WW9 / Atlas index / Great disasters before the recordsGreat disasters before the records Hurricanes and earthquakes from the 1500s to the 1800s. 11 points on the WW9 Atlas, oldest first, each with its source.
Open this layer on the map The 1502 hurricane 1502 · Off Santo Domingo, Ayiti July 1502: Columbus warns Governor Ovando a storm is coming and is refused harbor; the hurricane sinks most of a 30-ship fleet carrying gold, drowning about 500, including Francisco de Bobadilla.Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1502_Santo_Domingo_hurricane ) The 1559 Pensacola hurricane 1559 · Pensacola Bay, Florida September 1559: a hurricane wrecks most of Tristán de Luna's fleet days after it anchors in Pensacola Bay, ending the Spanish colony attempt.Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1559_Pensacola_hurricane ) The Port Royal earthquake 1692 · Port Royal, Jamaica June 7, 1692: an earthquake drops much of Port Royal, the pirate and captive-trading port, into the sea; about 2,000 die at once.Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1692_Jamaica_earthquake ) The 1715 Treasure Fleet 1715 · Sebastian Inlet, Florida July 31, 1715: a hurricane wrecks the Spanish treasure fleet off Florida's east coast; about 1,000 drown.Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1715_Treasure_Fleet ) The Lima-Callao earthquake and tsunami 1746 · Lima and Callao, Peru October 28, 1746: an earthquake and tsunami destroy Callao and much of Lima; thousands die.Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1746_Lima%E2%80%93Callao_earthquake ) Port-au-Prince earthquakes, 1751 and 1770 1751–1770 · Port-au-Prince, Ayiti November 1751 and June 3, 1770: earthquakes destroy the new colonial town of Port-au-Prince; the 1770 quake kills hundreds.Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1770_Port-au-Prince_earthquake ) The Great Hurricane of 1780 1780 · Barbados and Martinique October 1780: the deadliest Atlantic hurricane on record kills about 22,000 people across Barbados, Martinique and St. Eustatius.Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Hurricane_of_1780 ) The New Madrid earthquakes 1811–1812 · New Madrid, Missouri December 1811 to February 1812: three great earthquakes shake the Mississippi Valley, make the river run backward and create Reelfoot Lake in Chickasaw country.Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1811%E2%80%931812_New_Madrid_earthquakes ) The Caracas earthquake 1812 · Caracas, Venezuela March 26, 1812: an earthquake destroys Caracas and other towns during the independence war; 15,000-20,000 die.Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1812_Caracas_earthquake ) The Cap-Haïtien earthquake 1842 · Cap-Haïtien, Ayiti May 7, 1842: an earthquake and tsunami destroy Cap-Haïtien and damage the Citadelle and Sans-Souci; about 5,000 die.Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1842_Cap-Ha%C3%AFtien_earthquake ) The Charleston earthquake 1886 · Charleston, South Carolina August 31, 1886: the strongest quake recorded in the Southeast damages most of Charleston's buildings; about 60 die.Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1886_Charleston_earthquake )