LANDMARKS OF WORLD HISTORY
A Chronology of Remarkable Natural Phenomena
Eighteenth Century 1741-1760
Numbers show sources
Date
Location
Phenomenon
Description
1741 June 8
Ogi, Japan
Meteorites
4 stones fell, largest 12 lbs. (56)
1741 July 28
England
Hailstorm
Lincs., Notts., Yorkshire. Pigeons’-egg sized stones. Hail 1½ feet deep. Several injuries. (24)
1741 July 31(c.)
Switzerland
Hailstorm
'Hail 2 foot in depth’. (23)
1741 September 8
Huntingdon
Tornado
Many buildings fell. (21)
1741 December 11
London
Meteor
Daylight fireball, trail visible 20 minutes. (54)
1742 January 10
Pisa, Italy
Earthquakes
And 'extraordinary clouds'. Many shocks. (62)
1742 October
Peru
Earthquake
Lima wrecked; 1,500 killed. Callao ‘swallowed up by the sea’, about 6,000 persons killed. (80)
1742 December 9
Cotopaxi
Eruption
Snowmelt floods killed 800. Also on June 24. (59)
1743 July 25
Peking, China
Heatwave
11,000 suffered sunstroke. Temperature 120° F. (10)
1743 August 18
England
Thunderstorm
Hens’-egg sized hail at Tewkesbury. Crops destroyed, birds killed. (81)
1744 March 7
Europe
Comet
6 major tails 19 million miles long. (14)
1744 July
Germany
Ball lightning
Fireball frightened girl indoors. (58)
1744 August 13
Edinburgh, Scotland
Thunderstorm
Rain flooded streets, hailstones 5 inches round. (24)
1744 August 20
Cuzco, Peru
Aurora
'Visible in daylight’. (57)
1744 October 20
Jamaica
Hurricane
Lasted 12 hours from S. 104 ships wrecked. (26)
1745 February 7
Norway
Earthquake
‘Trembling’ lasted 2 or 3 minutes. Felt in Copenhagen. (62)
1745 March-April
Cape Horn
Aurora australis
Observed by Don Ulloa. (19)
1745 July 21
Boulogne, France
Ball lightning
‘Huge fireball’ emerged from sewers, demolished part of a convent. (20)
1746 June 24
Kent, England
Thunderstorm
“Continual storm of hail, rain and flame’. Much damage. (27)
1746 October 28
Lima, Peru
Earthquake
18,000 killed. (62)
1747 June 3
Sussex, England
Thunderstorm
Rain flood, 2 killed by lightning. (30)
1747 July 8
Bristol, England
Thunderstorm
Hailstone 5 inches round. (29)
1747 July 25
Bygdea, Sweden
Earthquake
Lasted 2 minutes. Roofs cracked. (62)
1747 October 24
Leeward Islands
Hurricane
50 ships lost. (72)
1747 November 30
England
Cold
Lasted to Dec. 10. Snow 14 inches deep. (71)
1747 December 1
England, Holland, Germany
Gale
Tide 2 storeys high, Rotterdam. Cologne bridge swept away, 100 drowned. (28)
1748 January 25
Scotland
Dessication
River Teviot dried up for 9 hours. R. Kirtle dry for 6 hours, Feb. 19. R. Eske dry 6 hours, Feb. 23. (11)
1748 February 22
New England
Severe winter
Level snow 4 or 5 feet deep on Feb. 22. About 30 snowstorms.(86)
1748 April 19
England
Comet
Naked-eye comet moved 5 degrees a day. (31)
1748 July 23
Wales, England
Thunderstorms
Great hail and floods, Glamorgan, Derbyshire. (32)
1748 August 8
Massachusetts
Tornado
Much damage at Groton. (61)
1748 October 10
Norfolk, England
Thundersnow
Snow, wind and thunderstorm did much damage. (34)
1748 December 28 (reported)
Norway
Aurora
“Most remarkable for many years’. 2 arches, many bright rays. (33)
1749 January 10
Russia
Cold
Intense cold at St. Petersburg to 13th. -13° F. 100 persons found dead in streets. (36)
1749 March 22
Neufchatel
Earthquake
Many houses damaged. Town of Chales ruined, many killed. (35)
1749 April 30
Portugal
Hailstorm
Orange-sized stones tore up ground and killed several persons. (38)
1749 May 15
England
Thunderstorms
Widespread damage by hail and floods. (39)
1749 May 26
France
Thunderstorm
Rain flood destroyed village of Gulpen. (39)
1749 June 3
Scotland
Snow
Snowstorm killed 900 cattle, Cromar
1749 June 7 (or 11)
Rome
Tornado
Building and tree damage. Track 43 km.long. (38, 69)
1749 June 15
England
Summer snow
Skiddaw snow lay till 16th. (12)
1749 July 2
Milford-Haven, Wales
Tsunami?
