The 1850 Atlantic hurricane season was the last season excluded from the scope of the official

Atlantic hurricane database The Hurricane Databases (HURDAT), managed by the National Hurricane Center, are two separate databases that contain details on tropical cyclones, that have occurred within the Atlantic Ocean and Eastern Pacific Ocean since 1851 and 1949 respective ...

. Although meteorological records are sparse and generally incomplete, they indicate that three significant tropical cyclones affected land, each causing some degree of damage. The first system struck North Carolina on July 18, causing significant damage before battering the Mid-Atlantic states with high tides, strong winds, and heavy rainfall. Torrential rainfall caused river flooding from

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, particularly along the Schuylkill River, which took the lives of 20 people in various incidents. Strong winds damaged property and public facilities in and around New York City, and damaging floods extended into central and northern

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

. Crops and railroad infrastructure suffered throughout the entire region. On August 22, a strong hurricane impacted

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

, Cuba, destroying fruit trees and disrupting shipping, before making landfall on the

Florida Panhandle The Florida Panhandle (also West Florida and Northwest Florida) is the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Florida; it is a Salient (geography), salient roughly long and wide, lying between Alabama on the north and the west, Georgia (U. ...

with an enormous

storm surge A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the n ...

. Coastal flooding was severe around Apalachicola, and as the storm moved inland, it generated destructive winds across the

Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also referred to as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical region of the United States. It is located broadly on the eastern portion of the southern United States and the southern por ...

. Abundant precipitation fell from Georgia through Virginia, causing extensive flooding; one river swelled over 20 feet (6 m) above its normal height. The storm blew down crops and trees along its course, and toppled a large railroad bridge near Halifax, North Carolina. Offshore, a

pilot boat A pilot boat is a type of boat used to transport maritime pilots between land and the inbound or outbound ships that they are piloting. Pilot boats were once sailing boats that had to be fast because the first pilot to reach the incoming ship ...

collided with a larger ship in the rough seas and sank. Considered the worst storm in nearly 30 years in the tidewater region of Virginia, the cyclone briefly reentered the Atlantic off New Jersey before making landfall over New England. Strong winds and moderate to heavy rains plagued much of New England on August 24 and 25. On September 7 and 8, a hurricane brushed the coastline from New York to

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of mainland Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer mont ...

with gusty winds and appreciable rainfall, and left many ships in distress. The system later struck

Atlantic Canada Atlantic Canada, also called the Atlantic provinces (french: provinces de l'Atlantique), is the region of Eastern Canada comprising the provinces located on the Atlantic coast, excluding Quebec. The four provinces are New Brunswick, Newfoundlan ...

, likely causing "great loss of property and lives", though damage reports were limited. Fragmented records exist of other hurricanes, including two which remained over open seas in early September and the middle of October.

Background

Attempts to catalog Atlantic hurricanes in the first half of the 19th century began as early as 1855, when Andrés Poey compiled information on just over 400 tropical cyclones from 1493 to 1855.Chenoweth, p. 3 However, Poey listed only three of the five or more hurricanes that developed in 1850. In his 1963 book, ''Early American Hurricanes, 1492–1870'', weather researcher David M. Ludlum discusses, in greater detail, three significant tropical cyclones that impacted the United States in 1850. Unusually, all three heavily impacted the

Northeastern United States The Northeastern United States, also referred to as the Northeast, the East Coast, or the American Northeast, is a geographic region of the United States. It is located on the Atlantic coast of North America, with Canada to its north, the Southe ...

; Ludlum compares the season to

1954 Events January * January 1 – The Soviet Union ceases to demand war reparations from West Germany. * January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting. * January 7 – Georgetown-IBM experiment: The fir ...

, in which three major tropical systems impacted the

East Coast of the United States The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, the Atlantic Coast, and the Atlantic Seaboard, is the coastline along which the Eastern United States meets the North Atlantic Ocean. The eastern seaboard contains the coa ...

. More traditional hurricane targets, such as Florida, were spared the brunt of seasonal tropical cyclone activity in 1850, while the atmosphere farther north was abnormally tropical.

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.Ludlum (1963), p. 96 Meteorological reports pertaining to the season were largely lost in a

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

fire in 1856, limiting what is known about hurricane activity in 1850.Ludlum (1963), pp. 96–97 As the season falls outside the scope of the

(1851 onward) and its associated reanalysis project, records are regarded as incomplete. Extant accounts of the storms in 1850 are chiefly based on private weather records and press reports, and only approximate storm tracks are known.

