Racer's hurricane

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Lithograph by Nathaniel Currier depicting the loss of the SS Home on the Outer Banks
during Racer's hurricane

Racer's hurricane was a destructive

Florida Panhandle between October 3 and 7. After crossing the Southeastern United States, it emerged into the Atlantic shipping lanes off the Carolinas
by October 9.

The effects of the tropical cyclone were far-reaching. Matamoros, on the southern bank of the Rio Grande, faced hurricane conditions for several days, with significant damage to ships. Many towns along the Texas shoreline were inundated by storm surge, which flooded the coastal plains for many miles inland. Galveston Island was devastated, with nearly every building washed away and most vessels driven ashore. To the east, a water level rise of 8 ft (2.4 m) on Lake Pontchartrain submerged low-lying areas of New Orleans. Many steamboats on the lake were wrecked and buildings along its shores demolished. Storm surge and wind damage extended into Mississippi and Alabama, but with less severity. In the interior Southeast, sugar cane and cotton crops bore heavy losses. As the weakening storm buffeted the Outer Banks of North Carolina on October 9, the passenger steamship SS Home ran aground about 300 ft (91 m) off Cape Hatteras and rapidly broke up in the pounding surf. About 90 passengers and crewmen died in the wreck. Overall, Racer's hurricane killed an estimated 105 people.

Meteorological history

A map centered on the Gulf of Mexico, including parts of the northern Caribbean Sea, eastern Mexico, the Southeastern United States, and the Western Atlantic, with present-day U.S. state and national boundaries highlighted. An approximate track of the hurricane has been drawn, appearing as a parabola.
Approximate track of the hurricane from the Weather Prediction Center, with modern U.S. state and national boundaries.

Little is known about the origins of the storm. It was first noted at

beam ends twice before re-righting,[4] losing almost all rigging, navigational tools, and provisions in the process.[7] A young boy died of injuries sustained on the lower deck, and two crewmen went missing.[8] Racer was put in to Havana for repairs.[9] In recognition of this ordeal, writers and historians have commonly referred to the system as Racer's storm or Racer's hurricane.[5][10]

As Racer endured the gale, another vessel to her north,

U.S. Gulf Coast. It passed the Sabine River on the night of October 5–6,[14] and made landfall in southeastern Louisiana, near Venice.[15]

At

Ohio Valley, damaging winds extended far to the north of the hurricane's track.[17] The system moved northeastward across interior Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina. Between October 8 and 10,[7] it battered the Atlantic coast of the Carolinas as a low-end hurricane before emerging into the Atlantic near Wilmington, North Carolina.[17][18] Over open water, the storm regained some of the strength it had lost over land.[3] It continued northeastward, ultimately passing north of Bermuda and transitioning into an extratropical cyclone.[19]

Efforts to reconstruct the hurricane's path began as early as 1838 with the work of

Corps of Royal Engineers officer William Reid, who examined logbooks of ships in the Caribbean.[7] American meteorologist William Charles Redfield had been studying the portion of the storm's track over the eastern U.S., but it would not be until 1846 that, based on Reid's work, he recognized it as a continuation of Racer's hurricane.[20] In following years, Reid and Redfield continued to build upon each other's findings concerning the storm.[7]

Impact

Ludlum described Racer's storm as "one of the most famous and destructive hurricanes of the century."[1] It killed an estimated 105 people along its course.[21]

In Jamaica, heavy rainfall triggered widespread street flooding, forcing nearly all businesses in Kingston to close for the duration of the storm. Along the coast, several ships broke from their moorings; one of them struck a wharf, damaging another vessel, and was scuttled to prevent further destruction.[22] Haiti and the southern shores of Cuba also experienced the storm.[7]

Mexico

customs house situated at the mouth of the Rio Grande was destroyed. It was later rebuilt at a more sheltered location farther inland.[5]

Texas

In 1837, the Republic of Texas claimed a large swath of disputed land to its south and west; it bordered the United States and its territories to the north and east.
The Republic of Texas and disputed territory as it appeared when the storm occurred