Sea at low tide rose to high water mark 7 times in 45 minutes. Many boats lost. (37)
1749 August 22
Cumberland, England
Thunderstorm
Rain flood near Keswick destroyed bridges, trees and buildings. (73)
1749 November 4
Atlantic Ocean
Ball lightning
Blue fireball rolled over sea, explosion shattered ships’ mast. (66)
1749 December 4
England
Aurora
'Amazing light' in N. for short time. (12)
1750
Santorini, Greece
Volcano
Eruption. A second island, Mikra Kaimeni, appeared in the caldera. (13)
1750 January 15
Britain
Aurora
Seen from whole country. Red arch. (42)
1750 January 23
Oxford, England
Aurora
2 red arcs and zenith corona. (41, 42)
1750 February 19
London
Earthquake
Also on French coast. (62)
1750 March 8
London
Earthquake
Houses damaged. (43)
1750 April 20
Biddeford, England
Aurora
Arch and red zenith corona. (40)
1750 April 21
South Carolina
Aurora
'Streaked liquid flame'. At Charleston. (45)
1750 May 1
Cerigo, Greece
Earthquake
2,000 killed. Lasted 5 minutes. Date also given as June 7. (40)
1750 May 24
Southern France
Earthquakes
Many violent shocks. Landslides. Shocks continued through June. (62)
1750 July 2
Dijon, France
Ball lightning
'Red flame' in church exploded. (58)
1750 July 5
Vienne, France
Flood
Sudden flood drowned 130, 100 houses lost. (41)
1750 July 18 - 20
England
Heat
Hot from July 8. Several persons and many horses died. (71)
1750 September 30
England
Earthquake
Northampton, Leicester, Derby, etc. Chimneys and walls fell. (44)
1750 October
Romania
Earthquake
Philippopoli ruined. River Maritza flooded. (62)
1750 October 11
England
Earthquake
Chimneys and walls thrown down. A year of earthquakes in England. See here (18)
1750 October 12
Niort, France
Meteorite
20 lbs. stone fell. (54)
1751 January 1
Ireland
Tornado
‘Whirlwind’ from the Mountains of Mourne killed a woman. (85)
1751 May 26
Agram, Croatia
Meteorites
Explosion and 2 irons fell, largest 71 lbs. (54, 56)
1751 October 25
Vesuvius, Italy
Volcano
Flood of lava from cleft in cone. (70)
1751 November 21
St. Domingo
Earthquake
Port-au-Prince ruined; 20 leagues of coast sank into sea. (62)
1752 April 16
Stavanger, Norway
Earthquake
At night, an octagonal 'star' which threw out fireballs. (62)
1752 June
Zante, Greece
Earthquake
Lasted 2 minutes. Many streets ruined. (62)
1752 July 31
London, England
Waterspout
Lifted 2 boats from Thames, Vauxhall. (46)
1752 July 29
Adrianople
Earthquake
Much damage. Felt in Constantinople and Smyrna. (62)
1752 August 24
Northumberland, England
Flood
60 hours’ incessant rain and gale around Redesdale, followed by worst floods for 40 years. (83)
1752 September 15
South Carolina
Hurricane
Charleston wrecked. Another hurricane later in month. (72)
1752 November 28
Hernosand, Sweden
Earthquake
Accompanied by ‘brilliant light in the heavens’. (62)
1752 December 6
Angermannland, Sweden
Earthquake
‘Streak of light’ and fireballs in sky. (62)
1753 July 3
Tabor, Bohemia
Meteorites
Several irons fell. Noise like thunder. (54, 63)
1753 September 7
Liponas, France
Meteorites
2 stones fell, weight 31 lbs. (54)
1754
Europe
Sunspot
Equal to 1/20th Sun's diameter. (65)
1754 May 13
Phillipines
Volcano
Taal erupted. Manila covered in ashes. (67)
1754 August 17
Mexico
Earthquake
Acapulco ruined by earthquake; sea rose ‘with violence’. (84)
1754 August 18
Amboyna Island
Earthquake
Floods from clefts.
