page_title: 1896 Cedar Keys hurricane
section_title: Great Lakes region
hierarchical_section_title: 1896 Cedar Keys hurricane / Impact and aftermath / Great Lakes region
caption_attribution_description: English: Surface weather analysis of the 1896 Cedar Keys hurricane at 8:00 am on September 30, 1896.
context_page_description: The 1896 Cedar Keys hurricane was a powerful and destructive tropical cyclone that devastated much of the East Coast of the United States, starting with Florida's Cedar Keys, near the end of September 1896. The storm's rapid movement allowed it to maintain much of its intensity after landfall and cause significant damage over a broad area; as a result, it became one of the costliest United States hurricanes at the time. The fourth tropical cyclone of the 1896 Atlantic hurricane season, it formed by September 22, likely from a tropical wave, before crossing the Caribbean Sea just south of the Greater Antilles. It entered the Gulf of Mexico as the equivalent of a major hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson scale, and struck the Cedar Keys—an offshore island chain that includes the island and city of Cedar Key—early on the morning of September 29 with winds of 125 mph. The area was inundated by a devastating 10.5 ft storm surge that undermined buildings, washed out the connecting railroad to the mainland, and submerged the smaller, outlying islands, where 31 people were killed.
context_section_description: Strong winds associated with the extratropical cyclone impacted parts of central and western New York State, particularly around Syracuse; there, it was considered the worst storm in recent memory. Homes, barns, and factories lost their roofs in several towns, with some buildings near Ithaca being totally destroyed. Trees and communications lines suffered a similar fate as in many other areas along the storm's path. Trees in orchards were stripped of nearly all their fruit. Buffalo endured 53 mph (85 km/h) winds that tore wires and damaged roofs. Farther east, wind gusts exceeded 60 mph (100 km/h) at New York City, bringing down overhead wires. A switchboard at a telephone exchange in Brooklyn sparked a fire that caused $30,000 (equivalent to $0.9 million in 2019) in damage. Several steamships limped into port at New York with significant damage. From New Jersey to Long Island, trees, fences, chimneys, windows, and political campaign signs fell victim to the storm. On the Hudson River at Newburgh, in the early morning hours on September 30, a tugboat collided with a passenger vessel, injuring two crew members of the former craft. "Considerable" wind damage extended north through the Hudson Valley, and trains along the West Shore Railroad were delayed by landslides and washouts. Total property damage in New York was assessed at $50,000 (equivalent to $1.5 million in 2019).
  Heavy rainfall doused parts of Ohio for four days beginning on September 27. Resulting floods damaged crops and property, and the inclement weather disrupted William McKinley's presidential campaign activities at his home in Canton.
  On September 30, gales from the former hurricane swept across the Great Lakes. Hundreds of spectators lined the shores of Lake Michigan at Chicago, Illinois, to watch the enormous waves. A schooner was torn from its moorings at Chicago, and crashed into nearly a dozen smaller vessels while being blown about. The schooner Belle from Racine, Wisconsin, went missing amid the storm, while the barge Sumatra broke up and capsized near Milwaukee, taking the lives of four crew members; the captain, first mate, and cook were safely rescued. The storm damaged around $75,000 worth of property on the Great Lakes (equivalent to $2.3 million in 2019).
caption: Map of the hurricane's extratropical remnants over the Great Lakes on September 30
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