The Great Blizzard of 1888

The Great Blizzard of 1888 (March 11–14, 1888), also known as the Great Blizzard of '88 or the Great White Hurricane, was one of the most severe recorded blizzards in American history. The storm paralyzed the East Coast from the Chesapeake Bay to Maine, as well as Canada's Atlantic provinces. The snowfall ranged from 10 to 58 inches (25 to 147 cm) in New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut, with sustained winds of more than 45 miles per hour (72 km/h) producing snowdrifts of more than 50 feet (15 m). Railroads were closed, and people were forced to stay in their homes for up to a week. Railway and telegraph lines were disabled, and this provided the impetus to move these pieces of infrastructure underground. Emergency services were also affected.

Just before the blizzard, the weather was unusually mild, with heavy rain that quickly turned to snow as temperatures dropped. The temperature in New York City dropped from 33 °F (1 °C) to 8 °F (13 °C) on March 12, and rain turned to snow at 1 a.m. The storm started in earnest shortly after midnight on March 12 and lasted a full day and a half. According to a 2007 article, the National Weather Service estimated that this nor'easter dumped up to 50 inches (130 cm) of snow in parts of Connecticut and Massachusetts and up to 40 inches (100 cm) in parts of New Jersey and New York. The majority of northern Vermont received between 20 and 30 inches (51 to 76 cm) of snow.

Drifts averaged 30-40 feet (9.1–12.2 m) over the tops of houses from New York to New England, with reports of three-story houses being affected. Gravesend, Brooklyn, had the highest drift, measuring 52 feet (16 meters). New York City received 22 inches (56 cm). Wind gusts of 80 miles per hour (129 km/h) were reported, though the highest official report in New York City was 40 miles per hour (64 km/h), with a 54 mile per hour (87 km/h) gust reported at Block Island. On March 13, New York City recorded a low of 6 °F (14 °C), the coldest for this time of year, with a high of only 12 °F (11 °C).

Type: Extratropical cyclone Blizzard
Lowest pressure: 980 hPa (29 inHg)
Maximum snowfall or ice accretion: 58 inches (147 cm)
Fatalities: 400 fatalities
Damage: $25 million in 1888 (equivalent to $750 million in 2022)
Areas affected: Eastern United States, Eastern Canada

Formed: 1888