Multitudes killed. (53)
1754 September 2
Constantinople
Earthquake
Many buried in ruins. Storm preceded. (52, 53)
1754 September 19
Switzerland
Earthquake
Landslides. (62)
1754 October
Maryland and Virginia
Flood
Rain flood ‘rose 37 feet 9 inches perpendicularly’. (53)
1754 December 10
Vesuvius
Volcano
Lava flow 5 miles long, 1 mile wide. (53)
1755 March 2
Etna, Sicily
Volcano
Eruption melted summit snow, great flood. (76)
1755 April
Quito, Ecuador
Earthquake
1,000s killed. (68)
1755 June 7
Kahrud, Persia
Earthquake
40,000 killed. (1)
1755 July 7
Sussex and Kent
Hailstorm
Stones 7 inches round, a foot deep, lay several days. (53)
1755 July 13
Denmark
Hailstorm
Affected most of country. Walnut-sized stones destroyed corn. (53)
1755 October
Piedmont
Flood
River Po flood caused great destruction. ‘Immense volume of water...suddenly issued from underground’ (89)
1755 October 14
Switzerland
Coloured rain
Blood-red rain and snow.
1755 October 17
Iceland
Volcano
Katla erupted. Glacier-bursts. Column of fire seen 180 miles away. (55, 75)
1755 October 20
Shetland
Fall
Black dust fell; none in Orkney. (2)
1755 November (before)
Tyrol and Switzerland
A ‘dry fog’ composed of ‘earthy particles’ just before the Lisbon earthquake. (90)
1755 November 1
Lisbon, Portugal
Earthquake
Shocks and sea waves killed 40,000. Magnitude 8.9. Tremors felt 1,220 miles away. See here (16, 17, 62)
1755 November 3
Sumatra
Earthquake
Poblo Point and many villages destroyed. (62)
1755 November 4
Spain
Earthquake
Felt over whole country, lasted 5 or 6 minutes. (62)
1755 November 18
New England
Earthquake
Chimneys fell. Ship 70 leagues off Boston violently shaken. (74)
1755 November 18-19
Morocco
Earthquake
Mequinez ruined, Tangier much injured. (62)
1755 November 27
Wepio, Sweden
Meteor
Large as Moon, smoke trail. (47)
1755 December 9
Europe
Earthquake
Switzerland, parts of France, Italy, Bavaria etc. (62)
1755 December 21
Lisbon, Portugal
Earthquake
Over 300 killed. Sea wave. (62)
1755 December 25
Milan and Ancona, Italy
Earthquake
1,000 killed. Great damage. (62)
1755 December 27
Maestricht, Belgium
Earthquake
‘Heavens appeared...all on fire’. (62)
1756
Iceland
Cold
Sea ice on Icelandic coasts for 30 weeks. (60)
1756 (or 1752)
Dale of Dent, Westmoreland
Avalanches
After rapid thaw, several avalanches fell; one swept away house, killing 7 inhabitants. (82)
1756 January 2
Tuam, Ireland
Earthquake
‘Heavens...like a sea of flame’. (12, 77)
1756 January 15
Somerset
Meteor
Fireball size of Moon. Smoke trail. (47)
1756 January 15
Iceland
Volcano
Katla erupts. Glacier-burst. Lightning from eruption cloud killed 2 persons and 11 horses. (55)
1756 February 20
Belgium
Earthquake
80 shocks at Maestricht until beginning of April. (62)
1756 June 22
Maryland
Tornado?
