1860-1869 Atlantic hurricane seasons
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The decade of the 1860s featured the 1860-1869 Atlantic hurricane seasons. While data is not available for every storm that occurred, some parts of the coastline were populated enough to give data of hurricane occurrences. Each season was an ongoing event in the annual cycle of tropical cyclone formation in the Atlantic basin. Most tropical cyclone formation occurs between June 1 and November 30.
[edit] 1860 Atlantic hurricane season
 Season summary map |
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| First storm formed: | August 8, 1860 |
|---|---|
| Last storm dissipated: | October 24, 1860 |
| Strongest storm: | #1 - 110 knots (130 mph) |
| Total storms: | 7 |
| Major storms (Cat. 3+): | 1 |
| Total damage: | $1+ million (1860 USD) |
| Total fatalities: | 47+ |
| Atlantic hurricane seasons 1858, 1859, 1860, 1861, 1862 |
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1. In the northeastern Gulf of Mexico a tropical storm formed on August 8. It strengthened to a hurricane the next day while moving westward. As it became a major hurricane on the 11th, it turned more northerly, striking the southeastern Louisiana coast on the 12th. It hit Mississippi the next day, and weakened to a tropical storm over Alabama. The storm continued eastward, reaching the Atlantic Ocean on the 14th. The storm restrengthened to a 60 mph tropical storm, and was last seen on the 16th. The hurricane caused 47 deaths in Louisiana.
4. A Category 2 hurricane moved west-northwestward across the Gulf of Mexico, first reported on September 11. It turned northeastward, hitting southeastern Louisiana on the 15th, followed by a southern Mississippi landfall later that day. The storm dissipated over western Alabama, after drowning several people in Louisiana and causing $1 million in damage.
6. Louisiana wasn't done yet. A tropical storm first was seen on September 30 north of the Yucatán Peninsula. It moved generally northward, strengthening to a Category 2 hurricane before hitting the south central coast of Louisiana on October 2. It dissipated over northern Mississippi the next day.
[edit] 1861 Atlantic hurricane season
 Season summary map |
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| First storm formed: | July 6, 1861 |
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| Last storm dissipated: | November 3, 1861 |
| Strongest storm: | #1, 3 - 90 knots (105 mph) |
| Total storms: | 8 |
| Major storms (Cat. 3+): | 0 |
| Total damage: | Unknown |
| Total fatalities: | 33 |
| Atlantic hurricane seasons 1859, 1860, 1861, 1862, 1863 |
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8. A late season tropical storm first appeared in the southeast Gulf of Mexico on November 1. It moved quickly northeastward, reaching hurricane strength on the 2nd. It crossed the Outer Banks that day, weakening to a tropical storm that night. It continued its direction, making landfall on Massachusetts on the 3rd. It dissipated that day, after causing 33 casualties. This is known as the "Expedition Hurricane", named after the expedition by "the largest fleet of warships and transports ever assembled". This was a Union fleet trying to attack the Confederacy, occurring during the American Civil War.
[edit] 1862 Atlantic hurricane season
 Season summary map |
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| First storm formed: | June 15, 1862 |
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| Last storm dissipated: | November 25, 1862 |
| Strongest storm: | #2, 3 - 90 knots (105 mph) |
| Total storms: | 6 |
| Major storms (Cat. 3+): | 0 |
| Total damage: | Unknown |
| Total fatalities: | None |
| Atlantic hurricane seasons 1860, 1861, 1862, 1863, 1864 |
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While there were 6 storms this season, only one affected any landmass as a tropical system; a tropical storm hitting the Lesser Antilles.
[edit] 1863 Atlantic hurricane season
 Season summary map |
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| First storm formed: | August 8, 1863 |
|---|---|
| Last storm dissipated: | September 30, 1863 |
| Strongest storm: | #1, 2, 3, 4 - 90 knots (105 mph) |
| Total storms: | 9 |
| Major storms (Cat. 3+): | 0 |
| Total damage: | $1+ million (1867 USD) |
| Total fatalities: | 80 |
| Atlantic hurricane seasons 1861, 1862, 1863, 1864, 1865 |
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3. A hurricane was first seen on August 19 in the western Atlantic. It turned northwestward, causing heavy rains and damage to the Outer Banks but remaining offshore. It turned northeastward, hitting the south coast of Nova Scotia before losing its tropical characteristics on the 23rd. It caused 80 deaths.
[edit] Other Storms
In addition, a possible tropical system existed on May 26, causing damage and 37 deaths in the northeast Gulf of Mexico.
[edit] 1864 Atlantic hurricane season
 Season summary map |
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| First storm formed: | July 16, 1864 |
|---|---|
| Last storm dissipated: | October 24, 1864 |
| Strongest storm: | #1, 3, 5 - 70 knots (80 mph) |
| Total storms: | 5 |
| Major storms (Cat. 3+): | 0 |
| Total damage: | Unknown |
| Total fatalities: | None |
| Atlantic hurricane seasons 1862, 1863, 1864, 1865, 1866 |
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While there were 5 storms this season, only one affected any landmass as a tropical system; a hurricane hitting Belize.
