3-65-68

lornajarrettblanchard August 30, 1954

–65-68 Blanchard range.*

— 68 AP. “Hurricanes Have Taken Toll in Past,” Reno Evening Gazette, NV. 9-29-1959, p. 1.
— 68 Wikipedia. “Hurricane Carol.”
— 67 AP. “Severe Storms Hit Hurricane Belt on East Coast.” Journal-Standard, Freeport IL, 9-4-1954, 1.
— 66 Grammatico, Michael A. “Hurricane Carol – August 31, 1954.”
— 65 National Weather Service Forecast Office, Boston, MA. Hurricane Carol…Aug 31, 1954.
— 64 United Press. “Toll in Storm May Reach 64.” Charleroi Mail, PA. 9-3-1954, p. 1.
— 61 Blanchard tally of locality breakouts below (just those deaths we have identified).
–~60 Davis, Walter R. “Hurricanes of 1954.” Monthly Weather Review, December 1954, 370.
— 60 Barnes, Jay. Florida’s Hurricane History. 1998, Appendix, p. 311.
— 60 Dunn and Miller. Atlantic Hurricanes, 1964, 309.
— 60 Hebert/Jarrell/Mayfield. The Deadliest, Costliest…[US] Hurricanes… Feb 1993, p. 80.
— 60 Jarrell et al. The Deadliest, Costliest, and Most Intense United States Hurricanes… 2001.
— 60 Ludlum. The American Weather Book, 1982, p. 175.
— 60 Rappaport and Fernandez-Partagas. The Deadliest Atlantic Tropical Cyclones…, 1995.
— 54 AP. “Hurricane Death Toll Reaches 54 in New England.” Chester Times, PA. 9-2-1954, 2.
— 45 Douglas. Hurricane. 1958, 304.

Summary of State Breakouts Below

Connecticut ( 1)
Maine ( 3)
Massachusetts (32)
New Hampshire ( 3)
New Jersey ( 2)
New York ( 2)
Pennsylvania ( 1)
Rhode Island (17)
Vermont ( 1)
Total: 61

*Though we have been able to identify only sixty-one individual deaths via newspaper searches, we accept, though at the low end of our range, the National Weather Service number of sixty-five. In that the NWS frequently does not include “indirect” deaths in their death tolls (such as electrocutions of utility repairment during clean-up operations, and there were such deaths in the aftermath of Carol), we use as the high-end of our range the number of sixty-eight deaths reported by the Associated Press on September 29, 1959. We are skeptical of all reporting of fewer than sixty-one deaths, and thus exclude from our range.

Breakout of Hurricane Carol Related Fatalities by State and Locality (where noted):

Connecticut ( 1)
— 1 Locale not noted; Heart attack securing boat during height of storm; Herman M. Zarnetake, 55.

Maine ( 3)
— 1 Boothbay Harbor. Drowning; washed overboard near Mosquito Island; Bancroft Beatley.
— 1 Columbia Falls. Vehicular collision; Miss Frances Alward, 60.
— 1 Portland, Rosemont section; Tree falls onto grocery store; Robert Cormier, 44.

Massachusetts (32)
— 1 Attleboro. Died of heart ailment while out in storm; Mrs. Anna C. Sweetland, 76.
— 1 Buzzard’s Bay (off of). Woman reported drowned.
— 1 Dartmouth. Man drowns. AP. “List of Dead in Storm.” Bridgeport Post, CT. 9-1-1954, p. 13.
— 5 East Falmouth, Great Pond. Drownings; Mrs. Walters, 46, Mrs. Winick and 3 children.
–11 Nantucket Island (off of), Davis South Shoal. Fishing boat Redstart breaks-up.
— 1 North Weymouth, off Wessagusset yacht club; man drowns.
— 1 Onset Island. Reported drowning; baby, 10-mo, swept from mother; Sharon Eleanor Crosby.
— 1 Plainville. Apparent heart attack; collapsed, died at wheel of his car; Douglas E. White, 62.
— 2 Swift’s Neck, Wareham. Drowned in cottage; Miss Henrietta H. Berry, 79, Miss Lucy Berry, 55.
— 1 Swift’s Neck Beach, Wareham. Drowning; baby in surf.
— 1 Taylor’s Point, Buzzard’s Bay. Found dead on roof of summer home; Elmer Clapp, 60.
— 1 Westport. Struck by tree limb; Leo Beulieu, 45, of Fall River.
— 3 Westport, Horseneck Beach. AP. “List of Dead in Storm.” Bridgeport Post, CT. 9-1-1954, p. 13.
— 1 Whitman. Hit by windblown sign; George D. Schou, 57.
— 1 Worcester. Blown from 10th floor fire escape on downtown building. Harry R. Davis, 50.

