
— 1 Sloop Two Sisters. US Life-Saving Ser.. An. Rpt.…Ending…June 30, 1888. 1889, 431
–12 Yacht Cynthia. Logansport Daily Journal. “The Year’s Disasters,” 2Jan1889, 4.

Narrative Information

BBC Weather: “….This horrific storm came as a complete shock to the citizens of New York and the other towns that were badly beaten by the extreme weather conditions.

“On Saturday the 10th of March 1888, the day before the storm, the temperature in New York was in the fifties, which was unseasonably mild. Elias B. Dunn read the forecast for the following day as “cloudy, followed by light rain and clearing.” However, the forecaster could not have been further from the truth!

“When the 11th of March arrived there was no “cloudy” sky nor “light rain”, and certainly no “clearing” in sight. Torrential rain, fierce winds and plummeting temperatures were what the city received. Shortly after the start of the storm, the drenching rain turned into heavy snowfall and the storm continued like that for the next 36 hours.

“The storm was created by a huge mass of arctic air that had blown into the area from the northwest, which clashed with the warm, moist area from the south that New York was enjoying – generating violent storms all along the east coast. These storms brought all the towns from Chesapeake Bay to Maine to a complete standstill.

“By the 12th of March, 10 inches of snow had fallen and there was yet more to come. The hurricane winds were producing bad snowdrifts, which were also moving around a mass of broken glass and other debris consumed on their path. The storm had also severed communication links between New York and the outside world, by snapping the telephone and telegraph lines in its rampage of the city. Transportation was also brought to a standstill as the trains stalled under the freezing temperatures, leaving 15,000 people stranded and totally helpless to the elements. Most of the other means of transport had been blown over by strong winds and littered the streets. When people ventured into the streets, they were just simply blown over, and being unable to get up because of the winds, they either drowned in the snow or were buried alive by the passing snowdrifts.

“The aftermath of the storm was 22 inches of deadly snow that buried houses, caused a great deal of infrastructure damage, and claimed 400 lives. The damage was so extensive that it helped to convince New York and many other cities to replace their elevated train system to an underground network, and to place all important cables and utility lines under the ground.

“The full measure of the storm was unfortunately never documented due to much of the meteorological equipment being damaged or frozen by the storm. However, it has been estimated to be one of the most violent and expensive storms in history….” (BBC Weather. “Great Storms – White Hurricane 1888.”)

Cornell: “Blizzards. New York City, March 12-13, 1888: The weather forecast for New York City on March 12, 1888, read: ‘Light snow, then clearing.’ By the next morning 24 inches of snow had fallen, temperatures had dropped to 15 degrees, and winds with 40-mile-per-hour gales had produced 20-foot-drigfts in the city’s streets. The thirty-six hour storm that struck the entire Atlantic Coast paralyzed New York City and all communities within a 30-mile radius, effectively cutting the area off from the rest of the United States. In fact, telegrams to Boston had to be sent via the Atlantic cable to England and back to New England.

‘For many New Yorkers the storm was a lark, providing country pleasures suck as skating, skiing, and sled rides in the heart or the city. An ice bridge formed over the East River between Fulton Street in Manhattan and a spot known as Martin’s Store in Brooklyn, and thousands of New Yorkers bundled in furs and blankets trudged across the river on an unusual outing.

“For many other New Yorkers, however, the storm brought misery and suffering. Food and water shortages were prevalent, and many poorer sections of the city went without either heat or food as delivery wagons failed to negotiate the snow-packed streets. More than 200 New Yorkers died from excessive cold and extreme storm conditions, with perhaps as many as 600 more dying in other areas along the East Coast.” (Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1982, pp. 268-269.)

Grabianowski: “This snowstorm was so massive it became a historical event. In terms of storm severity factors, this one had it all: enormous amounts of snow, frigid temperatures, howling winds whipping up monstrous snow drifts — and a widespread area of effect that covered the entire northeastern United States from New England to the Chesapeake Bay, including major metropolitan areas like New York City [source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]. More than 400 people died during the storm, including more than 100 who were lost at sea.

“The storm struck in early March and started out as a serious rain storm. From Sunday night to Monday morning, the temperature plummeted and the rain turned to snow. In the end, New York City received 22 inches (56 centimeters) of snow, shutting the city down and causing floods when the snow melted. Other places received much more: 58 inches (1.5 meters) of snow in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., and 45 inches (1.14 m) in New Haven, Conn. Snow drifts as high as 50 or 60 feet (15.2 to 18.3 m) were reported on Long Island, and wind gusts were reported as fast as 80 mph (128.7 kph).” (Grabianowski, Ed. “10 Biggest Snowstorms of All Time. No. 10 — The Blizzard of 1888 – Northeastern United States.” Howstuffworks.com. Accessed 12-28-2012.

Greely: “The most remarkable blizzard in the eastern part of the United States was that of March 11th-14th, 1888. The heavy snow and high winds attending it completely interrupted telegraphic and railway communication in New Jersey, Eastern Pennsylvania, and the southern half of New York and New England. Business was entirely suspended in these sections dur¬ing the 12th and 13th.

“The advance of the anti¬cyclone was marked by a sudden and rapid fall of tem¬perature, heavy snow, and violent northwesterly winds, which not only made travel dangerous but almost im-possible. For four days the average wind velocity throughout the sections named ranged from twenty to twenty-five miles per hour, and at times attained velo¬cities varying from fifty to seventy miles. It has been shown by Prof. Upton that the snow was exceedingly heavy, averaging probably forty inches or more over Southeastern New York and Southern. New England. The violent winds filled the air for one or two days with blinding snow, which drifted, under favorable cir¬cumstances, to a depth of ten or fifteen feet in New York, New Haven, and adjacent cities. It was five or six days before regular communication was re-estab¬lished and ordinary business resumed. Many persons who faced the storm were badly frozen or prostrated by the low temperature, drifting snow, and high winds, and the loss of life from this cause, directly or indi¬rectly, was considerable.

“New York, Philadelphia, and Boston were completely isolated, and the only advices possible for one or two days from the latter city were via London, England, by cable. At Delaware Breakwater only thirteen out of forty vessels escaped serious damage or destruction, and thirty or more lives were lost.

“The maritime interests suffered. from this blizzard to the extent of over one half a million dollars, while the losses by railroads and other business interests could not be accurately estimated, but must have aggregated several millions of dollars. The storm was quite as severe as any blizzard of the Northwest, and much farther reaching in working damage and destruction, owing to its occurrence in so densely populated a region. The highest recorded winds were as follows : Eastport, Me., seventy-two miles for a single hour, twenty-seven miles for ninety-six consecutive hours ; Block Island, seventy miles and thirty-two miles ; New York City, fifty miles and thirty-two miles ; Phila¬delphia, sixty miles and twenty-six miles.” (Greely. American Weather, 1888, 225-226.)

