On September 21, 1938, one of the most destructive and powerful hurricanes in recorded history struck Long Island and Southern New England. The storm developed near the Cape Verde Islands on September 9, tracking across the Atlantic and up the Eastern Seaboard. The storm hit Long Island and Southern Connecticut on September 21, moving at a forward speed of 47 mph! Sustained hurricane force winds were felt across central and eastern Long Island and southeastern Connecticut. The hurricane produced a destructive storm surge flooding coastal communities as well as producing three to seven inches of rainfall. - US National Weather service
| Y/M/D | Description | Place |
|---|---|---|
| 1938/09/09 | A tropical depression, a low pressure area is accompanied by thunderstorms, develops near the Cape Verde Islands. The storm will move west across the Atlantic, along the northern coast of the Antillean islands and turn north toward the Eastern Seaboard. | |
| 1938/09/20 | The great New England Hurricane reaches its peak at Category 5 east of The Bahamas. | |
| 1938/09/21 | Sometime between 2:10 and 2:40 pm EST, a Category 3 hurricane makes landfall near Bellport, NY, bringing a pressure of 27.79 in (941 mb) and a 120 mph maximum sustained wind. | Bellport Village Historic District, Brookhaven, NY |
| 1938/09/21 | Masury summer home is ruined and the recreation wing severely damaged by the Hurricane of 1938. The main house will be dismantled and the recreation wing rebuilt. | Masury Estate Ballroom, Brookhaven, NY |
| 1938/09/21 | The Hepburn family's shingled Victorian monstrosity floats out to sea in the 1938 New England hurricane | Hepburn Estate, Old Saybrook |
| 1938/09/21 | 1938 Hurricane roars through Blithewold damaging a c 1895 stone and frame boathouse (originally a bathhouse, partially rebuilt after the storm) and destroys the boatman's house near the dock. | Blithewold, Bristol, RI |
| 1938/09/21 | Ninety-five mph winds from the New England Hurricane push tidal waters to reach 13 feet and 8 and half inches above mean high water. | Market House, Providence, RI |
| 1938/09/21 | Phillips' Mid C19 barn is destroyed in the Great Hurricane. As of 1988, the dry-laid granite foundations of the large barn (set end to the road) remain on the east side of Johnson Rd, directly across from Phillip's house. | Moosup Valley Historic District, Foster, RI |
| 1938/09/21 | An extremely destructive hurricane devastates much of coastal Rhode Island. Given its exposed location, the Clambake Club fares relatively well. | Clambake Club of Newport, Middletown, RI |
| 1938/09/21 | The Hurricane of 1938 destroys the tower that topped Dean Hall (roughly the same height as the modern radio antenna) and it will not be rebuilt. | Dean Junior College Historic District, Franklin, MA |
| 1938/09/21 | Max Recorded Wind Gust of The Great New England Hurricane: 186 mph at Blue Hill Observatory, MA | Great Blue Hill Weather Observatory, Milton |
| 1938/09/21 | The steeple at the Baptist Meeting House in Salisbury, New Hampshire, is blown down in the great New England Hurricane. The current weathervane is a replica. | Baptist Meeting House, Salisbury, NH, Salisbury |
| 1940/00/00 | The Martha-Mary Chapel is built by Henry Ford at Richmond Hill Plantation from trees felled in the Hurricane of 1938, shipped north and erected by the Wayside Inn. | Longfellow's Wayside Inn, Sudbury, MA |
| Data | |
|---|---|
| Weather: | Cyclones, Hurricanes and Typhoons |
| Meteorology: | Stormy Weather |
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