New Hampshire ( 3)
— 1 Concord. Car and National Guard truck collide; Allan E. Warren 43, of Chichester.
— 1 Epping. Tree falls onto car; Norman Bolsvert, 19.
— 1 Jackson, Wildcat River. Drowned; swept off bridge by water; Richard McDonough, 13.

New Jersey ( 2)
— 1 Jersey City. Electrocuted moving downed power line; Joseph Buccafusca, 32.
— 1 Neptune Township. Electrocuted; lineman repairing utility pole line; Willoughby G. Crow, 44.

New York ( 2)
— 1 Cutchogue. Heart attack securing home cellar from Peconic Bay water; Theodore Jung, 62.
— 1 Islip Terrace, Long Island. Electrocution? Long Island Lighting Co. repair worker.

Pennsylvania ( 1)
— 2 Coatesville. Train hits tractor; Gene Van Buskirk, 13, and brother Robert Buskirk, 15.

Rhode Island (17)
–17 Blanchard tally of fatalities based on locality breakouts below.
Breakout of Rhode Island storm-related fatalities based on locality breakouts below.
–1 Bristol harbor. Drowned while trying to secure a boat; Mrs. Pauline Hertel.
–1 Cranston. “…killed when blown off roof in Cranston by wind.” William Hervey.
–1 East Matunuck. Drowning; girl about six.
–1 Galilee. Drowning; unidentified man. AP. “List of Dead in Storm.” Bridgeport Post, CT. 9-1-1954, 13.
–1 Galilee. Drowning; woman, about 68. AP. “List of Dead in Storm.” Bridgeport Post, CT. 9-1-1954, 13.
–1 Jamestown. Drowned when car washed off road by storm surge; Navy Ensign Thomas O. Farrey, Jr.
–1 Newport. Drowning at summer home of employer William Van Alens; Miss Maud Hefner.
–1 Newport. Drowning at summer home of employer William Van Alens; Frank McGoldrick.
–1 Newport. Drowning at summer home of employer William Van Alens; Barbara Silver.
–2 Portsmouth, near Island Park. Drownings; unidentified persons.
–1 South Kingston, near Potter bridge. Drowned; RI State Trooper Daniel J. O’Brien.
–1 Warwick. Drowned while trying to save a boat; Richard Marsland, 47.
–2 Warwick, Oakland Beach. Drowned at summer cottage; Francesco & Catherine Gallo, 72.
–1 Warwick. Drowning; capsized boat; John W. Beland, 34.
–1 Warwick. Unexplained death “attributed to the hurricane.” Matthew S. Jackson, 69.

Vermont ( 1)
— 1 Hartland. Car hits tree; Mrs. Mary Payeur, 60.

Canada ( 2)
— 1 Quebec City. Drowning when barge sank; Charles Laroque, 50.
— 1 Ste. Agathe, Quebec. Auto collision;; Mrs. Sarah Cramer, 39.

Narrative Information

Davis: “Hurricane Carol brushed the North Carolina coast and moved rapidly northward and inland into the New England States, causing about 60 casualties and a loss in excess of $460 million to property, crops, etc., in the North Atlantic States….