Gunn: “The worst blizzard in history to hit the eastern United States occurred in March 1888. This story caused destruction from Maine to New Jersey, with some areas receiving 50 inches of snow. The greatest snow accumulation was in central New England, and the greatest dislocation of life was borne by New York City. About four hundred people tragically lost their lives. The storm quickly became known as The Blizzard of 1888 or The Great White Hurricane. Sustained winds of over 45 miles per hour produced snow drifts in excess of 50 feet. Railroads were shut down, and people were confined to their homes for a week. Some tried to go to work for fear of losing their jobs, and, in New York City, 30 of them froze to death on their way home after they found there was no electricity. All telegraph connections from Washington to Maine were cut off for several days. People in rural areas had to stay in their homes for two weeks.” (Gunn, Angus. A Student Guide to Climate and Weather: Weather Extremes. 2009, 38-39.)

Hayden: “March 11, 7 A.M. The first of the accompanying weather charts [not reproduced here] indicates graphically the meteorological conditions over the wide area charted, comprising about 3,000,000 square miles, of which one-third is laud and two-thirds water. Over the land there is a long line or trough of low barometer, extending from the west coast of Florida up past the eastern shore of Lake Huron and far northward toward the southern limits of Hudson Bay. In front of this advancing line the prevailing winds are southeasterly, and the warm moist air drawn up from southern latitudes spreads a warm wave along the coast, with generally cloudy weather and heavy rains, especially south of Hatteras; the Signal Service observer at Pensacola, for example, reports the heavy fall of 4.0 J inches on the 10th. About midway of this trough of low barometer there is a long, narrow region of light, variable winds; of rapid changes in meteorological conditions; calms, shifts of wind, intervals of clearing weather; then overcast again, with cooler weather, and fresh northwesterly winds, increasing to a gale. The front line of this advancing battalion of cold northwesterly winds is more than a thousand miles in length, and covers the whole breadth of the United States; its right flank is on the Gulf, its left rests on the Great Lakes, or even farther north; the temperature falls rapidly at its approach, with frost far south into Louisiana and Mississippi, and heavy snow in central Kentucky and eastern Tennessee. The long swaying line is advancing toward the coast at the rate of about 600 miles a day, followed by a ridge of high barometer reaching from Texas to Dakota and Manitoba. At points along the trough the barometer ranges from 29.70, a hundred miles north of Toronto, to 29.86 at Pittsburgh, 29.88 at Augusta, and 29.94 at Cedar Keys. Along the ridge the barometer is very high; 30.7 to the northward about Lake Winnipeg, 30.6 in Wyoming, 30.7 in Indian Territory, and 30.5 south of the Rio Grande. The difference of pressure from trough to ridge is thus measured by about an inch of mercury in the barometer. Moreover, the chart shows that there is another ridge of high barometer in advance, curving down off the coast from northern Newfoundland, where the pressure is 30.6, toward Santo Domingo, where it is about 30.3, and passing midway between Hatteras and Bermuda. Farther to the eastward the concentric isobars show the presence of a storm which originated about Bermuda on the 9th, and is moving off toward Europe, where, in a few days, it may cause northwesterly gales with snow to the northward of its track, and southeasterly gales with rain to the southward. Storm reports from the steam-ships Erl King and Glendevon, the ships Glenburn and Anna, and the brig Olive Branch show that this storm was of hurricane violence, with heavy squalls and high seas; but it need not be referred to in this connection further than to say that it sent back a long, rolling swell from northeast, felt all along the Atlantic sea-board the morning of the 11th, and quite distinct from that caused by the freshening gale from the southeast.” (Hayden. The Great Storm…Atlantic Coast…U.S. March 11-14, 1888. 1888, 9.)

“The damage and destruction wrought ashore are too fresh in mind to be referred to here, and losses along the coast can only be mentioned briefly. Below Hatteras there was little damage done to shipping. In Chesapeake Bay 2 barks, 77 schooners, and 17 sloops were blown ashore, sunk, or damaged; in Delaware Bay, 37 vessels; along the New Jersey coast and in the Horseshoe at Sandy Hook, 13; in New York Harbor and along the Long Island coast, 20; and along the New England coast, 9. The names of six vessels that were abandoned at sea have been reported, and there are at least nine others missing, among them the lamented New York pilot-boats Phantom and Enchantress and the yacht Cythera; moreover, shortly after the storm seven derelicts, which can not be identified with any previously reported, were sighted off the coast, to take their places amongst the other obstructions to navigation….” (Hayden. The Great Storm…1888, 23.)

“NEW ENGLAND

“Along the New England coast 15 schooners and 1 tug were damaged, the names of which are as follow:

Schooner Ida E. Latham,
Schooner Cordova,
Schooner Pamet,
Schooner A. C. Parker,
Schooner Luln,
Schooner Ella,
Schooner Norma,
Schooner John Somers,
Schooner Dreadnaught,
Schooner Emma Jane,
Schooner Lizzie Hayan,
Schooner M. B. Linscott,
Schooner S. A. Parkhurst,
Schooner Wanderer,
Schooner Maggie Bruce,
Tug Den Volente.

“Of the vessels in and about New York and near the Long Island shores, 2 barks, 6 schooners, 3 tug-boats (one with a tow), 5 pilot-boats, 2 lighters, 1 ferry-boat, 1 barge, 2 tows of 6 barges each, and 5 canal-boats were either sunk or badly damaged. The following is a list of the vessels reported damaged:

Bark Stadacona,
Bark Anna,
Schooner Mary McCabe,
Schooner Lester A. Lewis,
Schooner Favorite,
Schooner Little Charlie,
Schooner Job II. Jackson,
Schooner S. S. Scranton,
Ferry-boat Maid of Perth,
Tug-boat S. E. Babcock,
Tug-boat Gracie,
Tug-boat Trojan and tow,
Pilot-boat Hope,
Pilot-boat Caldwell H Colt
Pilot Thomas D. Harrison,
Pilot-boat Edmund Driggs,
Pilot-boat Ezra Nye
Lighter International,
Lighter Cement Rock,
Barge Charles N. White,
Two tows of 6 barges each,
Canal-boat Green Mountain,
Canal-boats Nos. 14, 15, 40, and 3065.

NEW JERSEY.

Schooner Mary Heitman,
Schooner A. B. Crosby,
Sloop Neptune,
Barge Hazeltine,
Two unknown vessels,
Sloop Alert.

At Horse-shoe, Sandy Hook.

Schooner Mayflower,
Sloop P. T. Barnum,
Sloop Pocahontas,
Pilot-boat Edmund Blunt,
Pilot-boat E. H. Williams,
Pilot-boat Centennial,
Pilot-boat W. W. Story,
Pilot-boat Edward Cooper

DELAWARE RIVER.