Storms

Mid-July

The first documented hurricane in 1850 originated in the Caribbean Sea, where it wrecked dozens of ships along the

Windward Islands french: Îles du Vent , image_name = , image_caption = ''Political'' Windward Islands. Clockwise: Dominica, Martinique, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada. , image_alt = , locator_map = , location = Caribbean SeaNorth ...

on July 11 and 12. On July 18, the storm struck

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

from the south as a hurricane of at least Category 1 intensity (on the modern-day Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale) and proceeded northward. Although the exact point of landfall is unknown, the system is believed to have moved ashore south of Cape Hatteras.Ludlum (1963), p. 97 Ships just off the state's coast battled three days of hurricane conditions from July 15 to July 18. Onshore, "great damage" occurred from Wilmington to Elizabeth City. Intense wave action churned the

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the ...

, while storm-heightened tides up to above normal flooded

wharves A wharf, quay (, also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more berths (mooring location ...

and coastal communities. The

area endured persistent gale-force winds accompanied by torrential rainfall. As streams and rivers swelled above their banks, cellars and streets became inundated by floodwaters. Many trees were blown down and numerous poorly built or unfinished buildings were destroyed. The storm cut telegraph communications between Baltimore and surrounding areas. In the countryside, low-lying hay fields were flooded and most of the corn crop was decimated. At Bladensburg, Maryland, a train station and locomotive were washed into an adjacent flooded waterway. Arrivals of ships into port were delayed by the storm, which one captain held to be the worst he had ever observed, and some vessels incurred extensive damage. The storm's effects quickly spread northward. Winds at

began to increase in the morning on July 18, becoming severe by the evening hours. Air pressure fell to early on July 19 as the hurricane's center passed to the west, and the city received more than of rainfall. The storm wrought significant damage throughout the city, including to trees, signs, and structures. A number of houses were demolished, and many more—including a large brick building near Rittenhouse Square—suffered damage. Major freshwater flooding was observed in the area, especially along the Schuylkill River, which rapidly rose to its highest level since 1838. A large quantity of lumber was swept away, and several docks were submerged. Their "worst apprehensions realized", hundreds of residents worked hurriedly to mitigate damage from the flooding. Bridges over the river at Phoenixville were washed away, resulting in the deaths of four individuals. A lock of a dam upstream of Phoenixville gave way, destroying a boat and killing its occupants. Four men and a child reportedly drowned on the river's banks near Conshohocken. Railways were covered with up to 3 feet of water in low-lying spots. Numerous small craft capsized on the Schuylkill and

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

rivers. Overall, 20 people died in various storm-related tragedies along the Schuylkill. The hurricane took a heavy toll on agriculture in the Mid-Atlantic states. Rampant flooding outside Philadelphia destroyed fruit orchards, and in nearby

Burlington, New Jersey Burlington is a city in Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a suburb of Philadelphia. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 9,743. Burlington was first incorporated on October 24, 1693, and was r ...

, strong winds and heavy rainfall inflicted significant damage to crops on the night of July 18, leaving entire fields of corn blown down. The Delaware River burst its banks at Burlington, inundating nearby lowlands. Notable flooding also took place along the

Lehigh River The Lehigh River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Delaware River in eastern Pennsylvania. The river flows in a generally southward pat ...

. Telegraph lines north of Philadelphia were crippled, limiting communications in the storm's aftermath. Throughout the region, downed trees blocked railways. Hurricane-force gusts buffeted Newark, New Jersey, and rainfall exceeded a weather observer's rain gauge capacity of . Strong winds imperiled New York City late on July 18 into the next morning; there was widespread tree damage, with branches and leaves littering the ground, and many specimens uprooted or snapped. The storm ruined awnings and tore metal roofs off several buildings. Some ships in

New York Harbor New York Harbor is at the mouth of the Hudson River where it empties into New York Bay near the East River tidal estuary, and then into the Atlantic Ocean on the east coast of the United States. It is one of the largest natural harbors in t ...

were ripped from their anchors and blown aground; further east, multiple coaster vessels were wrecked along the coast of

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

. The winds and storm tides destroyed bath houses and other facilities at

Coney Island Coney Island is a peninsular neighborhood and entertainment area in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Brighton Beach and Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn, Manhattan Beach to its east, L ...

. As the storm tracked northward through central

New York State New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...

, it produced high southeasterly winds and heavy rainfall across most of

. At

Fort Trumbull Fort Trumbull is a fort near the mouth of the Thames River on Long Island Sound in New London, Connecticut and named for Governor Jonathan Trumbull. The original fort was built in 1777, but the present fortification was built between 1839 and ...

along the coast of

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

, heavy rainfall starting early on July 19 accumulated to . At Hartford, flooding caused about $100,000 (1850 USD) in losses. Southeasterly winds peaked at tropical storm-force. Damage to property and crops was confined to western New England, leaving areas such as eastern

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

unscathed. Less substantial rain was reported at

Providence Providence often refers to: * Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion * Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in Christianity * Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...