“Carol, August 26-31. — Hurricane Carol formed from a weak easterly wave during the night of August. 26 and the forenoon of the 27th near the northeastern Bahama Islands. After forming it. moved northward to a position near 30° N., 76° W., where. it came to a near standstill, but during the ensuing 3 days it drifted very slowly to about 32.5° N., 77.5° W. on the 30th. It then began an accelerating north-northeast movement and passed very near Cape Hatteras about 2100 or 2200 EST on the 30th. Highest winds, estimated by reconnaissance aircraft, varied from 75 to 125 m. p. h. When the hurricane passed the North Carolina Capes, with all reporting stations on the weaker side, the west, highest wind speeds on land were gusts of 55 m. p. h. at Wilmington. 65 m. p. h. at Cherry Point, and 90 to 100 m. p. h. at Cape Hatteras. Damage in North Carolina was estimated at $227,500 with no deaths.

“By the morning of the 31st Carol was just south of Long Island and moving rapidly north-northeastward. It crashed across the New England States diminishing as it swept into Canada. Highest winds were at Block Island, R. I., where 130 m, p. Ii, was measured in gusts. The storm left 60 dead and over $460 million damage to property and crops in the North Atlantic States. About one-third of Providence, R. I., was under 8-10 feet of water for several hours and many shore communities were demolished.” Davis, Walter R. “Hurricanes of 1954.” Monthly Weather Review, December 1954, 370.

Douglas: “Carol `54 was nowhere near as bad a hurricane [for Long Island] as the `38 chiefly because Carol came over Long Island with an ebbing tide. Winds at 120 miles per hour were feeling out Block Island as the surf exploded higher up the beaches of Martha’s Vineyard. The sea seemed to swell up over the land. Ponds were salt water. Salt water rose in the streets of Oak Bluffs. Gay Head was cut off. Vineyard Haven, West Chop, Edgartown and especially Menemsha were crushed by winds and heaped with a wet smash of wreckage.

“Hurricane Carol was widening out her great course to 100 miles as she moved at 11 A.M. to the mainland, from New London, Connecticut, to the Cape Cod canal. Her center was at Saybrook. But there had been no word yet of hurricanes. The Weather Bureau, the afternoon before, had warned there would be abnormal northeast gales and abnormal tides….

The hurricane wave crested up Narragansett Bay on the high tide, now, to hit Misquamicutt Beach with a force that swept away two hundred houses. In Newport, the famous old Casino collapsed. Three men in a car on an ocean-front estate were drowned…. Warwick was damaged more than in `38. In South Kingston, eight carloads of people who had fled from their cottages were stranded and many were drowned. Westerly and Watch Hill were overwhelmed by a 35-foot wave. The center of Providence – automobiles, busses and buildings – was flooded almost to the `38 marks.

“The long narrow harbor of New Bedford under the winds and gray waves was a jumble of broken boats, docks, yachts, draggers, sailboats, trawlers, tugs and houses. Old men and babies died. Fishermen were washed off the scalloper Redstart and drowned…. A dead baby was seen floating offshore, too far to be reached. Wareham main street stores burned even as the sea flooded to the ceilings….

“The vast whirling funnel of the storm ground its winds over the face of Massachusetts… the wooden spire of the Old North Church…cracked louder than the storm, and shuddered and heeled over and fell. The first spire, where the lantern had been hung to alert Paul Revere, had been knocked down exactly 150 years before, in the great New England hurricane of 1804….

“The coast of Maine had no warnings…. As Carol went on into Canada, flooding everything but gradually losing strength, she left behind her forty-five dead and millions of dollars’ worth of damage.” (Douglas 1958, 304)

Grammatico: “Hurricane Carol is the most destructive tropical cyclone to hit the northeast Atlantic states since the 1938 hurricane. With the exception of the 1938 hurricane…Carol is the most destructive hurricane to strike Connecticut, Rhode Island, and southeastern Massachusetts since the 1869 hurricane. Carol is the last major hurricane (category 3 or greater) to strike Rhode Island or Connecticut. Carol had nearly the same effect in the northeast states as the 1938 hurricane sixteen-years earlier…only the swath of destruction was shifted 50-miles east. This was due to the fact that Carol made landfall further east than the 38 hurricane. Thus, western Long Island and western Connecticut experienced little damage from Carol… while the areas from New London, Connecticut to Cape Cod suffered damage nearly as bad as in 1938. To this day (2009)… Hurricane Carol is still considered the most damaging hurricane in Massachusetts history.