“In the Delaware River the shipping suffered severely. Of the large fleet of vessels which sought refuge at the Breakwater, scarcely one escaped without damage. Most of those blown ashore at the Breakwater were badly wrecked. From reports received, 1 ship, 3 barks, 2 barkentines, 26 schooners, 2 pilot-boats, and 3 tugs were damaged:

Ship Esther Roy,
Bark Brimiga,
Bark Giacomo Mortola,
Bark Vanadis,
Schooner E. G. Irwin,
Sch Benjamin C Cromwell
Schooner W. H. Rutan,
Sch. Rebecca F. Lamdin,
Schooner Irene Crawford.
Schooner Kocheco,
Sch. Howard Williams,
Sch. Williams C. Wickham,
Schooner Windsor.

At the Breakwater.

Barkentine Zephyr,
Barkentine Eva Lynch,
Schooner Allie H. Belden,
Schooner Elliot L. Dow,
Schooner John Proctor,
Sch. Hester A. Seward,
Sch. Rebecca M. Smith,
Sch. Abbie P. Cranmer,
Sch. Paul & Thompson,
Sch. George L. Fessenden,
Schooner Isabel Alberto,
Schooner Earl P. Mason,
Sch. Flora A. Newcomb,
Schooner Elizabeth S. Lee,
Sch. George W. Anderson,
Schooner Providence,
Schooner Lizzie V. Hall,
Schooner Index,
Sch. William G. Bartlett,
Pilot-boat C. W. Tunuell,
Pilot-boat Enoch Turley,
Tug George J. Simpson,
Tug-boat Lizzie Crawford,
Tug-boat Tarnesi.

MARYLAND AND VIRGINIA

“In the harbor of Baltimore there was no material loss. In consequence of the strong NW. gale the water in the harbor was lower than it has ever been in the memory of the oldest steam-boat men. Ferry-boat travel was interrupted; steamers at the Pratt and Light street wharves at the head of the harbor were lying in the mud; ocean steamers at the lower-harbor wharves stopped loading; but on Wednesday, the 14th, the Oregon, drawing 24 feet 9 inches, left the harbor without difficulty.

“The inclosed list gives the names, so far as can be found, of only the vessels actually reported as having been damaged in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries, and is by no means a complete record of the loss to the small dredgers and fishing-boats in the bay. Both sides of the bay seem to have suffered alike, and even in the harbors on the eastern shore, considered very safe ones, the loss was great.

“The number of lives lost in the bay and its tributaries was not less than twenty, all incident to the loss of shipping.

“The following list gives the names of 2 barks, 78 schooners, and 17 sloops sunk, wrecked, or
badly damaged:
Sunk or totally wrecked.

Schooner Harriet Ann,
Schooner C. O. Dougherty,
Schooner West Wind,
Schooner W. F. Hines,
Schooner Mohawk,
Schooner Fire-fly,
Schooner Little John,
Schooner Long Line,
Schooner Eastern Light,
Schooner Canton,
Schooner Antietam,
Schooner Leading Breeze,
Schooner William Turner,
Schooner Wenonah,
Schooner Galena,
Schooner M. J. Marden,
Schooner Constitution,
Schooner Vineyard,
Schooner Queen,
Schooner Gypsy,
Sloop Fire-fly,
Sloop T. T. Francis,
Sloop Flying Trapeze,
Sloop Laviuia North.

Blown ashore and badly damaged.

Bark Henry Warner,
Bark Harvester,
Schooner Fanny Southard,
Schooner Brunette,
Sch. Wm. T. Goldsborough
Sch. Solomon F. Kerwin
Schooner Daniel Brown,
Schooner Georgia,
Schooner Annie Jones,
Schooner Caroline,
Schooner Cornelia,
Schooner Frolic,
Schooner Hugh Bolton,
Schooner Three Sisters,
Schooner Edward Cobb,
Sch. William Schunink,
Schooner Stephen Chase,
Schooner Frank Bateman,
Schooner Thomas Hooper,
Schooner Kate Lawson,
Schooner Mary E. Dennis,
Schooner Alonzo Lee,
Schooner Shearwater,
Schooner American Yacht,
Schooner Lancelot,
Schooner Carrie M. Mass,
Schooner Ann P. Rodgers,
Schooner Cape Charles,
Schooner Commodore,
Schooner Crosswell,
Schooner Eva,
Schooner S. T. Muir,
Schooner Ella Daris,
Schooner Buffalo,
Schooner Maud S.,
Schooner Anna Brown,
Schooner George Lewmon,
Schooner Mary Virginia,
Schooner Cleveland,
Schooner Augusta,
Schooner Bratten,
Schooner Ocean Bird,
Schooner William B. Price,
Schooner A. H. Schultz,
Schooner C. A. Brown,
Sch. Mary E. Coulborn,
Schooner Mary C. Ward,
Schooner Sea View,
Schooner John J. Bell,
Sch. Lydia Sanderson,
Schooner Greyhound,
Schooner Fashion,
Schooner Eva Alice,
Schooner Mount Vernon,
Schooner Emma,
Schooner Hattie Estelle,
Sch. Lizzie and Mirrie,
Schooner Nona May,
Schooner Qui Vive,
Sloop Humming Bird,
Sloop Lizzie,
Sl. Lady Mollie E. Leonard
Sloop Little Dorrit,
Sloop Daniel H. Mayne,
Sloop Fleetwing,
Sloop O. C. Summers,
Sloop Thomas R. Powley,
Sloop Anna Peterson,
Sloop Howard T. Leach,
Sloop Fly,
Sloop Lydia,
Sloop Lucy V. Fletcher.

SOUTH OF HATTERAS.

“Very little damage was done to shipping in the sounds and along the coast of North Carolina, or farther south, the only report received being that of the schooner Aid, sunk at the wharf at Columbus, Ga.

LOST AT SEA WEST OF 40° WEST LONGITUDE.

Bark Johanna,
Bark Nausika,
Bark Cortesia,
Schooner Alice Montgomery,
Schooner W. L. White,
Schooner James Ford.

VESSELS MISSING AND PROBABLY LOST.

Schooner John F. Merrow,
Schooner Rachel Ann Collins,
Pilot-boat Phantom,
Schooner Henry S. Culver,
Fishing-smack Peter Cooper,
Pilot-boat Enchantress,
Schooner William G. Lewis,
Yacht Cythera.

(Hayden. The Great Storm…1888, 37-39.)

History.com: “Keene, New Hampshire, received 36 inches…and Troy, New York, was hit by 55 inches of snow over 3 days….thousands of wild and farm animals froze to death in the blizzard….” (History.com. This Day in History, Disaster, March 11, 1888. Great Blizzard of `88..)

Lott: “Comparisons [March 12-14, 1993 “Storm of the Century”] to the Blizzard of 1888 are quite interesting.

“A few facts from the ’88 storm:

“The storm began in earnest on March 12, the same date as this year’s storm.

“Over 400 people died, including 200 in New York City alone.

“Snowfall averaged 40-50 inches over southeastern New York state and southern New England with drifts to 30-40 feet.
58 inches of snow in Saratoga Springs, NY.
48 inches of snow in Albany, NY.
45 inches of snow in New Haven, CT.
22 inches of snow in New York City.