The storm wrought destruction along the entire coast of Texas (then the sovereign Republic of Texas and disputed Nueces Strip). The settlement at Brazos Santiago was almost totally destroyed, with only a few buildings left standing, while all ships there were sunk or driven aground.[7][13] Communities along the shores of Matagorda Bay were heavily damaged, with buildings and wharves swept away.[5] Farther north, a 6 to 7 ft (1.8 to 2.1 m) storm surge flooded Galveston Island, where nearly every building was lost, along with all supplies and provisions.[13] Of the 30 vessels present in the harbor at Galveston when the storm began, only one remained moored following its passage.[24] In one case, a brig was driven against a three-story warehouse, causing the building to collapse.[13][24] Among the ships destroyed at Galveston were two Texas Navy schooners. In a scene of "utter desolation", some individuals in Galveston survived the flooding by holding on to floating debris for days.[24]

Floodwaters rushed over coastal prairies for up to 20 mi (30 km), drowning livestock.[7][25] The storm surge deposited ships in fields several miles inland; near Sabine Pass, a three-masted barque came to rest 7 mi (11 km) from the coast. Local residents salvaged its timbers as firewood and building materials for decades to come.[13] Heavy surf action significantly altered the coastline at the entrance to Galveston Bay. Houston experienced a 4 ft (1.2 m) rise in water levels.[13] Despite the damage throughout coastal Texas, only two people are known to have died there, one of them in Galveston.[24]

United States

In New Orleans, the storm produced an 8 ft (2.4 m) storm surge on Lake Pontchartrain that flooded parts of the city as far south as Burgundy Street, with water 2 ft (0.6 m) deep invading many homes.[17] Strong winds in the city toppled chimneys, brought down trees and fences, and unroofed homes, carrying some roofs up to 100 ft (30 m) away from the damaged buildings. In particular, the City Exchange hotel (now the site of the Omni Royal Orleans) was extensively damaged while in the final stages of its construction.[26][27] Overall, hundreds of structures were damaged or destroyed in New Orleans, and shipping losses took a large economic toll on the city.[7]

In the settlement known then as

Port Pontchartrain (now part of New Orleans), a pier and breakwater sustained a combined $50,000 (1837 USD) in damage, and most buildings there were swept away. At least one person was killed in the area, and several more went missing while evacuating their homes. Numerous steamboats were wrecked on the shores of Lake Pontchartrain, and much of the Pontchartrain Railroad was flooded or washed out, with damage estimated at $100,000.[17] The hurricane destroyed the original Bayou St. John Light, the first American lighthouse built outside the Thirteen Colonies.[26] Torrential rains overspread areas mainly north of the storm's track; in Clinton, Louisiana, downpours lasted nearly two days. Strong winds destroyed homes and toppled trees in Baton Rouge, and ravaged forests and plantations surrounding the city.[17][7] Farmers reported up to a third of their sugar cane and cotton crops lost.[28]

All the wharves along the coast of Mississippi were destroyed,

Florida Panhandle, although some accounts may have been exaggerated by rival companies.[7][17] Many ships were destroyed in Florida's St. Joseph and Apalachicola bays.[7]

Throughout the Southeast, the storm caused severe agricultural damage. Major thoroughfares like the Natchez Trace and the Federal Road were made impassable by fallen trees.[7] Reports of strong winds extended as far inland as eastern Tennessee.[17] At Norfolk, Virginia, northeasterly gales on October 8 and 9 kept steamboats at dock.[18] Several ships were lost along the Outer Banks.[30] The schooner Cumberland wrecked on the Core Banks; all crew members survived and some of her cargo was salvaged.[31] To the north, the brig Enterprize was destroyed at Bodie Island with one fatality.[32] One sailor fell overboard and drowned when the schooner Emily ran aground at Swansboro, North Carolina.[33]

