The "Independence" Hurricane of 1775

[donsutherland1]

From August 29-September 2, 1775, a “savage” hurricane tracked from coastal North Carolina to New Foundland.1 A letter from New Bern, North Carolina recounted, “We had a violent hurricane…which has done a vast deal of damage here, at the Bar, and at Matamuskeet, near 150 lives being lost at the Bar, and 15 in one neighborhood at Matamuskeet.”2 Southeast Virginia was battered in similar fashion.

The September 9, 1775 edition of The Virginia Gazette reported:

The shocking accounts of damage done by the rains last week are numerous: Most of the mill-dams are broke, the corn laid almost level with the ground, and fodder destroyed; many ships and other vessels drove ashore and damaged, at Norfolk, Hampton, and York [Yorktown.

In the heavy storm of wind and rain, which came on last Saturday3, and continued most part of the night, the Mercury man of war as drove from her station abreast of the town of Norfolk, and stuck flat aground in shoal water…4

It was also reported from Norfolk that “The late heavy wind and rain have been productive of great mischief to the mills, corn, &c. &c. [etc. etc.] in and about this neighborhood. There is hardly a possibility of getting any grain ground for the use of the inhabitants of this city. Large trees are in many places blown up by the roots, and the corn laid level with the ground; the fodder in general is almost entirely lost. We are informed that the devastation at Norfolk is inexpressible.”5

The hurricane’s impact at Williamsburg was described as follows:

Every day last week it rained more or less, and sometimes continued chief part of the night; but on Saturday6 it never ceased pouring down, and towards noon the wind began to rise, which increased soon afterwards to a mere hurricane, it blowing most furiously from the N.E. till near 10 o’clock at night. Infinite damage has been done to the crops of corn and tobacco, much wheat spoiled in barns, a great number of trees blown down, and almost every mill-dam in the country given way…

At Norfolk, all the small craft were drove ashore, besides some ships, which have been chiefly got off, except the Mercury man of war, Capt. M’Cartney, who lies in two feet water only…7

The hurricane also brought strong winds and heavy rain to Philadelphia. The Virginia Gazette reported:

All last week we had squally weather and rain, but on Saturday evening8 it began to blow hard at N.E. and S.E. and by midnight increased to a hurricane, attended with heavy floods of rain, which raised the tide in our river [the Delaware River] higher than has been known these several years, and has occasioned much damage in the stores on the wharves, among sugar, salt, and other perishable articles; wood, staves, plank, &c. [etc.] was washed off the wharves, and many boats and small craft were sunk or beat to pieces.

We hear the above storm has done considerable damage along the river, by breaking the banks of the meadows, drowning cattle, &c [etc.].

We hear no less than 30 sail of vessels are ashore in our river, among which are the ship Caesar, Capt. Miller; brig. Rachel, Capt. Clay, at Reedy Island, the brig. Betsy, Capt. Douglass, at Rombay Hook, the others were chiefly river craft, many of which are drove so high on shore that they will be hardly worth the expense of launching.9

Endnotes:

1. David Roth and Hugh Cobb, “Virginia Hurricane History,” http://www.hpc.ncep.noaa.gov/research/roth/va18hur.htm
2. The Virginia Gazette, October 21, 1775.
3. September 2, 1775.
4. The Virginia Gazette, September 9, 1775.
5. The Virginia Gazette, September 7, 1775.
6. September 2, 1775.
7. The Virginia Gazette, September 8, 1775.
8. September 2, 1775.
9. The Virginia Gazette, September 21, 1775.

[clfenwi]

Great stuff, thanks for posting it.

Looks like there was a typo on the link for your first source, http://www.hpc.ncep.noaa.gov/research/roth/vahur.htm

Going OT... I was a wee lad volunteer at NWS Wakefield when Hugh Cobb was the SOO there. Great guy, taught me a lot. IIRC, he came to Wakefield from TPC (and looking at the staff listings, he's back there now).

[donsutherland1]

Thanks, clfenwi.

I've fixed the typo. NWS Wakefield has had some great people working there.