“Snow drifts over the tops of houses from New York to New England, with reports of drifts covering 3-story houses. Highest reported drift was 52 feet in Gravesend, NY.

“80 MPH wind gusts were reported, although the highest official report in New York City was 40 MPH, with 54 MPH at Block Island. The winds in the ’88 storm, although severe, were not as severe as several other storms which have struck the same area.

“From Chesapeake Bay through the New England area, over 200 ships were either grounded or wrecked resulting in the deaths of at least 100 seamen.

“The NY Central Park Observatory reported a minimum temperature of 6 degrees, and a daytime average of 9 degrees on March 13, the coldest ever for March.

“Severe flooding after the storm due to melting snow–especially in the Brooklyn area, which was more susceptible to serious flooding due to topography.

“The ’88 storm is sometimes compared to the 1717 snow event (“The Great Snow of 1717”), which was the result of 4 snowstorms occurring between February 27 and March 7. Snowfall totals amounted to 5 feet or more in some areas, with much higher drifts.

“Although the ’88 storm was more severe in the Northeast and New England than the ’93 storm, it did not affect the entire eastern seaboard to the extent that the 1993 storm affected the area. The ’93 storm affected 26 states and about 50% of the nation’s population. In fact, on the Saffir-Simpson scale for hurricane strength, it equated to a category 3 hurricane based on storm surge and minimum pressure attained.” (Lott. “The Big One!” 1993, NCDC/NWS/NOAA)

NOAA/NWS: “On this day [March 11] in 1888, one of the worst blizzards in American history strikes the Northeast, killing more than 400 people and dumping as much as 55 inches of snow in some areas….At the time, approximately one in every four Americans lived in the area between Washington D.C. and Maine, the area affected by the Great Blizzard of 1888….

“On March 10, temperatures in the Northeast hovered in the mid-50s. But on March 11, cold Arctic air from Canada collided with Gulf air from the south and temperatures plunged. Rain turned to snow and winds reached hurricane-strength levels. By midnight on March 11, gusts were recorded at 85 miles per hour in New York City. Along with heavy snow, there was a complete whiteout in the city when the residents awoke the next morning….

“Unseasonable and devastating snowstorm from the Chesapeake Bay to Maine. The cities of Washington, Philadelphia, Boston and New York City were paralyzed. This incredible “Nor’easter” dumped 50 inches of snow in Connecticut and Massachusetts while New Jersey and the state of New York had 40 inches….

“Drifts of 40 to 50 feet high buried houses and trains. From Chesapeake Bay to Nantucket, 200 ships were sunk with 400 lives lost.” (NOAA 2005, NWS, Milwaukee/Sullivan, WI WFO)

NWS FO, Philadelphia/Mount Holly. “Mar 11…1888…(March 11-14) Ern Seaboard. Most remarkable blizzard in E. Disastrous from Chesapeake Bay area to ME. Cities paralyzed included DC, PHL, NYC and BOS. Wind averaged 20 to 25 mph throughout area for 4 days, at times reaching 50 to over 70 mph. Snowfall averaged 40″ or more over NJ, SE NY and Srn New England. In NYC alone, 200 deaths, uncounted injuries, and damage near $20 million. Total deaths from blizzard over 400. Maritime losses over $1/2 million and loss by railroads and business several million dollars. (LS 6107).” (National Weather Service Forecast Office, Philadelphia/Mount Holly, NOAA. “Historical Weather Facts for the Philadelphia/Mt. Holly, NJ Forecast Area.” 10-17-2005 update.)

US Life-Saving Service: “Founderings. Date of disaster. 1888…Mar. 11. Eastern Light. American schooner. 20 [tons]. Lying at anchor [bound from]. Total [loss]. 4 [lives lost]. Tangier Sound, Chesapeake Bay [location of loss].”

“Founderings. Date of disaster. 1888…Mar. 12. Rachel A. Collins. American schooner. 133 [tons]. New Berne, N.C. [bound from]. Philadelphia, Pa. [bound to]. Total [loss]. Lumber [cargo]. 4 [lives lost]. Off Hatteras, N.C. [location of disaster].”

“Founderings. Date of disaster. 1888…Mar. 12. C. B. Hazeltine. American schooner. 862 [tons]. Philadelphia, Pa. [bound from]. Boston, Mass. [bound to]. Total [loss]. Coal [cargo]. 4 [lives lost]. Near Hen and Chickens Shoal, Cape Henlopen, Del.” (US Life-Saving Service. Annual Report…Ending FY June 30, 1888. 1889, 431.)

“Founderings. Date of disaster. 1888…Mar. 12. Two Sisters. American Sloop…1 [life lost]. Hampton Roads, Va.” (US Life-Saving Service. Annual Report Ending FY June 30, 1888. 1889, 432.)….

“Date of disaster. 1888…Mar. 11. John T. Merrow. Am. sc. 704 [tons]. Baltimore, Md. [bound from]. Boston, Mass. [bound to]. Total [loss]. Coal [cargo]. 8 [lives lost]. At sea….”

“Date of disaster. 1888…Mar. 11. Lavinia North. Am. sc. 21 [tons]. Lying at anchor… 2 [lives lost]. Off Hill’s Point, Md., Chesapeake Bay. Vessel capsized in a hurricane.”

“Date of disaster. 1888…Mar. 12. Margaret A. May. Am. sc. 537 [tons]. Charleston, S.C. [bound from]. Baltimore, Md. [bound to]…At sea. Washed overboard by a heavy sea.”

(United States Life-Saving Service. Annual Report for the Operations of the United States Life-Saving Service for the Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 1888. Washington, DC: GPO, 1889, 443.)

Connecticut:

“New York, March 16. – The Sun has a dispatch from New Haven, received by the steamer Elm City, containing the following information: Not a train is moving on any railroad in Connecticut and telegraphic communication between Hew Haven and the outside world was cut off at an early stage of the storm and has not been restored. Reports are received of terrible suffering in the towns and villages throughout the State, especially on the coast. The greatest loss of life was in all probability along the shore of Long Island Sound. In New Haven up to eleven o’clock yesterday morning, seven deaths from exposure had been reported, the victims being working people. Three girls employed in the Candee Rubber Company’s works lost their lives in large drifts on St. John Street. They left their work during the storm and perished in their attempt to reach their homes. Michael Haggerty, of Fair Haven, and John Nettleton, a brass-worker, were also frozen to death. Thomas Cook, aged eighteen, became intoxicated on Monday night and froze to death on his way home. Three school teachers are reported missing, it is feared that they have lost their lives. There are at least twenty deaths from exposure reported from surrounding towns.

“At some places the school houses are still occupied by teachers and children, who are suffering greatly from lack of food. Reports from Bridgeport, Norwalk, Danbury, Rockville and Waterbury are all to the same effect, and the blockade on railroads and highways is complete in every direction.