SS Home

The newly built passenger steamship

hold, but despite their best efforts, the engine rooms were inundated and the Home was forced to continue under sail. On the night of October 9–10, the vessel grounded 300 ft (90 m) from the shore,[35] just south of Cape Hatteras.[34]

The largely submerged Home rapidly broke up amid the hurricane's pounding surf, and of the 130 people aboard the steamboat, only about 40 made it to shore alive: 20 out of 90 passengers and 20 crew members, including the captain.[35] There were only three lifeboats, two of which were destroyed before they could be used; the other capsized shortly after being launched, drowning between 10 and 15 passengers.[37][38] Two men used the only two life preservers aboard the Home to safely reach the beach.[37] Among the victims were United States Senator from Georgia Oliver H. Prince and his wife, and numerous relatives of other Congressmen.[39] The wreck of the Home occurred during a period of increasingly frequent passenger steamship tragedies, and in 1838 Congress passed reformed safety legislation for these vessels.[40]

See also

References

Citations

  1. ^ a b Ludlum, p. 144
  2. S2CID 154932650. Archived
    (PDF) from the original on May 28, 2008. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
  3. ^ a b "180th Anniversary of Racer's Hurricane". Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory Hurricane Research Division. October 2, 2017. Archived from the original on April 27, 2020. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
  4. ^ a b Geiser, p. 60
  5. ^ a b c d e f Ludlum, p. 145
  6. ^ Reid, p. 135
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Glass, James L (Summer 2008). "Racer's Storm: The Benchmark Hurricane of 1837" (PDF). Houston History. Vol. 5, no. 3. University of Houston. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 27, 2020. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
  8. ^ Reid, p. 136
  9. ^ Fitzpatrick, p. 190
  10. ^ a b Reid, p. 133
  11. ^ a b Elsner, James. "Storm 9 – 1837 – Possible Track" (PDF). Florida State University. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
  12. ^ Redfield, p. 34
  13. ^ a b c d e f Roth, David (January 17, 2010). "Texas Hurricane History" (PDF). National Weather Service. p. 14. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 28, 2010. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
  14. ^ a b Geiser, p. 61
  15. ^ Roth, David (July 16, 2001). "Virginia Hurricane History: Early Nineteenth Century". Weather Prediction Center. Archived from the original on June 29, 2007. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
  16. ^ Redfield, p. 33
  17. ^ a b c d e f g Ludlum, p. 146
  18. ^ a b Elsner, James. "1837 – No. 2 – Racer's Storm – Oct. 1–6 – Pt. 2" (PDF). Florida State University. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
  19. ^ Reid, p. 143
  20. ^ Redfield, pp. 31–32
  21. ^ National Hurricane Center (January 20, 2016). "The Deadliest Atlantic Tropical Cyclones, 1492–1996". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved January 20, 2017.
  22. ^ Reid, p. 141
  23. Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  24. ^ a b c d Ludlum, pp. 145–146
  25. ^ "Texas". Democratic Free Press. November 15, 1837. p. 2. Archived from the original on March 9, 2022. Retrieved January 20, 2017. Open access icon
  26. ^ a b c d Roth, David (April 8, 2010). "Louisiana Hurricane History" (PDF). National Weather Service Camp Springs, Maryland. pp. 15–16. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 16, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2017.
  27. Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  28. Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  29. Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  30. ^ a b Hudgins, James E. (October 2007). "Tropical Cyclones Affecting North Carolina Since 1856 – An Historical Perspective" (PDF). National Weather Service Blacksburg, Virginia. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 29, 2015. Retrieved January 20, 2017.
  31. Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  32. ^ Stick, p. 245
  33. Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  34. ^ a b c Ludlum, p. 147
  35. ^ a b c Fraser, p. 110
  36. ^ Howland, p. 18
  37. ^ a b Fraser, p. 111
  38. ^ Howland, p. 29
  39. ^ Fraser, p. 112
  40. ^ Voulgaris, pp. 3–4

Sources

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