‘Wind rush’ blew down 200 houses, many killed. (61)
1756 July 4
New York
Tornado
Tornado with track 15 miles long across Long Island. (61)
1756 July 10
Lisbon, Portugal
Earthquake
'Smoke' rose and hid Sun. Sulphur smell. (62)
1756 August 17
Italy
Earthquake
Great injury to Padua. Preceded by tempest. (62)
1757 January 20
Pondicherry
Volcano
Submarine eruption. Island formed. (2)
1757 July 9 - 10
Azores
Earthquake
Great landform changes. Seismic sea waves. (62, 78)
1757 August 2
England
Ball lightning
A pointed fireball fell into a boat on the River Tamar, killing a fisherman. (85)
1757 August 6
Syracuse, Sicily
Earthquake
Half town destroyed, 10,000 killed. (62)
1758 January 18 (before)
North Africa
Earthquake
Tunis ruined, several thousands killed. (62)
1758 March 3?
Connecticut
'Hot fog'
Strange fog with heat at Kensington. (2)
1758 November 26
England, Scotland
Meteor
100 miles up, speed 30 miles a second. (2, 3, 63)
1758 December 6
Russia
Earthquake
With terrible tempest. (62)
1759 February 28
Russia
Mild winter
Sledges useless for want of snow. (3)
1759 March 13
Europe
Halley's Comet
Perihelion.
1759 April 4
Bombay, India
Meteor
Too bright to look at. Visible 10 seconds. (3)
1759 May 30
Surrey, Kent
Late snow
Up to 4 inches deep. (3)
1759 July 10
New England
Tornado
Trees uprooted, 1 killed. (50)
1759 August 10
Bordeaux, France
Earthquake
Air 'full of agitated clouds'. 2 shocks. (3, 62)
1759 September 28
Jorullo, Mexico
Volcano
Birth of new volcano. (64)
1759 October 30
Tripoli
Earthquake
'Country near destroyed'. Sea agitated. (9)
1759 November 24
Vesuvius, Italy
Volcano
Sudden eruption, 5 new openings. (8)
1759 November 25
Syria
Earthquake
20,000 killed in Damascus. (5)
1759 December 16-17
Leipsic
Winter cold
30 sentinels froze to death. (8)
1759 December 21
Germany, Denmark
Earthquake
Sea agitated, Elsineur. (8)
1760 January 7
England
Comet
'Grazed orbit of terrestrial globe’. (4)
1760 January 20
Europe
Earthquake
Holland, Belgium, France, Ireland etc. (8)
1760 January 27
Mauritius
Hurricane
Storm overthrew most houses, French fleet badly damaged. (87)
1760 February 15
England
Gale
With lightning; 'terrible effects’. (7)
1760 February 21
Vesuvius, Italy
Volcano
Lava flow. (49)
1760 April 9
Norway
Landslide
Mountain fell, blocked river flooded. (48)
1760 May 10
New England
Meteor
Daylight; cast shadows; exploded. (50)
1760 July 4
Portsmouth, Hampshire
Ball lightning?
Ball of fire passed watchman just before blaze in Dockyard. (88)
1760 July 20
Comminges,France
Hailstorm
5 inch stones, men and sheep killed. (51)
1760 September 23
Ireland
Tornado
Many houses and trees damaged at Curriglass, Co. Cork. (85)
1760 December 23
Vesuvius, Italy
Volcano
Eruption to Jan. 5. (79)
1760 December 30
London
Mild winter
Pear trees and primroses in bloom. (51)