“The passengers on board the steamer New Haven, which left for New York at three o’clock Monday morning, had a most thrilling experience. There were twenty-five passengers on board, two of whom were women. As the steamer proceeded down the harbor the storm grew furious and those on board became terribly frightened. The gale increased in violence, and when ten miles out on the Sound, Captain Post let go his anchors. Huge waves swept over the steamer, washing everything movable from the decks and demolishing the cabin furniture. The anchors were kept out until four o’clock Monday afternoon, when the strain on the steamer became so great that the Captain decided that the only hope for safety was to beach her. She was headed for the shore and struck at about seven o’clock. The boats were manned and all hands ordered to make for the shore, which was still about 300 yards distant. The passengers huddled into the boats and a safe landing was made. The real sufferings of the party then began. The thermometer was down to zero, and nothing but deserted summer cottages were seen. One of these was broken into, and the half frozen men, carrying the women in their arms, found temporary shelter. The banisters and staircases were torn down and fires started. No food could be found and twelve of the strongest men volunteered to brave the storm in search of assistance. This party traveled three miles in the face of the furious storm. When they reached a farm-house all of them were completely prostrated; ten of them had their hands and feet badly frozen; while the other two escaped with frozen faces and ears. No one would venture to the relief of those in the cottage for fear of losing their own lives. The conditions of the party left behind must be deployable. They have been in the deserted cottage for sixty hours without food. A party of men will try to reach them with provisions this morning….” (Dunkirk Observer, NY. “The Deadly Blizzard,” Mar 16, 1888, p. 1.)

McCain: “By the time the storm ended on March 14, most of Connecticut was covered with at least twenty inches of snow. Fifty inches – more than four feet – fell at Middletown. That was the highest amount recorded anywhere in Connecticut, and it tied with Saratoga Springs, New York, for the heaviest snowfall anywhere in the storm’s path….Many a train was derailed in the effort to break through the wall of white….” (McCain. It Happened in Connecticut. “The Great Blizzard of 1888,” 2008, p. 105.)

Delaware

March 14: “Philadelphia, March 14. – Capt. Hardy Holt of the steam-tug George G. Simpson arrived in this city from the Delaware Breakwater late this afternoon. His boat was sunk in the storm on Sunday night…. [He reported that] three bodies were washed ashore [there] and 27 men are in the hospital with frozen limbs. Two schooners were sunk, 21 vessels are ashore along the beach and 25 are lying inside of the stone piles with signals of distress flying…” (NYT. “Suffering in the Storm. Dreadful Experiences of Steam-tug Men,” March 15, 1888.)

March 16: “Lewes, Del., March 16. – The result of the storm at Delaware breakwater is summed up as follows: More than a dozen lives have been lost. Twenty-six vessels were totally or partially wrecked…” (Dunkirk Observer, NY. “The Deadly Blizzard,” Mar 16, 1888, 1.)

March 30: “Wilmington, Del., March 30. – The bodies of two men, supposed to be victims of the blizzard, are reported as washed ashore on the river bank below the Wilmington and Northwester pier.” (Galveston Daily News (TX). “Victims of the Blizzard,” March 31, 1888, p. 3.)

Maryland

March 14, NYT: “Baltimore, March 14. – Baltimore has been so completely isolated that it has been impossible to get any news dispatches to New-York….The storm struck Baltimore Sunday night. It has been raging ever since, although this morning the outlook is more favorable. Sunday afternoon the wind was 13 miles an hour; by 10 o’clock that night it was coming from the north-west at the rate of 24 miles. Monday the mercury went down from 31 [degrees] to 18 [degrees], and the wind blew 33 miles an hour. Yesterday it came at the rate of 32 miles, and the mercury fell to 12 [degrees]….The damage has been principally confined to the railroads and the commerce on the Chesapeake. Nearly 500 telegraph poles were blown down between here and Philadelphia. Most of them were across the track….

“The snow over the State is from five to twelve feet deep. On the Chesapeake Bay the damage has been great. It will be a week before the full returns are in, but from details it looks as if a hundred vessels are in distress, most of them being sloops and small schooners.

“It is impossible to say how great the loss of life has been. Three ocean steamships and three bay steamers have arrived, and all say they never knew anything like it before…All of the incoming boats looked like monster cakes of ice….

“It is reported at Cambridge that the brig I. Logan is sunk off Castle Haven, in the Chop-tank, and that two men were drowned. Capt. Leonard says about one-third of the trees in Cambridge are blown down. The roads through the county are impassable.

“The northwester blew all the water out of the harbor, so that the tide was from six to eight feet lower than the usual tide. The steamboats and other craft tied up to the wharves were lying flat on their bottoms and under many of the piers there was no water at all.

“In all respects the storm exceed anything known here for many years.” (NYT. “Enormous Damage Done…in Maryland,” March 15, 1888.)

March 16, Dunkirk Observer: “Baltimore, March 16. – The storm which began on Sunday morning last, did immense damage to small vessels on Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. The news of the disasters is just beginning to come in. All along the bay the shores are strewn with wreckage and stranded pungies and oyster schooners. The same condition of affairs is reported in the various rivers tributary to the bay….The bodies of six dredgers were found on the shores of the Great Annemessex, and it is reported that a large number of men have been drowned.” (Dunkirk Observer, NY. “Chesapeake Bay Lined With Wrecks,” March 16, 1888, p. 1.)

Massachusetts:

Massachusetts Moments: “March 11, 1888 – On this day…in 1888, ordinary life in Massachusetts came to a standstill. One of the most destructive blizzards ever to strike the East Coast raged for 36 hours. Called “the White Hurricane,” the storm produced a combination of blinding snow, deep drifts, driving wind, and severe cold. Big cities were especially hard hit. In Springfield, Worcester, and Boston, food supplies soon ran low. So did heat, for most homes were warmed by coal-fired stoves. Coal moved by rail, and trains were not moving….

“Men and women with factory jobs were more severely affected. They had no job security; if they failed to make it to work, they were docked a day’s pay and risked being fired. People died trying to get to work. In North Adams, a mill worker on his way home was found just a short distance from the mill, stuck in a drift on Main Street, frozen to death. The local newspaper reported that the wind was so loud that it drowned out his cries for help….

“The disruption caused by the storm persuaded city officials to invest in underground utilities and transportation. The Boston subway system, the nation’s first, was one positive outcome of the Blizzard of 1888….” (Massachusetts Moments, Blizzard Shuts Down Massachusetts, March 11, 1888)

March 18, Tyrone Daily Herald, PA: “Boston, March 18. – The snow blockade on the New England railroads has been finally raised to-day, after the employment of 5,000 men for nearly a week in clearing the tracks. There were 140 trains snowed up, two-thirds of them freight and one-third passenger, with five theatrical companies on board. The loss of life by the storm was: Frozen, 35, killed by railroad accidents, 10; drowned in shipwrecks, 10. Twenty-eight vessels were wrecked and 1,200 manufacturing establishments and over 250,000 workmen were idle for a week.” (Tyrone Daily Herald (PA). March 19, 1888, 1.)

