Cascadia Catalog 1793-1930

	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 #251 - Summary, and parameter estimates with source IDs
The MM intensity of VI given for Olympia by Earthquake History of the US seems overstated. The Seattle P.I. says :"Bad shocks felt in Portland, Tacoma, and Olympia. -- Portland, April 17. -- At 2:50 o'clock this afternoon two heavy shocks of earthquake were felt here. The shocks lasted about ten seconds each... Many persons became frightened when buildings began to tremble, and rushed into the street. No serious damage was done." the Washington Standard (Olympia) reports: "it was only severe enough to remind people of the mighty power that nature reserves for occasional display" and the Portland Oregonian states that a single slight earthquake was felt at Portland and that two shocks, the first making many buildings tremble, and the second scarcely perceptible, were felt at Tacoma. Some catalogs have two listings at this time, one for each city.
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
1892	4	17	2	45	P		47.00	123.00				Olympia	WA	VI	MM
N-WaS - 2532							USEQS - 928		-	-		USEQS - 928				-

Underlying Source Material

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
2530	Seattle P.I.	1892	April 18, 1892, p.2, c. 1
Transcription: THE EARTH HEAVED Bad shocks felt in Portland, Tacoma, and Olympia. Portland, April 17. -- At 2:50 o'clock this afternoon two heavy shocks of earthquake were felt here. The shocks lasted about ten seconds each, and the vibrations were from west to east. Many persons became frightened when buildings began to tremble, and rushed into the street. No serious damage was done. Olympia, April 17. - [Special.] - A severe shock of earthquake was felt here at 2:45 o'clock this afternoon. Tacoma, April 17. - [Special] - Two slight shocks of earthquake were felt here in various parts of the city at 2:55 p.m., the second shock being very faint. The motion of the vibration was south to north. In tall buildings, like the National Bank of Commerce, the shock was quite distinct.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
2532	Washington Standard	1892	April 22, 1892
Transcription: The Earthquake It seems that the Pacific Coast has been very generally shaken up the past few days, and had the phenomenon occurred last month the Union precinct adventists would have had some cause for grounding their belief that the end of all things earthly was rapidly approaching. A very perceptible vibration was felt in Olympia Sunday afternoon, at 2:45, lasting only about five seconds; but it was only severe enough to remind people of the mighty power that nature reserves for occasional display, and of the possible results in less favored countries, where the Earth's crust is so thin that the seething caldron of liquid fire constantly boiling in its interior, may at any time develop titanic forces capable of rending the surface asunder. The shocks experienced elsewhere have been very light except in California, where the conditions have ever been favorable for volcanic upheavals. The first shocks reported, occurred Tuesday morning, at about 3 o'clock, and were exceedingly disastrous to the towns of Dixon, Winters, and Vacaville, where many brick buildings were shaken down and others cracked so as to be in danger of falling. At Sacramento, Stockton, Nevada, Merced, Grass Valley, and in San Francisco, the shock was severe enough to excite much alarm, but no damage is reported. Wednesday morning about the same hour, other shocks were felt, but none as severe as the first, and the only effect has been to hurry the demolishment of the crumbling walls. Yesterday morning, at 9:42 the vibrations were resumed, and lasted at San Francisco 20 seconds. At Woodland the shock was more severe than that of Monday morning. At Sacramento the State Capitol is badly damaged. The plaster on one of the statues over the portico, 150 feet from the ground fell and struck 40 feet from the building. A crack was made in the ceiling extending from one end of the building to the other. The beautifully decorated ceiling was broken in many places. Dispatches from upwards of 25 towns indicate that the quake was quite general throughout the northern part of the State and the Sacramento Valley. No lives were lost but a number of people are reported to have been injured, some of them quite seriously.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
77	Rasmussen, Norman, 1967, Washington state earthquakes 1840 through 1965, BSSA V. 57, No. 3, pp. 463-476	1967
Transcription: 77 1892 Apr. 17 22:50 47 N, 123 W VI 1 Olympia