, amounting to . The rain shield extended into far-northern New England, producing of precipitation at

Montpelier, Vermont Montpelier () is the capital city of the U.S. state of Vermont and the seat of Washington County. The site of Vermont's state government, it is the least populous state capital in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population w ...

, and at

Burlington Burlington may refer to: Places Canada Geography * Burlington, Newfoundland and Labrador * Burlington, Nova Scotia * Burlington, Ontario, the most populous city with the name "Burlington" * Burlington, Prince Edward Island * Burlington Bay, no ...

. The resultant flooding was in some cases the greatest in recent memory.Ludlum (1963), p. 98

Late August

A tropical system first observed near

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...

on August 16 proceeded to affect the Windward Islands before yielding hurricane conditions at

Ponce, Puerto Rico Ponce (, , , ) is both a city and a municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government. Ponce, Puerto Rico's most populated city outside the San Juan metropolitan area, was founded on 12 August 1 ...

, on August 20.Chenoweth, p. 67 Two days later, the hurricane tracked over western

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

, causing severe weather conditions around

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

. The storm destroyed large swaths of banana and plantain trees, and all vessels in Havana Harbor dragged anchors at the height of the hurricane. The storm moved north over the eastern

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...

, striking the

between Pensacola and

Panama City Panama City ( es, Ciudad de Panamá, links=no; ), also known as Panama (or Panamá in Spanish), is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has an urban population of 880,691, with over 1.5 million in its metropolitan area. The city is locat ...

on August 23. Extremely high tides bombarded the Apalachicola area, resulting in extensive coastal flooding. The hurricane destroyed wharves and left many ships damaged or foundered. Sea water intrusion inundated warehouses and streets in Apalachicola, and one street was made impassable by strewn debris and fallen trees.Barnes, p. 63 Farther east, a bridge over the

Wakulla River The Wakulla River is an U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 18, 2011 river in Wakulla County, Florida. It carries the outflow from Wakulla Springs, site of the Edward ...

was washed away by raging floodwaters. A long period of high winds was reported at the state's capital city of Tallahassee. The storm produced some strong winds in interior Georgia on its way to the Carolinas. The destruction of homes, crops, and trees was reported from

Griffin The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (Ancient Greek: , ''gryps''; Classical Latin: ''grȳps'' or ''grȳpus''; Late Latin, Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a legendary creature with the body, tail ...

through Augusta. Adverse conditions extended westward to

Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama and the county seat of Montgomery County. Named for the Irish soldier Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River, on the coastal Plain of the Gulf of Mexico. In the 202 ...

, where the night of August 23 was marked by high winds and heavy rainfall. Southeasterly gales had a large impact on shipping interests off North Carolina. Several vessels were imperiled; in one case a

capsized after colliding with another ship. In light of this incident, the hurricane is listed in the

National Hurricane Center The National Hurricane Center (NHC) is the division of the United States' NOAA/National Weather Service responsible for tracking and predicting tropical weather systems between the Prime Meridian and the 140th meridian west poleward to the 3 ...

's contemporary compilation of tropical cyclones that "may have" caused at least 25 fatalities. The storm grounded the

schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

''H. Wescott'' near Cape Fear. Gales were reported from

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Br ...

, to Wilmington, North Carolina. Near Halifax, North Carolina, the winds toppled a railroad bridge about 450 ft (140 m) long and 60 ft (20 m) high. The storm also ravaged farmland in the area, destroying crops, fences, trees, and structures, and injuring several people. Much damage was reported in the

Raleigh Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southeas ...

area, and many trees in

New Bern New Bern, formerly called Newbern, is a city in Craven County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 29,524, which had risen to an estimated 29,994 as of 2019. It is the county seat of Craven County and t ...

suffered at least some limb breakage; several large trees were fully uprooted. The local corn crop—already diminished from the July hurricane—was judged completely lost, though property damage was negligible. Offshore winds from the storm created a negative storm surge on the Neuse River, leaving docks dry for a time. Torrential rains over a large area from Georgia to Virginia triggered severe river flooding. The

Dan River The Dan River flows in the U.S. states of North Carolina and Virginia. It rises in Patrick County, Virginia, and crosses the state border into Stokes County, North Carolina. It then flows into Rockingham County. From there it flows back int ...