New Hampshire

March 16, NYT: “New-Hampshire had an experience such as had not befallen the Granite State for 40 years before. Snow fell from Monday noon until Tuesday morning, and all highways and railroads were blocked. Concord had never been so completely cut off from telegraphic communication with Boston and other cities in the State….The Northern [Rail] Road was completely snow-bound….Trains were at a stand-still all over the State….” (New York Times. “New England’s Hard Time,” March 16, 1888.)

New Jersey

March 14, NYT: “Trenton, March 14. – This city has been isolated from the world for 60 hours….There were this morning over 1,000 delayed passengers here. Every hotel has been overcrowded, and many of the snow-bound strangers were compelled to throw themselves on the hospitality of private citizens.

“For the first time in the history of the State there has been no session of the Legislature on account of a storm….

“No money and no work and depleted provisions have undoubtedly made a thousand people in this city suffer terribly. All business has been at a standstill….” (NYT. “Trenton Heard From; Much Suffering for Want of Food in New Jersey’s Capital,” 15 March 1888.)

March 15, NYT: “New-Brunswick, N.J., March 15. – The storm here has not been exceeded in 40 years. Great drifts of snow a dozen feet high blocked travel throughout the town, and business was entirely suspended. The public schools and factories were closed, and none of the public buildings were opened except the newspaper offices, and one of them – the Times – had some difficulty in getting out a paper, as all their compositors are girls. The city was shut off from all communication with the outside world.

“Henry Henrihan of Raritan Township left Milltown on Monday morning to go home. He was somewhat intoxicated at the time, and has not been heard of since. When the neighbors went to his house to inform Mrs. Henrihan of her husband’s probable death in a snowdrift they found the woman in bed dead from cold and hunger, and her children half starved and frozen.

“Boynton Bach, the cook of one of the schooners, froze to death in the rigging. He had gone aloft, and his disappearance was not noticed.

“John Thomas, a milkman of Piscataway, near Plainfield, started on Monday morning to his home, nearly six miles from town, and has not been heard of since….” (NYT. “Lost in Snowdrifts,” 16 March 1888.)

New York City:

Gunn: “New York City was shut down by the blizzard. Telegraph lines collapsed due to the weight of ice. Communication was knocked out internally, as well as the long distance lines from Boston to Philadelphia. Food and fuel were scarce. There was little refrigeration in 1888, so fresh food was brought into the city every day. Transportation of needed food supplies was impossible for several days. People wandered the streets searching for shops that might still have coal so they could hear their homes. About 35 inches of snow fell throughout New York City. Seven-foot drifts were common, and in many locations there were drifts of 30 feet or more that completely covered homes. In a few places, three-story buildings disappeared under snow. New York’s Central Park Observatory reported a minimum temperature of 6 [degrees] F and a maximum of 9 [degrees] F on March 13.” (Gunn, Angus. A Student Guide to Climate and Weather: Weather Extremes. 2009, 38-39.)

Hevesi: “…the blizzard of March 11, 1888 remains the most famous [blizzard to hit NYC]. That one blew into town late on a Sunday, after a balmy Saturday followed by heavy rain had set New York to thinking of the spring that seemed just around the corner. There was no hint of the snow that later dropped 20.9 inches in New York City and up to 50 inches farther north and east, or the 85-mile-an-hour gusts that fostered drifts towering up to 20 feet.

“About 200 people were found dead in the days and weeks following the storm, most of them frozen under mountainous snowbanks in the city, and an equal number were believed to have perished elsewhere. A hundred or more ships were wrecked.” (Hevesi. “The Blizzard of ’93…” NYT, March 14, 1993.)

History.com: “New York City ground to a near halt in the face of massive snow drifts and powerful winds from the storm….Despite drifts that reached the second story of some buildings, many city residents trudged out to New York’s elevated trains to go to work, only to find many of them blocked by snow drifts and unable to move. Up to 15,000 people were stranded on the elevated trains; in many areas, enterprising people with ladders offered to rescue the passengers for a small fee. In addition to the trains, telegraph lines, water mains and gas lines were also located above ground. Each was no match for the powerful blizzard, freezing and then becoming inaccessible to repair crews. Simply walking the streets was perilous. In fact, only 30 people out of 1,000 were able to make it to the New York Stock Exchange for work; Wall Street was forced to close for three straight days. There were also several instances of people collapsing in snow drifts and dying, including Senator Roscoe Conkling, New York’s Republican Party leader.

“Many New Yorkers camped out in hotel lobbies waiting for the worst of the blizzard to pass. Mark Twain was in New York at the time and was stranded at his hotel for several days. P.T. Barnum entertained some of the stranded at Madison Square Garden. The East River, running between Manhattan and Queens, froze over, an extremely rare occurrence. This inspired some brave souls to cross the river on foot, which proved a terrible mistake when the tides changed and broke up the ice, stranding the adventurers on ice floes. Overall, about 200 people were killed by the blizzard in New York City alone.” (History.com. This Day in History, Disaster, March 11, 1888. Great Blizzard of `88.)

Keller: “…the legendary Blizzard of ’88. It is probable that no inhabitants of the area that is now New York, going all the way back to the Lenape Indians, ever had so hellacious an experience of winter as the New Yorkers of March 1888 did. It wasn’t so much the 21 inches of snow, a total surpassed not just last February but also on Dec. 26-27, 1947 (26.4 inches). It was more the winds gusting as high as 85 miles an hour and the single-digit temperatures, and of course the fact that the late-19th-century metropolis simply wasn’t sturdy enough to withstand the onslaught, the likes of which it could never have imagined….

“Written accounts of the Blizzard of ’88, which killed about 100 people in New York and 300 elsewhere, reveal a basic way in which people were different then. When New Yorkers woke up on the morning of Monday, March 12, and beheld what was clearly an awful and even dangerous day to go out — snow rapidly accumulating in big drifts, winds gusting at gale force, temperature in the low 20s and dropping — most of them seem not to have given much thought to staying home. They did not have radios, of course, and could not really have known how much worse things were going to get. Beyond that, though, job protection and workers’ benefits were essentially unheard of. People were afraid, and rightly so, that if they didn’t show up for work, they would lose not just a day’s pay but their livelihood. By that afternoon, New York had become virtually cut off from the rest of the world. The telephone, telegraph, electrical and fire alarm wires strung so precariously above the streets tumbled down. Service on the four elevated train lines was all but knocked out, stranding thousands.

“Horse-drawn streetcars ground to a halt in the snow and were abandoned, a blessing to the homeless and the lost who took refuge in them. Horses got stuck in the massive drifts and froze to death, only their heads visible above the drifts….” (Keller. “Long-Ago Snow,” New York Times, Dec 31, 2006.)