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
1578	Morning Oregonian	1895	Feb 26, 1895, Tues., p. 5, c. 4.
Transcription: THE EARTH TREMBLED. A Slight Quake Visits Portland and Awakens Light Sleepers. Did you feel it? That was the unusual salutation that early-risers yesterday morning were greeted with. A seismal disturbance of the earth's surface in this vicinity was the cause of the query. At 4:47 o'clock in the morning a slight earthquake shock was felt, and those who were awakened, or are light sleepers, experienced the tremor. The vibrations were from north to south, and the first shock was quickly followed by two others, each about three seconds in duration. Although plainly perceptible, the shocks were not severe, and, aside from the rattling of loose window frames, and the swinging of picture frames and hanging lamps, there were no unusual indications of the presence of the seismic visitor. So faint was the trembling that the self- registering barometer in the office of the weather bureau showed no trace of vibratory action, and Observer Pague says that on Sunday night there was no indication of earthly or atmospheric disturbance. Portland has several times been visited by earthquake shocks. The most severe one was on the afternoon of October 12, 1877, when several shocks followed each other in rapid succession. There was a lively rattling of dishes, and the walls in several houses were cracked. Men, women and children rushed into the streets, and for a few minutes great excitement prevailed. The public schools were in session at the time, and the pupils in the upper rooms of the old Central schoolhouse, standing on the present site of the Hotel Portland, for a moment thought the building would topple over, as it swayed toward the post office. A large crack in the north end of the building, caused by the shock of 1877, is still to be seen. On February 21, 1892, several slight shocks were experienced in the evening, and on the afternoon of April 17, in the same year, three distinct shocks were also felt. The earthquake of yesterday is the first experienced in Portland for three years. Many people refuse to believe that there was an earthquake, and by far the largest majority did not notice it. Mr. E. W. Masten, who lives at Irvington, says he and his wife were awakened by the shaking of their house at 4:47 am, and that the windows rattled in a very lively manner for a short time after. Mrs. C. A. Coburn, who resides on the East Side, was also awakened by the shaking, and so was Judge Northup, who lives at The Hill house.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
1277	Holden, E.S., 1898, A Catalog of Earthquakes on the Pacific Coast 1769-1897, Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections, 1087	1898
Transcription: 1892. April 17; Portland; 2:56 p.m. The observer of U. S. Weather Bureau reports one light shock.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
2028	Leslie M. Scott, Memoranda of the Files of the Oregonian 1850-1910, Oregon Historical Society	1910	Unpublished index to the Oregonian
Transcription: severest at Portland, Oct. 12, 1877; west wall of Post Office cracked; Feb. 29, 1892; several tremors; Apr. 17, 1892; clocks stopped and dishes rattled; Feb. 25, 1895; a rather severe quake

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
2040	Leslie M. Scott, Memoranda of the Files of the Oregonian 1850-1910, Oregon Historical Society	1910	Unpublished index to the Oregonian
Transcription: at Portland, severest Oct. 12, 1877, several shocks, cracked walls; Feb. 21, 1892, several slight shocks; On April 17, 1892, several shocks; on Feb 25, 1895, shock 4:47 a.m.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
2053	Leslie M. Scott, Memoranda of the Files of the Oregonian 1850-1910, Oregon Historical Society	1910	Unpublished index to the Oregonian
Transcription: at Portland, also Olympia, Apr. 17, 1892

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
817	Reid 2, unpub., Scrapbook and Cardfile, on microfilm at USGS in Menlo Park
Transcription: Portland 2:50p April 17, 1892 W-E; Duration 10 seconds.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
360	Byerly, Perry, 1952, Pacific Coast Earthquakes, Condon Lecture, pp. 33-38	1952	U.W. Library, N979 B991p, Special Collections)
Transcription: 1892, April 17 Portland. Two heavy shocks. Many persons became frightened and rushed into the street when the buildings began to tremble. No damage

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
879	Reid 2, unpub., Scrapbook and Cardfile, on microfilm at USGS in Menlo Park
Transcription: Olympia 2:45p June 17, 1892 severe Felt at Tacoma.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
1706	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: 189204172250000 47000-123000 VI NO 6 01

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
1274	Holden, E.S., 1898, A Catalog of Earthquakes on the Pacific Coast 1769-1897, Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections, 1087	1898
Transcription: 1892. April 17; Tacoma, Washington. Two shocks were felt at 2:55 o'clock this afternoon. The second was scarcely perceptible. Buildings trembled. The vibrations were from south to north. There was a severe shock at Olympia at 2:39 this afternoon which lasted seven seconds. Intensity II at Tacoma and at Castle Rock.__P.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
928	U. S. Dept. of Commerce, 1973, Earthquake History of the United States, V. 41-1, revised ed., pp. 89-96	1973
Transcription: Apr. 17 14:50 Near Olympia, Wash 47 123 - VI 3-25,25

