Records from ship logs have determined both 1815 and 1816 were active hurricane seasons, with at least 12 tropical cyclones ascribed to 1816 alone. This is some evidence that a northward-displaced Intertropical Convergence Zone appears to be partially responsible for the increased 1816 tropical cyclone activity.
I. June 5–8: A hurricane brushed the Florida Keys, causing the loss of 5 ships. Interestingly, it appears to have been lured northward by an unusual June snowstorm across New England
II. Haiti, around Port-au-Prince, was struck by a hurricane on August 18
III. Martinique, eastern Cuba, and South Carolina were impacted by a hurricane between September 3 and 11.
IV. A tropical storm affected Virginia on September 18 before moving northeast into New York. The tropical storm caused heavy flooding in the James River area.
V. There is record of a hurricane moving by Dominica and Barbados on September 15 before devastating Puerto Rico on September 18. The cyclone then recurved between the United States East coast and Bermuda by September 25.
VI. On October 16–17, a severe gale was experienced in Dominica and Martinique. During the storm, an earthquake shook the region.
I. A hurricane was first observed near Tobago on August 1 before continuing through the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico by August 6. It crossed over Florida, and when it reached the western Atlantic, it paralleled the coastlines of Georgia and South Carolina. It moved inland over southern North Carolina, and brought heavy rain to the Norfolk, Virginia area, delaying mail delivery and causing flooding through the mid-Atlantic as it moved northward into Pennsylvania by August 9. Its track appears similar to that of Hurricane Charley of August 2004.
II. Barbados was struck by a hurricane on October 21, causing 250 deaths as it moved through the Lesser Antilles. The hurricane subsequently moved into Nicaragua by October 26.
I. A hurricane passed through the central Atlantic east of Bermuda to south and east of the Azores between August 26 and September 5. It reportedly silted at Hamilton Harbor on Bermuda. (from Beware the Hurricane)
II. A hurricane passed by the Cayman Islands in early September. It crossed the Yucatán Peninsula, and turned northwest when it reached the Bay of Campeche. The hurricane intensified to a Category 2-3 before hitting Galveston, Texas on September 12 and continuing onward to Mississippi. The hurricane was "quite severe", destroying all but six houses on Galveston Island.
III. A tropical cyclone seriously affected Puerto Rico on September 22. It possibly recurved sharply offshore the Eastern Seaboard, as the frigate Macedonian encountered a hurricane on the 26th and 27th to the east-northeast of Bermuda. The breeze freshened that afternoon as the ship lay near 35.6N 55.7W. By sunset, waves increased to nine feet, and southeast gales lashed the system after midnight on the 27th. Winds continued to increase into that afternoon, as seas increased to . One man fell overboard by 5 p.m. and drowned. The hurricane reached its full violence by 10 p.m., splitting the storm staysails, and making the rigging useless. The main mast cracked under the strain by 2 a.m. on the 28th, and the mizzenmast followed suit by 4 a.m.. Seawater poured into the ship from all sides, as the wooden hull twisted under the force of the waves. The ship finally cleared the storm without capsizing by noon, and finally got to see a sunset by the evening of the 29th (from Chronicles of the Frigate Macedonian 1809-1922 p. 129-139).
IV. An October 12–14 hurricane affected Jamaica and the central Bahamas.
V. Between November 6 and 13, another hurricane moved across the southwest Caribbean Sea into Jamaica and Cuba.
The exact origin of this hurricane is unknown, but it likely formed off the coast of Cuba before heading on a west-northwest track towards the Gulf Coast. A small hurricane, it reached an estimated Category 3-4 strength before making landfall on July 27 in southeastern Louisiana, bringing heavy winds and a 5–6 ft storm surge. The hurricane continued northeastward, making a second landfall in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi before dissipating inland. Known as one of the most destructive hurricanes to affect the United States during the first half of the 19th century, the Bay St. Louis Hurricane caused severe damage across Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi, leaving behind the remains of shattered buildings and uprooted trees. Several vessels (from small boats to 60-ton brigs) were driven ashore by the hurricane's storm surge. One of them was the capsizing of the U.S. warship Firebrand, drowning 39 sailors. Several U.S. solders were caught off guard by the hurricane and died in its midst. There were also reports of people being attacked by alligators, snapping turtles, and snakes, which further added to the death toll. The hurricane caused over $100,000 dollars (1819 US dollars) in damage, and killed between 43 and 175 people, some of them later found washed up across the Gulf Coast.
II. A tropical storm hit between New Orleans and Apalachicola in September.
III. Between September 19 and 26, a hurricane tracked through the northeast Lesser Antilles and southwest of Bermuda. During September 21 and 22, this hurricane hit the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, causing heavy damage and loss of life.
IV. From October 13 to 15, a hurricane passed through the Leeward Islands.
V. A hurricane is recorded to have impacted Cuba on October 27 before moving onward to the Bahamas on October 28.
1820–1829 Atlantic hurricane seasons
I. A minimal hurricane moved from Florida on September 8 northward to hit near the border of North Carolina and South Carolina on September 10. It caused only minor damage.
II. A hurricane was sighted at Dominica on September 26 before moving west-northwest through Hispaniola, then across the southwest Atlantic to South Carolina on October 1.
I. A tropical storm moved westward across the Caribbean, from Guadeloupe on September 1 to western Cuba on September 9.
The Norfolk and Long Island Hurricane was a deadly hurricane that rapidly moved up the Atlantic coast during the first few days of September. It included a hurricane landfall within the modern borders of New York City, the only recorded case of a hurricane eyewall moving directly over the city. It caused 200 deaths, and is estimated to have been a Category 4 hurricane.
III. Later in September, from the 15th-17th, a strong hurricane hit Mississippi. This was a very large storm, bringing storm surge flooding from Mobile to what is now Wakulla and Taylor Counties, Florida. 11 of the 13 vessels in the harbor at Pensacola Bay were lost, causing 35 deaths.
I. A hurricane struck the central Gulf coast between July 7 and July 9.
II. This hurricane moved north-northwest from the Bahamas on September 25 to hit Charleston, South Carolina on September 27. It claimed the lives of hundreds of slaves who found themselves trapped in the low-lying Santee Delta, miles from higher ground and with no shelter. It caused 300 (or more deaths), but managed to break a drought in the Richmond area.
III. From October 20 to the 22nd, a hurricane hit Virginia, causing heavy damage and winds in the Richmond area.
IV. A rare December hurricane moved through the eastern Caribbean Sea and eventually into Venezuela between December 13 and December 22.
I. A tropical storm moved from Curaçao on July 8 to near Jamaica on July 10.
II. A tropical storm moved south of Jamaica on August 2 and August 3.
III. A hurricane which formed in the west-central Gulf of Mexico on September 11 moved slowly northeast, striking the central Gulf coast on September 14.