New York Times, 1895: “….In both this city [NY] and Brooklyn several persons died from exposure, and numerous injuries to others were reported. George D. Baremore, one of the best known men in the hop business in this city, was dug out of a big snowdrift in front of 826 Seventh Avenue. It was supposed that he had succumbed to the cold and the storm while on his way home. Five other persons died from exposure in this city on the day succeeding the blizzard. It was not until Wednesday afternoon that New-York began to recover from the effects of the blizzard. Tuesday’s experiences were like Monday’s. By Wednesday the city was in danger of a food famine. No milk was at hand, fish and eggs were scarce and commanded fancy prices, while meat was difficult to get up town, owing to the blockade of the streets in the vicinity of the markets and wholesale provision dealers.

“The commercial loss, the consequent loss, and the actually pecuniary outlay entailed by the blizzard in this city were variously estimated at from $10,000,000 to $15,000,000. It was fully a week before the city had entirely recovered from the effects of the storm and had regained its normal appearance.” (NYT. “The Big Blizzard of 1888,” Feb 10, 1895.)

Shepard: “The blizzard hit town early on Monday, March 10, after a balmy Saturday and drizzly Sunday that had set New York to thinking of the spring that seemed just around the corner. There was no hint of the snow that would pile up to a height – or depth -of almost 21 inches in 3 days, accompanied by winds that gusted to 85 miles an hour and caused drifts that towered to 20 feet. The subzero temperature brought ice from the Hudson into the normally warmer East River, and hundreds of people walked between Brooklyn and Manhattan.” (Shepard. “Recalling the Blizzard of 1888,” New York Times, Jan 14, 1988.)

Newspapers on New York City (at the time)

March 13, The World, NYC: “New York was visited yesterday by one of those storms which have heretofore been supposed to be peculiar to sections of the country much further west. New Yorkers have read of the blizzards which devastate the plains of Wyoming and Colorado and destructively sweep the meadows of Minnesota, but until yesterday it was believed that this city was by nature excepted from the possibility of such cruel visitations. It can no longer be denied, however, that New York has had a genuine Western blizzard, and this blizzard has accomplished what no blizzard ever did before. It has not, happily, occasioned so large a loss of life as has occurred through similar storms on the frontier, but the money loss which has been entailed by it is beyond the comprehension of people living in blizzard countries proper.

“The Sergeant in charge of the Signal Office reported this morning that sixteen inches of snow had fallen since the beginning of the blizzard, and the end had not yet come. A warm wave, he said, might be expected within two days, but the probabilities are that there will be but slight abatement in the storm today. The wind yesterday attained a velocity of forty-eight miles an hour, and the lowest temperature that had been reached in this city during the storm is 10 degrees above zero.

“It has been thus far the greatest storm that this section of the country has ever known. The one striking tragic feature was an accident on the elevated road, described in detail further on, but to thousands of the wage-workers of New York there was more of tragedy than comedy about the storm in all respects. For the first time in its history every elevated and surface road in the city was for a time effectually tied up. Telegraph and telephone wires were down, few trains arrived from any point, and when night came Broadway and many of the city’s street were left in darkness through the failure of the electric lights.

“The suffering and hardship which this condition of affairs was bound to occasion need be explained to no one. It was an almost unparalleled condition of affairs, as it was an almost unparalleled storm. The blizzard reached New York in two sections, one coming from the west and one from further south. The vortex was established in the Middle States, and New York has come in for the heavy share of the punishment.

“From midnight of Sunday [March 11] to midnight of Monday this blizzard completely paralyzed the life-blood of the city and turned its avocations into a by-word and a farce. Business stood still and millions of money were the damages….

“At 7 A.M. the wind was sprinting down from the northwest at forty miles an hour and the temperature was 24 degrees above zero….

“It [the blizzard] coated the telegraph wires with tons of ice, until they snapped beneath the strain and came curling down to plague the legs of horses and pedestrians. It coated the windows with curtains of snow, tore awnings to ribbons, and sent puffs of feathe4ry blizzard into every crack and crevice in door and window. It turned huge winrows of exasperation over the sidewalks and car tracks and banked vehicles in ever-changing but never lessening hummocks. Deeper and deeper every moment, but drifts soon put an estoppel upon traffic that was not to be denied. Loaded wagons stopped first, then the horse-cars, and finally steam succumbed; and the spindle-shanked railroads briefly called the ‘L’…

“…the mercury, which was 24 degrees at 7, was 16 degrees at 2 P.M. and going lower. Soon there was ice under foot….” (The World, NYC. “We Now Know. New York Has Felt Just What a Blizzard Really Is. The Most Terrible Snowstorm Ever Known Here.” 3-13-1888, p. 1.)

March 14, NYT: “Fortunately the deaths from exposure in Monday’s terrific storm were comparatively few – fewer in fact than there was good reason for supposing they would be. Of the dozen or more reported at the Coroners’ office yesterday most were in Coroner Levy’s district, and he was a busy man until long after nightfall. Many of the cases reported were of persons suffering from organic diseases, and in these the blizzard was responsible for hastening death rather than being the primary cause…. [Notes exposure death of George Baremore; Annie Halpin Fisher “found dead in the hallway…a short distance from her home” [no cause listed]; exposure death of Casper Wenzel’ “Thomas Sullivan, a man of 70…early yesterday started to walk from his home, 50 Madison-street, to the Park. On reaching his destination he was exhausted, and shortly after expired [over-exertion]…” [Total noted here comes to four.] (NYT. “Deaths and Accidents. Some Fatalities…, March 14, 1888.)

March 15: “….The blizzard has disappeared beyond the bounds of the eastern horizon. The railroads begin to show signs of breaking the blockage. The local transportation lines are improving their condition. The telegraph and telephone wires are being repaired. The snow is fast disappearing. Food prospects are hourly brightening, as a result of an improved outlook for transportation facilities.

“The barometrical prospect, too, is cheering. Sergt. Dunn, in charge of the local signal service station, told a World reporter last evening that the indications pointed to either rain or snow, with the percentage in favor of the former….The temperature at 8 P.M. was 38 and it has not moderated much since….

“Communication with the outside world has been partially suspended for three days, and so great was the demand for news that The World was called upon to break the blockade through the agency of its snow-shoe brigade, the result whereof will be found elsewhere. Now, however, the prospects for communication are improving. The Pennsylvania Company started the first mail train for Philadelphia yesterday, and today the Post Office officials hope to get more mails out. The only mails in since Sunday up to last night were one pouch received from the Harlem road, seven from the Pennsylvania road, and one each from Newark and Easton, but more were expected during the night from the Pennsylvania road…..There is no prospect of any New England mails getting in for a day or two at least….

“The telegraph service is also improving, but will not entirely recover from the effects of the storm in less than a week….