, which flows through North Carolina and Virginia, swelled 20 ft (6 m), amplified to above normal in narrow channels. In the Carolinas, mills, dams, and roads were washed out, and losses in central North Carolina alone totaled an estimated $7 million. Gale-force winds lashed the tidewater region of Virginia in what was considered the worst storm on the lower Chesapeake Bay since the 1821 Norfolk and Long Island hurricane. A ship called the ''Osceola'' lost its wheelhouse to the winds, while onshore, the storm razed crops and a few small structures such as barns and outhouses. Affecting many of the same areas as the July hurricane, the cyclone downed trees in and around Baltimore and caused street flooding in Washington, D.C., where a railroad bridge was swept away. The storm began to influence the weather at Philadelphia on the night of August 24. Strong winds out of the north and northeast at Philadelphia and Newark, New Jersey, suggest the center moved off the New Jersey coast and reemerged into the Atlantic. In addition to the gales, more than 3 in (75 mm) of rain fell on Newark on August 25. 1849 Railroad Map of New England & Eastern New York

1849 Railroad Map of New England & Eastern New York

Winds at

New London, Connecticut New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States, located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, Connecticut. It was one of the world's three busiest whaling ports for several decades ...

, and Providence, Rhode Island, veered from southeast to south, then west, so the storm center likely tracked somewhere over Connecticut. The storm adversely affected shipping on the

Long Island Sound Long Island Sound is a marine sound and tidal estuary of the Atlantic Ocean. It lies predominantly between the U.S. state of Connecticut to the north and Long Island in New York to the south. From west to east, the sound stretches from the Eas ...

, and heavy rain fell across much of New England. Fort Trumbull recorded of rain, while fell at Providence; the deluge triggered flash flooding, though few details are known about the extent of the damage.

Early September

The third and final widely documented hurricane to affect the U.S. East Coast in 1850 remained predominately offshore, but still impacted ships and coastal cities on September 7 and 8. A vessel about east of

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020, the city had a population of 38,497.

, intercepted the hurricane's center and recorded a pressure of 988 mbar (29.18 inHg) on the night of September 7. Numerous ships near the

coast were stricken. Gusty winds snapped tree branches in New York City, while Newark received of rain as the hurricane brushed the region. The system probably continued toward the northeast, passing south of

Nantucket Nantucket () is an island about south from Cape Cod. Together with the small islands of Tuckernuck and Muskeget, it constitutes the Town and County of Nantucket, a combined county/town government that is part of the U.S. state of Massachuse ...

, Massachusetts. There, gale-force winds initially blew out of the southeast before shifting to north midday on September 8. Similarly,

experienced blustery conditions accompanied by heavy rainfall, though damage in eastern New England was generally inconsequential. Providence, Rhode Island, received of rain. The storm later affected the

Canadian Maritimes The Maritimes, also called the Maritime provinces, is a region of Eastern Canada consisting of three provinces: New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. The Maritimes had a population of 1,899,324 in 2021, which makes up 5.1% of Ca ...

, causing heavy disruption in Nova Scotia. Downed telegraph wires in the region delayed damage reports until repairs were completed.Ludlum (1963), pp. 98–99 The cyclone "undoubtedly caused great loss of property and lives along the coast", according to a report from the telegraph office at Halifax.

Other storms

A strong squall swept across

Matagorda Bay Matagorda Bay () is a large Gulf of Mexico bay on the Texas coast, lying in Calhoun and Matagorda counties and located approximately northeast of Corpus Christi, east-southeast of San Antonio, south-southwest of Houston, and south-southeast ...

in southeastern

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

on June 27. High winds ripped a ship from its anchor and drove it aground, and at least one other vessel suffered structural damage. Although it is included in the

Weather Prediction Center The Weather Prediction Center (WPC), located in College Park, Maryland, is one of nine service centers under the umbrella of the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP), a part of the National Weather Service (NWS), which in turn is p ...

's publication, ''Texas Hurricane History'', little is known about the nature of the storm. Shipping data indicates a hurricane formed near

Cape Verde , national_anthem = () , official_languages = Portuguese , national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole , capital = Praia , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , demonym ...

on September 2 and tracked northward into the northeastern Atlantic over the next week. Andrés Poey listed this system as two distinct cyclones, later confirmed by Chenoweth (2006) to be a single storm. A final hurricane is believed to have existed over the central Atlantic in mid-October, moving from near 24.5°N, 47°W to 25.5°N, 41°W over the course of four days.

References

Specific

General

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:1850 Atlantic Hurricane Season Atlantic hurricane seasons 1850 meteorology Hurricanes