New England Hurricanes: The 7 Biggest of the Last 100 Years

It’s hurricane season in New England once again. So what better time to look back at some of the biggest New England hurricanes?

 

As I’m typing this, it’s Hurricane Lee that’s on everyone’s mind. The storm is currently kicking up strong winds in Bermuda. And the latest NOAA report reads: “Hurricane conditions and coastal flooding are possible in portions of Eastern Maine…on Saturday, and a Hurricane Watch is in effect in that area. Tropical Storm conditions are possible elsewhere across New England.”

 

Of course, as they say, if you don’t like the weather in New England, wait five minutes. In other words, if I were to be writing all this down 24 hours from now, I could be sharing a whole different set of watches and warnings and storm paths. That being said, it looks like Hurricane Lee will impact New England, but not with the same strength that some larger storms have in the past.

 

New England Hurricanes: The 7 Biggest of the Last 100 Years

My earliest memory of a hurricane in New England is Hurricane Gloria in September of 1985. I had just started third grade and I was obsessed with the weather. I couldn’t wait to experience my first hurricane. To prepare at my house, we cleaned the bathtub, filled it with fresh water, and put masking tape on the windows. I remember the eerie calm I felt stepping outside during the eye of the storm.

 

I also remember watching my poor cat Dusty get picked up by a fresh gust of wind and blown into our rhododendron bush as she tried to make her way across the yard and to the house for safety. So yes, Hurricane Gloria makes my list. So does Hurricane Bob. Keep on scrolling to see the other memorable hurricanes that hit New England hard over the last century.

• The Great New England Hurricane

  Date of landfall: September 21, 1938

  Intensity at landfall: Category 3

  Peak intensity: Category 5

  The most powerful and deadly hurricane in recorded New England history. An estimated 682 people killed, over 57,000 homes destroyed.

• The Great Atlantic Hurricane

  Date of landfall: September 15, 1944

  Intensity at landfall: Category 1

  Peak intensity: Category 4

  Bridgeport, CT recorded the highest rainfall total: 10.7 inches. 40% of Maine’s apple crop was destroyed.

• Hurricane Carol

  Date of landfall: August 31, 1954

  Intensity at landfall: Category 3

  Peak intensity: Category 3

  One of the worst storms on record in the history of Connecticut and Rhode Island. Sustained winds of over 110-mph over Eastern Connecticut.

• Hurricane Edna

  Date of landfall: September 11, 1954

  Intensity at landfall: Category 2

  Peak intensity: Category 3

  Less than two weeks after Carol caused catastrophic damage in New England, Edna was hot on her heels. Power was wiped out in nearly all of Cape Cod, and it became the costliest hurricane in the history of Maine.

• Hurricane Donna

  Date of landfall: September 12, 1960

  Intensity at landfall: Category 1

  Peak intensity: Category 4

  The strongest storm of the 1960 Hurricane Season. 145-mph winds were recorded at the Blue Hill Observatory in Canton, MA.

• Hurricane Gloria

  Date of landfall: September 27, 1985

  Intensity at landfall: Category 1

  Peak intensity: Category 4

  Hurricane-force winds occurred in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. Gusts peaked at 110-mph in Chatham, MA. Rainfall peaked at 6.9 in. in Springfield, MA. Nice.

• Hurricane Bob

  Date of landfall: August 19, 1991

  Intensity at landfall: Category 2

  Peak intensity: Category 3

  One of the costliest hurricanes in New England history. Bob made landfall twice in RI: on Block Island and Newport. It made landfall again in Maine, but as a tropical storm.