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Cascadia Historic Earthquake Catalog, 1793-1929
Covering Washington, Oregon and Southern British Columbia

Provided by: The Pacific Northwest Seismic Network
About the Cascadia Historic Earthquake Catalog       One-line catalog format

1793-1849 .... 1850s .... 1860s .... 1870s .... 1880s .... 1890s .... 1900s .... 1910s .... 1920s .... 1930s (not complete) .... Other Cascadia Catalogs

  
Individual Event Report
Event #199 - Summary, and parameter estimates with source IDs                                           
The time of 8 AM reported for this earthquake in the Monthly Weather Review and all subsequent catalogs appears to be incorrect. The newspaper account states that the event was at 5 AM. Although this earthquake is listed in many catalogs as intensity V, it appears that it was felt only in Olympia. The same newspaper report appears in both the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and the Oregonian: "Olympia, Oct 9 -- A sharp earthquake took place here about 5 o'clock this morning, rousing up most of our citizens. The vibrations seemed to be from east to west. The shock was followed by a rumbling sound, which continued for a few seconds".
TIME LOCATION MAGNITUDE MAX. INTENSITY FELT AREA
YR MO DAY HR MIN AM/PM Time
Type
LAT(N) LON(W) DEP
(km)
MAG Mag
Type
Felt
Plc.
Felt
St.
Inten-
sity
Int.
Type
Felt
Area
Felt
Area
Int.
Felt
Area
Units
1885  10      47.00  123.00        Olympia  WA  RF       
MWR - 2192 USEQS - 923 - - HOLD1 - 472 -

Underlying Source Material
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
472  Holden, Edward S., 1887, List of Recorded Earthquakes in California, Lower California, Oregon, and Washington Territory  1887  Printed by Direction of the Regents of the University of California, Sacremento, California, 
Transcription: 1885. October 9; 8h. A moderate shock (V), Olympia, W.T.--C.G.R.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
55  Rasmussen, Norman, 1967, Washington state earthquakes 1840 through 1965, BSSA V. 57, No. 3, pp. 463-476  1967   
Transcription: 55 1885 Oct. 9 16: 47 N, 123 W V 1 Olympia
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2192  Monthly Weather Review  1885  October, V 13, p. 266 
Transcription: October, 1885: Olympia, Washington Territory, 9th: an earthquake shock occurred at 8:00 a.m. The vibration was from south to north. The duration of the shock was less than one minute.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
234  Bradford, Donald C., 1935, Seismic History of the Puget Sound Basin, BSSA, V. 25, No. 2, pp. 138-153  1935   
Transcription: 1885 October 9, 8h; a moderate shock, V, Olympia. C.G.R. III; P.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
1677  Woodward Clyde Consultants, unpublished  1981  Woodward-Clyde Consultants (1981), Historical Catalog (1841-1980) for the Pacific Northwest Region, unpublished catalog prepared for the Washington Public Power Supply System. Copy provided to UW in 1993. 
Transcription: 188510 91600000 47000-123000 V NO 5 01
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
705  Reid, unpub., Scrapbook and Cardfile, on microfilm at USGS in Menlo Park     
Transcription: Olympia 8h 9 Oct, 1885 V. direction S-N -Am Jr Sc III-XXXII, pg 14
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
982  U. S. Dept. of Commerce, 1973, Earthquake History of the United States, V. 41-1, revised ed., pp. 89-96  1973   
Transcription: 1885. October 9. Olympia, Wash. Intensity V.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
861  Reid 2, unpub., Scrapbook and Cardfile, on microfilm at USGS in Menlo Park     
Transcription: Olympia 8:00a October 9, 1885 V S-N; Duration less than 1 minute, October 1885, III.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2145  Oregonian  1885  Oct. 10, 1885, p. 1 
Transcription: EARTHQUAKE AT OLYMPIA

Olympia, Oct 9 -- A sharp earthquake took place here about 5 o'clock this morning, rousing up most of our citizens. The vibrations seemed to be from east to west. The shock was followed by a rumbling sound, which continued for a few seconds.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2146  Seattle Post-Intelligencer  1885  Saturday, Oct. 10, 1885, Pacific Coast section 
Transcription: EARTHQUAKE AT OLYMPIA

Olympia, Oct 9 -- A sharp earthquake took place here about 5 o'clock this morning, rousing up most of our citizens. The vibrations seemed to be from east to west. The shock was followed by a rumbling sound, which continued for a few seconds.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
923  U. S. Dept. of Commerce, 1973, Earthquake History of the United States, V. 41-1, revised ed., pp. 89-96  1973   
Transcription: 1885 Oct. 9 08:00 Olympia, Wash 47 123 - V Do.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
1211  The American Journal of Science  1887  Third Series, Vol. XXXII, Nos. 187-192, July to December 1886, pp. 13-16 
Transcription: Rockwood, C. G. "American Earthquakes", THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SCIENCE, Third Series,, VOL. XXXII, Nos. 187-192, July to December 1886, pp. 13-16.

May 3, 1885 - 23h 30m local time a very light shock (III) at Olympia, W. T. Light shocks continued until 1h 30m of the 4th (U.S. Weather Review)

June 27 - 5h 26m at Olympia, W. T., a light shock (IV) east to west, with rumbling noise (U. S. Weather Review).