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
1276	Holden, E.S., 1898, A Catalog of Earthquakes on the Pacific Coast 1769-1897, Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections, 1087	1898
Transcription: 1892. April 17; Olympia; 2:45 p.m. Severe.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
987	U. S. Dept. of Commerce, 1973, Earthquake History of the United States, V. 41-1, revised ed., pp. 89-96	1973
Transcription: 1892. April 17. Near Olympia, Wash. A shock whose epicenter was uncertain, but probably near Olympia, was felt sharply at Portland, Oreg., and at Tacoma, Wash. At Portland, people rushed into the street when buildings trembled.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
503	Townley, S.D. and M.W. Allen, 1939, Descriptive Catalog of earthquakes of the Pacific Coast of the United States 1769 to 1928, Chapter II, Earthquakes in Oregon--1846-1928, BSSA, V. 29, No. 1, pp. 253-258.	1939
Transcription: 1892 April 17. 2:50 p.m. Portland. At 2:50 o'clock this afternoon two heavy shocks. They lasted about ten seconds each, and the vibrations were from west to east. Many persons became frightened and rushed into the street when the buildings began to tremble. No damage. The observer of U. S. Weather Bureau reports one light shock at 2:56 p.m.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
1580	The Oregonian	1896	April 3, 1896, p. 10, c. 3.
Transcription: THE EARTH DID SHAKE And It Aroused Portlanders Out Of A Sound Sleep. The Earthquake Yesterday Morning Was Severe, and Lasted Ten Seconds, but Did No Damage. The earthquake of yesterday morning is said to have been one of the most severe that has been experienced in Portland in many years. It did no damage to property, but it managed to waken thousands of people from sound slumber, and caused no little alarm. Earthquakes are very rare in Portland and many people did not know the cause of the strange rumbling and shaking, until they read their morning paper. Strange to say, the instruments of the weather bureau office failed to record the earthquake. There was no indication whatever upon the barograph, or self-registering barometer used for recording changes in the air pressure. But Mr. Blandford, Mr. Pague's assistant, was able to furnish some information about the shock. "The earthquake," he said, "occurred at 3:13 this morning, and lasted between 8 and 10 seconds. It began with a severe and quick jerky vibration, and then, after a moment's interval, the vibrations resumed with lesser force until the finally died away. As far as I could tell, the vibrations seemed to go from the northeast to the south east. I should say the earthquake was rather severe at first." The time at which Mr. Blandford fixes the shock was corroborated by almost everyone who thought to notice the time, though there was considerable disagreement as to the duration of the vibration, some contending that it did not take up more than five seconds. That it was a severe shock is proven by the general attention it attracted. Many were the stories told yesterday of what the earthquake had done. One young man said it wakened him, and as he looked at the wall he saw the pictures swinging to and fro and heard the shutters moving, though it was a quiet night. The unusual loudness of the rumbling which accompanied the shock was what attracted general attention, many of those who noticed the earthquake saying that it sounded like the collapse of some big brick block. One man who, with his entire family was aroused from sleep, said that his house rocked as if it were about to tumble. It nearly overturned a lamp standing on a table besides his bed, and twisted the nails in the woodwork. The shock was less severely felt in The Oregonian building then almost anywhere else, which probably accounts for the barograph not recording the vibrations. The record is made by a fine needle on smoked glass. So sensitive is it that the slightest vibration will affect the needle and indicate the disturbance on the surface of the glass. The only instruments of this kind on the coast are at the observatory at Mount Hamilton, and at the weather bureau office in Carson City. Of course, the earthquake caused all the old-timers yesterday to limber up their up their tongues and turn loose their experiences of the "airly days" in the Northwest, and such stories found ready listeners. The most severe shock of the past of which there is any record occurred here October 12, 1877. There were several shocks following each other in rapid succession, the first of which was felt seven minutes before 2 o'clock in the afternoon. The vibrations, which were from north to south, were very pronounced. Considerable damage was done by the breaking of dishes, lamps and glassware, and buildings were shaken up and walls and ceiling cracked. A portion of the west wall of the post office building was cracked by the shock, which is there even now. There was great alarm among the people, hundreds of whom rushed, pell-mell, out of their stores and dwelling into the streets. No one was hurt through the shock, which was felt as far north as the Sound. February 21, 1892, there were several slight tremors of the earth about 8:15 in the evening, lasting 8 1/2 seconds. The vibrations, as usual, were from north to south. April 17, of the same year, there were three distinct shocks, at 2:56 o'clock in the afternoon, clocks being stopped and dishes, doors and windows rattled by the vibrations. On February 25, 1895, there was quite a severe earthquake. It came in three severe shocks, lasting about nine seconds, the vibrations being from north to south.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
570	Smith, W. D., 1919, Earthquakes in Oregon, BSSA, V. 9, n. 3, pp. 58-71	1919
Transcription: 1892. April 17; 2:50 pm.; Portland. At 2:50 o'clock this afternoon two heavy shocks. They lasted about ten seconds each and the vibrations were from west to east. Many persons became frightened and rushed into the street when the buildings began to tremble. No damage. The observer of U. S. Weather Bureau reports one light shock at 2:56 p.m.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
1571	The Oregonian	1892	April 18, 1892; pg 3, c. 4
Transcription: 1892, April 17. Portland, Olympia. A slight earthquake shock was felt yesterday at 2:57 pm. By many it was unobserved. People at tables noticed it plainly. By some it was thought to be a single vibration from west to east. Others report three shocks in connected succession, one from west to east, one from north to south, and another from west to east. Dishes rattled and doors creaked. On Portland Heights it was plainly felt. The doors of the big safe in the Portland Hotel safe rattled. In other parts of the building it was not noticed. Those who felt it waited a moment expecting to experience a repetition of the big shock two or three weeks ago, but none came. Felt in Tacoma . The earthquake was also felt in Tacoma. A dispatch from that city last night says: "Two earthquake shocks were felt here at 2:55 o'clock this afternoon. The second shock was scarcely perceptible, but in the first many buildings trembled, and the vibrations seemed to be from north to south."