“The elevated roads are all running as usual, and find no difficulty carrying all passengers. The surface roads are not running any through cars, although several of them are running short distances….Today probably all or nearly all of the surface lines will be running, and several of them have good prospects of reaching the extremes of their lines.

“The streets in every section of the city are still piled many feet high with snow which has been divided up into thousands of separate mounds by the road and foot ways carved through them, and in many places the banks are so high as to obscure the pedestrian’s views of objects beyond. Some of the streets have been partially cleared of snow, and the sidewalks have, as a rule, been freed, thus enabling pedestrians to move about more readily, but the snow turned to slush very fast yesterday and provided another grievance for those compelled to walk….

“Only one vessel was being loaded and one unloaded in the East River, and about the same state of affairs existed along the Hudson….” (The World, NYC. “Resurgam! New York Emerging From Its Snow-bound Isolation.” 3-15-1888, p. 1.)

March 16: “Under the azure of an almost Italian sky, and with the ground-hog’s gloriously predicted sun blazing away wrathfully from dawn to dusk, New York made much progress yesterday in the good work of recovering from and forgetting the late unpleasantness….

“Many of the streets had not been broken by a wheel since Monday.. Hummocks and hills and valleys and plains of snow lay just as the wind had blown it, save for the added heaps shoveled from sidewalk and area. In some of the cross streets monster drifts uprose to twice a man’s height, and it will be long before the sun finds the cobble-stones beneath them….” (The World, NYC. “The City Thawing Out…All Danger of a Famine Past….” 3-16-1888, p. 1.)

March 30, Hornellsville Weekly Tribune, NY: “New York has been visited by the deadly blizzard and will not soon forget it. The vast machinery of the great city was stopped short by the storm, and the consequent financial loss was enormous. There was much suffering too, and some loss of life, but the prevailing sentiment appears to be that the period during which the metropolis was snowed in was one great playtime. Of course other parts of the eastern portion of the United States suffered too, and as severely in some places as New York, but there it was the greatest novelty. One metropolitan ambassador sends us the following, written after the city had to some extent thrown off her robe of snow.

The blizzard was not so fierce as those which sweep over the northwest section of the country, but sweeping down as it did on the thickly populated district it did immense damage. The streets of New York are, comparatively speaking, narrow. The snow came down and virtually filled them. Horse cars which had started on their routes were stopped and abandoned by their drivers. The snow piled up around them and they presented a picture of absolute desolation. Elevated trains got stuck between stations and kept their inmates imprisoned for hours. They laughed and joked and made the best of it. Men with an eye for business got ladders and charged all the way from ten to fifty cents to let the passengers down to the street below….One man who was the owner of a skiff harnessed a horse to it and drove about selling coal. The boys called his craft the “Mayflower.”….

(Hornellsville Weekly Tribune, NY. “New York in a Blizzard,” March 30, 1888, p. 1.)

Pennsylvania

Independence Hall Association of Pennsylvania: “March 11. Commencement of stormy season known as the blizzard. The morning was cloudy. Light rain commenced at 3 P. M. and very heavy rain at 10 P. M. At 11 P. M. the rain changed to snow, and the wind, steadily increasing in violence, soon blew a full gale.

“The 12th of March came in with heavy snowfall and a violent gale, the wind reaching 46 miles an hour and with frequent terrific squalls. Direction of the wind due North; temperature at 15 degrees. During the morning the temperature continued to fall and the wind to rise, but the fall of snow was checked. Owing to the high wind, which attained a velocity at times of 60 miles an hour, the loose snow was blown into enormous drifts. Streets and roads became impassable, all railroad trains were blocked, telegraphic communication was cut off, and a great amount of damage was done by the blowing down of trees and telegraph poles. Chimneys, roofs and other portions of buildings were also damaged in many parts of the city. At noon on the 12th the snow ceased, but the high wins continued all that day and the next.

“The greatest difficulty was experienced outside the city in getting communication in any way. The roads and railway-cuttings were drifted full of snow, through which neither carriages nor trains were able to proceed. Many trains were snowed in and either abandoned or lost in the drifts. The first train to reach the city from New York left the latter place on Monday at 6 A. M., and reached Philadelphia on Thursday at 5 P. M.; the first train from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh reached there on the 15th. There was no telegraphic communication in any direction except to Harrisburg through Norristown and Reading. The long-distance telephone to New York, however, acted admirably throughout the crisis. Business on the 12th was almost entirely suspended; the schools, courts and many places of amusement were closed.

“On the Delaware River and on the coast, especially at the Breakwater, the injury to shipping was very great, especially at the Breakwater, the injury to shipping was very great, over thirty vessels being sunk or stranded, and several of the seamen being drowned.

“On the 13th the blizzard continued, although traveling was to some extent renewed. High winds continued and the temperature was very low, ranging from 8 degrees minimum to 15 degrees maximum. The force of the wind showed a velocity of 47 miles an hour. The wind gradually subsided, and on the 14th the snow began to melt; but several days elapsed before the interrupted travel could be resumed, and the snow lay in sheltered places for several weeks.” (Independence Hall Assoc. in Philadelphia. “Philadelphia Timeline, 1888.”)

March 13, NYT: “Philadelphia, March 13. – Not a train has arrived or departed for New-York since Monday at 8 A.M….There is no telegraphic communication north or east or to Atlantic City or Cape May….The storm is still raging at 19 o’clock to-night….The high winds which prevailed all of yesterday and to-day did considerable damage. Roofs were blown off, trees were uprooted, show-windows were smashed, and the destruction on the river from was great. Numerous deaths were reported by the police caused by freezing.” (NYT. “The Storm Along the Coast. Philadelphia’s Terrible Condition, Several Persons Frozen,” March 14, 1888.)

March 15: “Easton, March 15. There has been no let-up to the blizzard since Sunday night and the snow drifts continue to increase. Engines trying to wade through the drifts have been ditched or are lying across the tracks….Andres Knaussear, a freight brakeman, died Tuesday morning from exposure while signaling a train….” (Dunkirk Observer, NY. “The Storm in PA,” 3-16-1888, 1)

March 15: “Emmaus, March 15. – Peter Jacoby was snowed in on his way from Allentown and overcome by the cold and perished. His body was found yesterday sticking out of a snow-drift, having been exposed by the thaw.” (Dunkirk Observer, NY. “The Storm in Penn.,” 3-16-1888, 1.)

March 16, Dunkirk Observer, NY: “Allentown, Pa., March 16 – A fatal accident occurred at Three Bridges on the New Jersey Central railroad yesterday morning. While five Lehigh Valley engines were trying to push a snow plow through a drift, they collided with a snow-bound train. Theo. Alton, John Ballman, and Fireman F. Derr were killed and half a dozen other persons injured. Richard [unclear], a passenger train brakeman on the Lehigh Valley road, has been missing since Saturday night. He was sent out to flag a train and is supposed to have perished in the storm…” (Dunkirk Observer, NY. “Three Men Killed in a Collision,” Mar 16, 1888, p. 1.)

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