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Unnamed hurricane of 1878 (AL111878)

Unnamed hurricane of 1878 (AL111878) was a Category 2 hurricane at its peak, with 104 mph winds and a lowest pressure of 963 mb, per NOAA's National Hurricane Center. Modeled winds reached tropical-storm force (39 mph) at 34 of the cities we track; the strongest was Virginia Beach, VA, with a modeled peak gust of 99 mph.

Peak strength104 mph winds (1-minute)
Category 2
Cities with tropical-storm-force windsModeled, of the cities we track
34
LandfallsFirst October 23, 1878
1
Lowest pressure
963 mb

Track, wind field and cities

Select a piece of the track or a city for details.

  • Depression or weaker
  • Tropical storm
  • Hurricane, Category 1 or 2
  • Major hurricane, Category 3 to 5
  • Landfall
  • City (larger ring, stronger modeled gust)
  • Modeled wind field, 39 to 111 mph sustained (darker, stronger; orange 111 mph+)
Source: NOAA/NWS National Hurricane Center best track (HURDAT2). City winds and the wind field are modeled.

The shaded areas are where our model puts Unnamed hurricane of 1878 (AL111878)’s sustained winds over open land at 39 mph or more (tropical-storm force), 58, 74 (hurricane force) and 111 mph (major hurricane force) at some point along its track. Modeled, not measured. How we model hurricane winds

Landfalls

  1. October 23, 1878, Category 2 at 104 mph, about 61 miles from Wilmington, NC

Modeled winds at cities (34)

Estimated peak winds for open, flat ground at each city’s center. Not measurements. How we model hurricane winds

CityPeak gustSustainedClosest passPeak
Virginia Beach, VA99 mph80 mph57 milesOct 23, 1878, 2:48 AM GMT-4:56:02
Baltimore, MD92 mph75 mph17 milesOct 23, 1878, 6:48 AM GMT-4:56:02
Allentown, PA85 mph69 mph26 milesOct 23, 1878, 10:48 AM GMT-4:56:02
Washington, DC83 mph68 mph10 milesOct 23, 1878, 6:03 AM GMT-4:56:02
Philadelphia, PA83 mph68 mph62 milesOct 23, 1878, 10:18 AM GMT-4:56:02
Reading, PA80 mph65 mph14 milesOct 23, 1878, 9:33 AM GMT-4:56:02
Lancaster, PA78 mph64 mph8 milesOct 23, 1878, 8:33 AM GMT-4:56:02
Poughkeepsie, NY78 mph63 mph41 milesOct 23, 1878, 3:33 PM GMT-4:56:02
Trenton, NJ78 mph63 mph72 milesOct 23, 1878, 11:03 AM GMT-4:56:02
Wilmington, NC73 mph59 mph39 milesOct 22, 1878, 10:03 PM GMT-4:56:02
Richmond, VA72 mph58 mph20 milesOct 23, 1878, 3:18 AM GMT-4:56:02
York, PA71 mph58 mph11 milesOct 23, 1878, 7:48 AM GMT-4:56:02
Show all 34

Best track (33 positions)

TimeStatusWindPressurePosition
Oct 18, 00:00 UTCTropical storm46 mph17.2°N, 79.6°W
Oct 18, 06:00 UTCTropical storm46 mph17.7°N, 80.1°W
Oct 18, 12:00 UTCTropical storm58 mph18.0°N, 80.5°W
Oct 18, 18:00 UTCTropical storm58 mph18.2°N, 80.6°W
Oct 19, 00:00 UTCTropical storm69 mph18.5°N, 80.9°W
Oct 19, 06:00 UTCTropical storm69 mph18.7°N, 81.1°W
Oct 19, 12:00 UTCTropical storm69 mph19.0°N, 81.3°W
Oct 19, 18:00 UTCTropical storm69 mph19.4°N, 81.6°W
Oct 20, 00:00 UTCCategory 1 hurricane81 mph19.7°N, 81.9°W
Oct 20, 06:00 UTCCategory 1 hurricane81 mph20.2°N, 82.1°W
Oct 20, 12:00 UTCCategory 1 hurricane92 mph20.7°N, 82.4°W
Oct 20, 18:00 UTCCategory 1 hurricane92 mph21.2°N, 82.4°W
Show all 33