[edit] 1865 Atlantic hurricane season
 Season summary map |
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| First storm formed: | May 30, 1865 |
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| Last storm dissipated: | October 25, 1865 |
| Strongest storm: | #4, 7 - 90 knots (105 mph) |
| Total storms: | 7 |
| Major storms (Cat. 3+): | 0 |
| Total damage: | Unknown |
| Total fatalities: | 25 |
| Atlantic hurricane seasons 1863, 1864, 1865, 1866, 1867 |
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4. A hurricane was first observed east of the Lesser Antilles on September 6. It moved across the islands, maintaining its 100 mph (160 km/h) strength across the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. While in the Gulf, it turned more northward, hitting southwestern Louisiana. It caused 25 deaths.
[edit] 1866 Atlantic hurricane season
 Season summary map |
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| First storm formed: | July 11, 1866 |
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| Last storm dissipated: | October 30, 1866 |
| Strongest storm: | #6 - 120 knots (140 mph) |
| Total storms: | 7 |
| Major storms (Cat. 3+): | 1 |
| Total damage: | Unknown |
| Total fatalities: | 387 |
| Atlantic hurricane seasons 1864, 1865, 1866, 1867, 1868 |
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6. A classical Cape Verde-type hurricane was first observed on September 24 off the coast of Africa. It headed west-northwestward, reaching major hurricane strength north of the Lesser Antilles on the 29th. As it neared the Bahamas it strengthened to a 140 mph Category 4 hurricane, causing widespread damage across the islands. It recurved out to sea without affecting any other landmasses. The last report on the system was on October 5, after resulting in 387 casualties, with 250 from the steamer Evening Star (from Sinking of the Titanic). It is very possible that the hurricane was stronger while over open waters in the Atlantic, but the meteorological records from the 1800s and early 20th century were very sparse and also contributed to the reduced number of tropical cyclones in the hurricane season archives.
[edit] 1867 Atlantic hurricane season
 Season summary map |
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| First storm formed: | June 21, 1867 |
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| Last storm dissipated: | October 31, 1867 |
| Strongest storm: | #9 - 100 knots (115 mph) |
| Total storms: | 9 |
| Major storms (Cat. 3+): | 1 |
| Total damage: | $1+ million (1867 USD) |
| Total fatalities: | 811+ |
| Atlantic hurricane seasons 1865, 1866, 1867, 1868, 1869 |
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7. A hurricane was first detected in the western Gulf of Mexico on October 2. It followed a path similar to 1837 Racer's Storm: paralleling the Texas coast, remaining offshore, and hitting southern Louisiana. It continued eastward, hitting Florida as a Category 1, and moving out to sea on the 9th. It caused around a million dollars in damage, with "many lives lost".
9. On October 27, a tropical storm was first detected east of the northern Lesser Antilles. It moved westward, becoming a hurricane on the 28th, and a major hurricane on the 29th. It reached its peak of 125 mph just before hitting St. Thomas, where roughly 50 ships were driven ashore or wrecked (from Sinking of the Titanic). It weakened slightly prior to its Puerto Rico landfall on the 29th, decreasing its winds further over the island. It hit Hispanola on the 30th, and dissipated that day over the island's high mountains. The hurricane caused 811 deaths.
[edit] 1868 Atlantic hurricane season
 Season summary map |
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| First storm formed: | September 3, 1868 |
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| Last storm dissipated: | October 17, 1868 |
| Strongest storm: | #1, 3, 4 - 90 knots (100 mph) |
| Total storms: | 4 |
| Major storms (Cat. 3+): | 0 |
| Total damage: | Unknown |
| Total fatalities: | None |
| Atlantic hurricane seasons 1866, 1867, 1868, 1869, 1870 |
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While there were 4 storms this season, only one affected any landmass: a tropical storm that caused structural damage in southeastern Louisiana in October.
[edit] 1869 Atlantic hurricane season
 Season summary map |
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| First storm formed: | August 12, 1869 |
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| Last storm dissipated: | October 5, 1869 |
| Strongest storm: | #6 - 100 knots (115 mph) |
| Total storms: | 10 |
| Major storms (Cat. 3+): | 1 |
| Total damage: | Unknown |
| Total fatalities: | 137 |
| Atlantic hurricane seasons 1867, 1868, 1869, 1870, 1871 |
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2. A Category 2 hurricane moved across the Gulf of Mexico, hitting the lower Texas coast on August 17. Most of the damage that occurred came from storm surge.
6. A hurricane was first observed northeast of the Bahamas on September 7. It strengthened to a Category 3 on the 8th, and it retained that intensity until its Rhode Island landfall on the 9th. It dissipated over northern Maine that night. The hurricane caused a great deal of damage in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Maine, but only caused one reported death.
[edit] Saxby Gale
- Main article: 1869 Saxby Gale
10. On October 4, a hurricane was first observed east of South Carolina. It moved rapidly northeastward, hitting Cape Cod on the 5th and Maine later that day. It turned northeastward, dissipating over northern New Brunswick that night. The storm caused widespread damage, as well as 37 deaths.
The storm is known as the Saxby Gale because of a prediction by Stephen Martin Saxby on December 25, 1868. However, he gave no mention of the location of the storm. Another person, Frederick Allison, gave detail of where and when it was going to hit. Nonetheless, when the storm actually happened, more remembered Saxby's prediction.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] Books
Logan Marshall. Sinking of the Titanic and Great Sea Disasters. The Vision Forum, Inc.: San Antonio, 2001.