“Hurricane Carol developed from an area of disturbed weather east of the southern Bahamas on August 25, 1954. The area of disturbed weather quickly became a tropical storm by August 27…and was officially classified as a hurricane while east of Florida late on 27 August. Caught in a weak upper level steering environment… ship reports indicated the storm was drifting slowly just to the north of the Bahamas between August 27 and late on August 29th. Early on August 30th, a deepening trough elongated along the coast from South Carolina to Canadian. The storm quickly became caught in this strong southerly flow and turned northeast with increasing forward speed toward the northeast Atlantic states.

“By midnight on August 30th, Carol’s western edge was brushing the North Carolina Outer Banks. Forecasters issued hurricane warnings for the North Atlantic States from New Jersey to Maine as Carol swept past Cape Hatteras. Carol’s overnight acceleration left residents and vacationers the task of making hasty preparations for the storm in darkness…adding to the confusion and fear of residents and vacationers. At 8:37 am the next morning (August 31st), Air Force Hurricane Hunters located the center of Carol less than 100-miles south of eastern Long Island. The recon aircraft measured sustained winds of 115-mph and a barometric pressure of 28.37 inches (964-mb) about 40-miles southwest of eye of Carol. Around 9:30 am…Carol made landfall across the twin forks of Long Island, then moved into eastern Connecticut with the “eye” reported over Groton, Connecticut just after 10:00 am. This path put the area from southeastern Connecticut to southeastern Massachusetts … once again was in the damaging eastern half of a tropical cyclone….

“At the time of landfall on far eastern Long Island and the eastern Connecticut coast, the sustained winds in Carol were around 110- mph, with gusts in the 125 to 135-mph range. Like the 1938 hurricane… Carol accelerated northward from Virginia to Long Island. The combination of 110-mph sustained winds and a forward speed of near 40-mph… produced some of the strongest wind gusts ever measured in the North Atlantic states. Montauk Point Lighthouse reported gusts to 120-mph. Along the eastern Connecticut coast, from Saybrook Point to Groton Long Point, wind gusts over 100-mph were reported. Wind gusts of 120 to 135-mph blasted across Southern Rhode Island as the state was hit squarely by the damaging eastern half of the tropical cyclone. The T.F. Green State Airport (near Narragansett Bay, RI) reported sustained winds of 90-mph, with gusts to 115-mph…while Block Island, RI reported sustained winds of 100- mph with a gust to 135-mph….

“Hurricane Carol produced storm surge of 8 to 13-feet across the Rhode Island, eastern Connecticut, and southeastern Massachusetts coastlines. Although Carol’s storm surge were at least 3 to 5-feet lower than the 38 hurricane, some locations reported record tidal surges. Just as in 1938 – Carol arrived close to the time of high tide. Observers in Montauk, Long Island reported that the ocean completely crossed the Montauk highway, cutting off the far eastern tip of Long Island for a time. On Shore Road, the main coastal road along the beach in Westerly, Rhode Island, tides up to 13-feet above mean water were estimated. The water rose to within 1-foot of the record high water line on the Plaque at the Old Market House in Downtown Providence commemorating the Great 1938 Hurricane – 12.9-feet above mean water. In Connecticut, the storm surge was severe east of the Connecticut River. A tidal measurement of 8-feet above m.s.l was recorded at the Groton Railroad Station. From White Sands Beach in Old Lyme eastward tides were estimated at 8 to 10 feet above m.s.l….

“Southern Rhode Island bore the brunt of Hurricane Carol’s fury. Carol’s winds tore roofs off hundreds of buildings, downed thousands of trees and power lines, and littered roads and rail lines with a mountain of debris. Many buildings in the Westerly/Charlestown area lost their roofing during the height of the storm – forcing many to scurry to secondary shelter in severe weather conditions. In Warwick, the roof of a large apartment complex was blown off…exposing 165 people to the elements all at once. Power was lost by 600,000 Rhode Islanders (85% of the State).

