St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1885-10-08
A Year without a Summer.

A correspondent of the Boston Globe
writes While every one is speaking
of the present season as being remark
able in its characteristics, | have gath
cred for your readers some reliable
facts of the year 1916, known as 1.-The
year without Il summer" Few persons
now living can recOllect it, but it was
the coolest ever known through Europe
and America. The following is IL brief
extract of the weather daring each
month of the year:
January was mild, so much so as to
render fires almost needless in parlOrs.
December previous was very cold.
February was not very cold with
the exception of Il few days it was mild
like its predecessor.
March was cold and bOisterOus dur
ing the first part of it; the remainder
was mild A great freshet on the Ohio
and Kentucky rivers caused great loss
of property.
April began warm, but grew colder
as the month advanced, and ended
with snow and ice and temperature
more like winter and spring.
May was more remarkable for frOwns
than smiles. Binds and fruits were
frozen ice formed half an inch thick ;
corn killed, and the fields again and
again replanted until deemed too late.
June was the coolest ever known in
this latitude. Frost, ice and snow
were common. Almost every green
thing killed. Fruit nearly all destroy
ed. Snow fell to the depth of ten
inches in Vermont, several in Maine,
three in the interior of New York and
also in Massachusetts. Considerable
damage was done at New Orleans in
consequence of the rapid rise of the
river; the suburbs were covered with
water and the roads were only pass
able with boats.
July was accompanied by frost and
ice. On the fifth, ice was formed of
the thickness of common window glass,
throughout New England, New York
and some parts of Pennsylvania. In
dian corn was nearly destroyed some
favOrably situated fields escaped. This
was true of some of the hill farms of
Massachusetts.
August was more cheerless, if posi-
bile, than the summer months already
passed. Ice was formed half an inch
thick. Indian corn was so frozen that
the great part was cut down and dried
for fodder. Almost every green thing
was destroyed, both in this country
and i'll Europe. Papers received from
England state ''that it would be re-
membered by the present generation,
that the year 1916 was n year in which
there was no summer" Very little corn
ripened in the New England and Mid |
die States. Farmers supplied them
selves from the corn produced in 1915
for the seed of the spring of 1917. 1t
sold from four to five dollars per
bushel.
September furnished about two weeks
of the mildrst weather of the season.
Soon after the middle, it became very
cold and frosty; ice formed quarter
of an inch thick.
October produced more than its share
of cold weather; frost and ice in com
mon.
November was cold and clustering.
Snow fell so as to make good sleigh
ing.
December was mild and comfortable.
The above is brief summary of
'the cold summer of 1916" as it was
called, in order to distinguish it from
the cold season. The winter was mild. |
Frost and ice were common in every |
month of the year. Very little vege-
tation matured in the eastern and mid
die states. The SUMS rays seemed to
be destitute of heat throughout the
summer all nature was clad in sable |
hue, and men exhibited no little ankle
ty concerning the future of this life.
The average wholesale price of -four
during that year in the Philadelphia |
market, was thirteen dollars per bar
rel. The average price of wheat in
was ninety three shillings per
quarter.