| 1876 Atlantic hurricane season | |
|---|---|
 Season summary map | |
| Seasonal boundaries | |
| First system formed | Before September 9, 1876 |
| Last system dissipated | October 23, 1876 |
| Strongest storm | |
| Name | Five |
| • Maximum winds | 115 mph (185 km/h) (1-minute sustained) |
| • Lowest pressure | 958 mbar (hPa; 28.29 inHg) |
| Seasonal statistics | |
| Total storms | 5 |
| Hurricanes | 4 |
| Major hurricanes (Cat. 3+) | 2 |
| Total fatalities | 52 |
| Total damage | $5.03 million (1876 USD) |
The 1876 Atlantic hurricane season featured the first hurricane landfall in North Carolina since 1861. Overall, the season was relatively quiet, with five tropical storms developing. Four of these became a hurricane, of which two intensified into major hurricanes.[nb 1] However, due to the absence of remote-sensing satellite and other technology, only storms that affected populated land areas or encountered ships at sea were recorded; therefore, the actual total could be higher. An undercount bias of zero to six tropical cyclones per year between 1851 and 1885 and zero to four per year between 1886 and 1910 has been estimated.[2]
Of the known 1876 cyclones, both the first and fourth systems were first documented in 1995 by José Fernández-Partagás and Henry Diaz. They also proposed large changes to the known tracks of the second and fifth storms.[3] The track and start position of the fifth system was further amended in 2003 by the Atlantic hurricane reanalysis project, which did not add any storms to the official hurricane database (HURDAT).[4] However, climate researcher Michael Chenoweth authored a reanalysis study, published in 2014, which concluded that the 1876 season featured a total of 12 tropical cyclones. This included the removal of the third system due to a lack of information and the addition of eight previously undocumented storms. Chenoweth also proposed some alterations to the track and intensity of each storm, including a significant extension of the track and duration of the first cyclone. However, these changes have yet to be incorporated into HURDAT.
The season's first known cyclone was first observed between Bermuda and Nova Scotia on September 9. It transitioned into an extratropical cyclone two days later. On September 12, the track of the next storm begins as a hurricane just east of the Leeward Islands. The system crossed the Lesser and Greater Antilles, causing particularly severe impacts on Puerto Rico, including at least 19 deaths. After striking North Carolina on September 17, the storm killed people in the state, all due to drowning. The hurricane and its remnants then impacted the Northeastern United States, with $30,000 (1876 USD) in damage on the barrier islands of Cape May County, New Jersey, alone.[nb 2] In early October, the fourth storm struck Nicaragua, rendering about $5 million in damage and leaving approximately 20 deaths. Later that month, the fifth and final known storm caused damage in the Cayman Islands, Cuba, and Florida prior to being last noted just northeast of Bermuda on October 23. Overall, the cyclones of the 1876 season left 52 fatalities and more than $5.03 million in damage.
- ^ North Atlantic Hurricane Basin (1851-2022) Comparison of Original and Revised HURDAT. Hurricane Research Division; Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (Report). Miami, Florida: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. April 2023. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
- ^ Landsea 2004, p. 195
- ^ Fernández-Partagás, José; Díaz, Henry F. (1995). A reconstruction of historical tropical cyclone frequency in the Atlantic from documentary and other historical sources 1851 to 1880, Part II: 1871-1880 (Report). Boulder, Colorado: Climate Diagnostics Center. Retrieved April 15, 2024.
- ^ Landsea, Christopher W.; et al. (May 2015). Documentation of Atlantic Tropical Cyclones Changes in HURDAT. Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (Report). Miami, Florida: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
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