“The storm surge was even more destructive from Watch Hill to Point Judith. Carol crossed the coast close to the time of high tide. A storm-surge of 10 to 13-feet swamped many barrier island and tidal communities across Rhode Island. Hundreds of summer cottages were swept away. Green Hill and Matantuck had homes swept a half mile inland from their foundations. From Westerly to Newport – the combined effects of wind and water destroyed more than 5,000 buildings. The storm tide raced up the Pawcatuck River flooding the business sections of Westerly. Storm surge flooding was also severe along the shores of Narragansett Bay, as Bristol and Jamestown had hundreds of structures destroyed….

“In Connecticut, while the western half of the state suffered almost no damage at all from Carol – southeastern Connecticut was once again pounded mercilessly. From Saybrook, through the Lymes, to New London and Mystic, wind gusts of well over 100-mph and tides 8- feet above m.s.l damaged or destroyed thousands of buildings. Many homes in southeastern Connecticut had roofing damage due to large falling trees. In the Lymes, many beach cottages were flooded, some completely swept away into the ocean. While in the Groton/Long Point area, 50 homes and the Casino Building were submerged at the height of the storm. Carol pounded the City of New London – the harbor and docks were in shambles after the storm, with hundreds of boats smashed and thrown onto coastal roads. Shorefront restaurants and business had glass shattered and heavy flooding – with losses in the millions. Up the Thames River in Norwich, river flooding and tree damage was some of the worst on record. After the cyclone, along with many sections of Rhode Island, Connecticut used martial law to strictly enforce a dusk to dawn curfew….

“To this day…Hurricane Carol remains the most damaging hurricane in Massachusetts history. Around New Bedford and Buzzards Bay, the scene was one of devastation. Tides in Buzzards Bay reached their highest known levels since records were kept. The massive storm surge swept away cottages and destroyed the many small boatyards along both ends of Buzzards Bay. Along the Outer Cape, a storm -surge of at least 13-feet above m.s.l (along with 10-foot waves) created a 20-foot wall over water that swept away buildings, homes, cottages, and business. Weeks after the storm, piles of wreckage could be seen for miles along Route 6 in southeastern Massachusetts.

“As Carol raced northward past Providence and Cape Cod…the Boston area was hit worse than in 1938. Near 12:00 noon Carol swept over the Boston…bring the city the worst hurricane conditions since 1869. Wind gusts over 100-mph sent trees, traffic lights…even the steeple of the Old North Church… crashed into city streets. An estimated 500,000 people in the Boston area lost power during Carol. Although most tropical cyclones lose their intensity when they reach this far north…Carol still produced hurricane-force gusts well into New England; In Concord, New Hampshire, city hall recorded gusts to 70-mph…while the Augusta, Maine State Airport measured 80-mph peak gusts as the weakening tropical storm passed through. Carol finally died over the cool forests of Canada on September 1st.” (Grammatico, Michael A. “Hurricane Carol – August 31, 1954.”)

Ludlum: “Hurricane Carol swept eastern New England; Providence inundated; 60 lives lost; $450 million damage.” (Ludlum. The American Weather Book, 1982, p. 175.)

NWS FO, Boston: “On the morning of August 31, Hurricane Carol, the most destructive hurricane to strike Southern New England since the Great New England Hurricane of 1938, came crashing ashore near Old Saybrook, Connecticut, leaving 65 people dead in her wake. Carol had developed in the Bahamas several days earlier, making only slow progress northward. Carol began her rapid acceleration during the evening of August 30, while passing just east of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. Carol made landfall on eastern Long Island and southeastern Connecticut about 12 hours later, moving at over 35 mph.