October 9 - 8h a moderate shock (V), south to north, at Olympia, W. T.

October 10 - Between 1h and 2h three very light shocks (III), each of about one second duration and separated by an interval of six seconds, at East Portland, Oregon (U. S. Weather Review).

December 8 - In the evening a moderate earthquake (V) occurred in the vicinity of Puget Sound, W. T. The principal shock occurred at 22h 40m, 120th meridian time, and was felt as far south as Olympia, where the motion was east-west and was sufficient to arouse sleepers. At East Sound three light shocks were reported at 22h 35m; two heavy ones, rattling dishes at 22h 40m; two light ones at 23h 15m, and a somewhat heavier one at 23h 50m ... It was also reported from Port Angeles and Salt Springs Island.

December 18 - 0h 30m a very light shock (III) at Tatoosh Island in the extreme northwest of Washington Territory. It lasted about five seconds and was followed by a second shock about ten minutes later (U. S. Weather Review).
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
1192  Townley, S. D. and M. W. Allen, 1939, Descriptive Catalog of Earthquakes of the Pacific Coast of the United States 1769-1928, Chap. III Earthquakes in Washington, 1883-1928, BSSA, V. 29, No. 1, pp. 259-268  1939   
Transcription: 1885 October 9. 8h (8 a. m.). V. Olympia. A moderate shock. ------ CGR. III. P.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
7112  Land of trees: Scannings from Quinault country, the Grays Harbor region, and beyond, 1774-1997
by Larry J Workman, Quinault Indian Nation
ISBN: 0940359014 
1997   
Transcription: EARTHQUAKE EVENTS LISTED IN Workman, Land of Trees (1997)

SOURCE: Workman, Larry J. Land of Trees: Scannings From Quinault Country, the Grays Harbor Region, and Beyond 1774-1997 (Taholah, WA: The Quinault Indian Nation, 1997)
Newspapers that were used for most of the entries include Daily World (Aberdeen), Montesano Vidette, Weekly Puget Sound Courier (Olympia), Olympic [sic?] Transcript (Olympia), Washington Standard (Olympia), North Coast News (Ocean Shores)
*
November 23, 1827 “Slight shock of earthquake felt at Fort Langley”
October 1842 “St. Helens enters a violent eruptive phase that will continue intermittently for fifteen years.”
November 23, 1842 “Ash from St. Helens falls to ½ inch deep at the Dalles.”
February 16, 1843 “Peter H. Burnett (later governor of California) reports, ‘The mountain (St. Helens) burning magnificently.’”
1854 “George Davidson, a scientist, reports ‘vast rolling masses of dense smoke,’ on Mt. Baker.”
December 14, 1872 “Strong earthquake felt on Puget Sound.” p 35
October 19, 1873 “Clouds of smoke pour from the highest peak of Mount Rainier. (Last for nearly a week).” p 35
March 27, 1884 “Quite an earthquake shock in Hoquiam was noticed about 10:00 p.m. lasting 3 seconds; no damage.” p 38
October 9, 1885 “Earthquake in Olympia.” p 40
September 3, 1886 “Greatest earthquake to hit the United States centers on Charleston, South Carolina.” p 41
April 22, 1887 “An earthquake shock, heavy enough in places to shake dishes from shelves, was felt in several towns in this Territory.” (Note: Index refers to this as an earthquake at Grays Harbor) p 42
May 7, 1887 “Something like a tidal-wave struck the Quinaielt agency at midnight. Some of the Indian houses were waist deep in water, the inmates yelling in terror as they were submerged during sleep on their low sleeping places. The water receded as rapidly as it came, carrying everything portable in its exit.” p 43
November 30, 1891 “Earthquake shock slight on [Grays? gwl] Harbor, but heaviest ever experienced in some Sound cities.” p 49
April 18, 1906 “Bay City (San Francisco) ravage by earthquake at 5:10 a.m. and the fires that followed (the rebuilding of the city greatly stimulated logging on Grays Harbor).” p 66
January 11, 1909 “Grays Harbor Earthquake, 4:03 p.m.” p 68
April 16, 1910 “Halley’s Comet visible to the naked eye.” p 70
October 11, 1911 “Earthquake in Southern California kills 700.” p 71
September 5, 1914 “Earthquake in Olympia felt over 1,000 sq. miles.” p 74
January 13, 1915 “50,000 die in Italian earthquake.” p 74
April 22, 1915 “Tacoma rocked by an earthquake.” p 74
December 24, 1920 “A small tidal wave sweeps beaches, washes 12 Sunset Beach cottages from their foundations.” p 79
September 3, 1923 “Japanese earthquake kills 90,000.” p 82
December 4, 1926 “Quake shakes Northwest.” p 85
July 16, 1928 “Giant meteor lights up night sky and [Grays? gwl] Harborites hear rumble.” p 87
March 12, 1929 “Brilliant light flashes in the sky.” p 87 (Note: Index references this as Meteor - Harbor)
May 4, 1929 “Report of vast earth upheaval on the Queets near M. M. Kelly Ranch.” p 88
December 31, 1931 “Tremor shakes up Puget Sound and Hood Canal.” p 91
 


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