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
1093	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: 1892 April 17. 2:45 p.m. Olympia. Severe. [Probably the same shock as the following.]

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
1094	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: 1892 April 17. 2:55 p.m. II. Tacoma. Two shocks were felt at 2:55 o'clock this afternoon. The second was scarcely perceptible. Buildings trembled. The vibrations were from south to north. There was a severe shock at Olympia at 2:39 o'clock this afternoon which lasted seven seconds. Intensity II at Tacoma and at Castle Rock.-P.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
2481	Coombs, H.A., W.G. Milne, O.W. Nuttli, and D.B. Slemmons, "Report of the Review Panel on the December 14, 1872 earthquake",	1976	Appendix D: Selected Supporting Information -- Professor Plummer's Paper on "Recent Volcanic Activity" Read before the Academy of Science - Tacoma Ledger - February 28, 1893
Transcription: (This is part of an 8 page article - see the WPPSS table for entire text RSL 7/1995) On April 17, 1892, at 2:55 p.m., two slight shocks were- felt at Tacoma.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
259	Bradford, Donald C., 1935, Seismic History of the Puget Sound Basin, BSSA, V. 25, No. 2, pp. 138-153	1935
Transcription: 1892 April 17; 2:45 p.m. Olympia; severe.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
258	Bradford, Donald C., 1935, Seismic History of the Puget Sound Basin, BSSA, V. 25, No. 2, pp. 138-153	1935
Transcription: 1892 April 17; II; Tacoma; two shocks were felt at 2:55 o'clock this afternoon; the second was scarcely perceptible; buildings trembled; the vibrations were from south to north. There was a severe shock at Olympia at 2:39 o'clock this afternoon which lasted seven seconds. Intensity II at Tacoma and at Castle Rock. P.

Source ID	Publication	Pub Date	Pub Details
1275	Holden, E.S., 1898, A Catalog of Earthquakes on the Pacific Coast 1769-1897, Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections, 1087	1898
Transcription: 1892. April 17; Portland, Oregon. At 2:50 o'clock this afternoon two heavy shocks. They lasted about ten seconds each and the vibrations were from west to east. Many persons became frightened and rushed into the street when the buildings began to tremble. No damage.