“Sustained winds of 80 to 100 mph roared through the eastern half of Connecticut, all of Rhode Island, and most of eastern Massachusetts. Scores of trees and miles of power lines were blown down. Strong winds also devastated crops in the region. Nearly 40 percent of apple, corn, peach, and tomato crops were ruined from eastern Connecticut to Cape Cod. Several homes along the Rhode Island shore had roofs blown completely off due to winds which gusted to over 125 mph. The strongest wind ever recorded on Block Island, Rhode Island occurred during Carol when winds gusted to 135 mph. The National Weather Service in Warwick, Rhode Island recorded sustained winds of 90 mph, with a peak gust of 105 mph. Lowest recorded pressure was at Suffolk County Airport on the south shore of Long Island with a reading of 28.36. Block Island reported 28.51 while Quonset Airport in North Kingstown, Rhode Island reported 28.72.

“Hurricane Carol arrived shortly after high tide, causing widespread tidal flooding. Storm surge levels ranged from 5 to 8 feet across the west shore of Connecticut, and from 10 to 15 feet from the New London area eastward. Storm tide profiles show, as in 1938, how dramatically the tides increased just before landfall across Narragansett Bay, the Somerset, Massachusetts area and in New Bedford, Massachusetts Harbor. Narragansett Bay and New Bedford Harbor received the largest surge values of over 14 feet in the upper reaches of both water ways. On Narragansett Bay, just north of the South Street Station site, the surge was recorded at 14.4 feet, surpassing that of the 1938 Hurricane. However, since Hurricane Carol arrived after high tide, the resulting storm tide was lower.

“Coastal communities from central Connecticut eastward were devastated. Entire coastal communities were nearly wiped out in New London, Groton, and Mystic, Connecticut, as well as from Westerly to Narragansett, Rhode Island. Once again, as in the 1938 Hurricane, downtown Providence, Rhode Island was flooded under 12 feet of water.

“Rainfall amounts ranged from 2 to 5 inches across most of the area. The heaviest amounts, up to 6 inches, occurred in the New London, Connecticut area in the vicinity of landfall, and across extreme north central Massachusetts.

“Hurricane Carol destroyed nearly 4,000 homes, along with 3,500 automobiles and over 3,000 boats. All of Rhode Island, much of eastern Connecticut and much of eastern Massachusetts lost electrical power. In addition, as much as 95 percent of all phone power was interrupted in these locations.” (Nat. Weather Service Forecast Office, Boston, MA. Hurricane Carol…Aug 31, 1954.)

U.S. Coast Guard: “….The motor fishing vessel Redstart, of 99 g.t., built in 1936 of wood construction, on 25 August 1954 departed from Fairhaven, Massachusetts, for the fishing grounds on Georges Banks with eleven crew members on board. On the approach of Hurricane ‘Carol’, a number of fishing vessels, including the Redstart, departed from the fishing grounds for port. At 1030 31 August 1954 the Redstart and other fishing vessels hove to and on this date a hurricane with tremendous seas overtook the fishing vessels. The Redstart was last seen lying to, 45 miles SSE from No Man’s Land Island, in no apparent trouble. Due to the force of the hurricane, propulsive power was required for safe vessel control purposes. Apparently the propulsive power of the Redstart failed and the vessel sometime after 1100 31 August 1954 struck Davis South Shoal and broke up before any boats or floats could be launched, and all persons on board perished. A prompt and diligent search for the vessel or any survivors therefrom was instituted when information was received that the vessel was overdue. This search continued until it was positively ascertained that the vessel was lost.” (U.S. Coast Guard. Commandant’s Action on Marine Board of Investigation; F/V REDSTART, foundering off Nantucket Island in vicinity of Davis South Shoal during Hurricane “Carol”, 1954 with loss of life. Dec 7, 1954, p. 1.)

Sources

Associated Press. “Hurricane Death Toll Reaches 54 in New England.” Chester Times, PA. 9-2-1954, p. 2. Accessed 3-22-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/chester-times-sep-02-1954-p-46/

Associated Press. “List of Dead in Storm.” Bridgeport Post, CT. 9-1-1954, p. 13. Accessed 3-21-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/bridgeport-telegram-sep-01-1954-p-49/

Associated Press. “Newport Police Tell of Deaths, Rescue.” Post-Standard, Syracuse, NY. 9-2-1954, 1. Accessed 3-22-2020: https://newspaperarchive.com/syracuse-post-standard-sep-02-1954-p-24/

Associated Press. “Severe Storms Hit Hurricane Belt on East Coast.” Journal-Standard, Freeport, IL, 9-4-1954, p. 1. Accessed 3-22-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/freeport-journal-standard-sep-04-1954-p-1/

Barnes, Jay. Florida’s Hurricane History. Chapel Hill and London: UNC Press, 1998.

Davis, Walter R. “Hurricanes of 1954.” Monthly Weather Review, December 1954, pp. 370-373. Accessed at: http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/general/lib/lib1/nhclib/mwreviews/1954.pdf

Douglas, Marjory Stoneman. Hurricane. New York: Rinehart & Company, Inc., 1958, 393 pp.

Dunn, Gordon E. and Banner I. Miller. Atlantic Hurricanes (Revised Edition). Baton Rouge LA: Louisiana State University Press, 1964, 377 pages.

Grammatico, Michael A. Hurricane Carol – August 31, 1954 (webpage). Accessed 12-24-2009 at: http://www.oocities.com/hurricanene/hurricanecarol.htm

Hebert, Paul J., J.D. Jarrell, Max Mayfield. The Deadliest, Costliest, and Most Intense United States Hurricanes of This Century (NOAA Technical Memorandum NWS-NHC-31). Miami, FL: National Hurricane Center, National Weather Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, Feb 1993, 41 pages.

Jarrell, Jerry D., Max Mayfield, Edward N. Rappaport, Christopher W. Landsea. The Deadliest, Costliest, and Most Intense United States Hurricanes From 1900 to 2000 (And Other Frequently Requested Hurricane Facts) (NOAA Technical Memorandum NWS TPC-1). Miami, FL: NOAA NWS and Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory, October 2001 Update. Accessed at: http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/Landsea/deadly/index.html

Lowell Sun, MA. “Bodies of Ayer Woman Judge and Sister Recovered on Cape.” 9-2-1954, p. 1. Accessed 3-22-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/lowell-sun-sep-02-1954-p-1/

Ludlum, David M. The American Weather Book. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1982.

National Weather Service Forecast Office, Boston, MA. Hurricane Carol, Cat 3 – August 31, 1954. NWS/NOAA. Accessed at: http://www.erh.noaa.gov/box/hurricane/hurricaneCarol.shtml

Rappaport, Edward N. and Jose Fernandez-Partagas. The Deadliest Atlantic Tropical Cyclones, 1492-1994 (NOAA Technical Memorandum NWS NHC-47). Coral Gables, FL: National Hurricane Center, National Weather Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, January 1995, 42 pages. Accessed 8-20-2017 at: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/NWS-NHC-1995-47.pdf

Reno Evening Gazette, NV. “Hurricanes Have Taken Toll in Past,” Sep 29, 1959, p. 1. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=9578949

United Press. “Son Swims Clear, Parents Die as Storm Collapses Cottage.” Bridgeport Post, CT. 9-1-1954, p. 13. Accessed 3-21-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/bridgeport-telegram-sep-01-1954-p-49/

United Press. “Toll in Storm May Reach 64.” Charleroi Mail, PA. 9-3-1954, p. 1. Accessed 3-22-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/charleroi-mail-sep-03-1954-p-1/

United States Coast Guard. Commandant’s Action on Marine Board of Investigation; F/V REDSTART, foundering off Nantucket Island in vicinity of Davis South Shoal during Hurricane “Carol”, 1954 with loss of life. Washington, DC: Commandant, USCG, Dec 7, 1954. Accessed at: http://www.uscg.mil/hq/cg5/docs/boards/redstart.pdf Accessed also 3-22-2020 at:
https://www.dco.uscg.mil/Portals/9/DCO%20Documents/5p/CG-5PC/INV/docs/boards/redstart.pdf

Wikipedia. “Hurricane Carol.” 12-24-2009 at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Carol