PNSN Logo
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 #565 - Summary, and parameter estimates with source IDs                                           
'Earthquake History of the U.S' says: "Northwest of Cape Mendocino. Large submarine shock, but so far from land that the greatest intensity on shore was VI at Eureka. Felt at San Jose, northward into Oregon, and in northwesten Nevada. Magnitude 7.6." Another reference, 'The San Andreas Fault System, California, Chapter 6: Earthquake History, 1769-1989, by William L. Ellsworth, USGS Professional Paper 1515. 1990', says: "This event was well recorded throughout the world."
This earthquake was ** very** widely felt. Over a dozen weather observers in Oregon reported to MWR. The highest Oregon intensities reported in the MWR were RF Intensity V, at Central Point, Brookings and Oakridge, Oregon.
Townley and Allen say: "Southern Oregon. A severe shock with its epicenter at sea off Cape Mendocino, California, was felt in southern Oregon on January 31. It was reported felt in Ashland, Grants Pass, Canyonville, Roseburg, Marshfield, Medford, and Eugene. One report says that the shock was also felt in Klamath Falls."
The Oakland Tribune reports: "...At Eureka the temblor, which was of considerable duration, stopped clocks and broke dishes. At Canyonville, Oregon, beds rocked and windows were broken. Canyonville is about 225 miles south of Portland and about 125 miles north of the California line. At Roseburg, Oregon, the entire city was awakened. It was also felt at Eugene, at Portland, Seattle and other northern points. So severe was the shock that the needles of the seismograph instruments at the University of California, at Seattle and at Spokane were lifted from the recording drums. .... Telephone reports from Weaverville, Yreka, Dunsmuir, Fall River, Mills, and Weed, all in the extreme northern part of California, were that the quake had been felt, in varying degrees of intensity. It also was felt at Klamath Falls, Ore. No damage was reported."
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
1922  1  31  5  17  A  P  41.00  125.50    7.60  U  Eureka  CA  VI  MM  400000.00    mi2 
TA-OR - 545 USEQS - 2536 - USEQS - 2536 USEQS - 2536 USEQS - 2536

Underlying Source Material
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2292  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:20
Location: Oakridge, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 43 40
Longitude (deg.,min.): 122 30
RF Intensity: 5
Number of Shocks: 2
Duration (sec.): 5
Sounds:
Remarks:Felt by everyone
Observer:F. M. French
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
1999  Oakland Tribune  1922  January 31, 1922; UC Berkeley Seismograph Station Clippings Collection 
Transcription: LONG QUAKE IS LOCATED UNDER SEA
Mysterious Temblor Lasting More Than Two and Half Hours Believed Beneath the Pacific Off Oregon Coast
Shocks Are Felt in Several Northern Towns, But Very Little Damage Is Done; No Preliminary Warning Given
One of the most peculiar and mysterious earthquakes ever felt in the entire North American continent, and by far of the widest proportions, occurred shortly after 5 o'clock this morning. The quake was felt throughout the country, but no damage was done, other than the breaking of dishes and the stopping of clocks.
That the failure of the 'quake to do great damage was due to its occurrence on the ocean floor, according to Professor Andrew C. Lawson of the University of California. The slip in the earth was recorded by the seismograph as one and one-half millimeters on the recording dial, which constitutes a temblor of the most fearful proportions, and which could mean a slip in the earth of many feet.
Believed to Be Off Oregon Coast.
The probable location of the slip which caused the temblor is placed at about 700 miles southwest of Spokane and 600 miles from Berkeley, the vibrations being more severe along the northwest Pacific coast. This would place the center of the disturbance at about 300 miles off the Oregon coast, or about 350 miles from Portland, on the ocean floor.
At Eureka the temblor, which was of considerable duration, stopped clocks and broke dishes. At Canyonville, Oregon, beds rocked and windows were broken. Canyonville is about 225 miles south of Portland and about 125 miles north of the California line. At Roseburg, Oregon, the entire city was awakened. It was also felt at Eugene, at Portland, Seattle and other northern points. So severe was the shock that the needles of the seismograph instruments at the University of California, at Seattle and at Spokane were lifted from the recording drums.
Most Abrupt Ever Recorded.
The first shock of the temblor was recorded at Santa Clara University at 5:30 o'clock. The seismograph of the University of California shows that the shock began at 18 minutes and 30 seconds past 5 o'clock and lasted until 8 o'clock. Professor Lawson said the quake was one of the most abrupt ever recorded, that there were no preliminary vibrations to warn of the main templor, which was more or less a continual shock for more than two and one-half hours.
In the East the quake was recorded on the instruments, but was not felt. In the Northwest, nearest the probable location of the disturbance, it was felt by early morning risers. Many reported that they were awakened by the rumble, which rattled dishware and windows.
Seismographs all over the United States recorded the shock, and upon learning of the proportions of the disturbances, it was feared that terrible damage had resulted, but this proved untrue. Great damage no doubt was prevented, Professor Lawson points out, from the submerged position of the disturbance. Had a similar slip in the earth occurred on the surface, great damage would have resulted from hundreds of miles around.
Telephone reports from Weaverville, Yreka, Dunsmuir, Fall River, Mills, and Weed, all in the extreme northern part of California, were that the quake had been felt, in varying degrees of intensity. It also was felt at Klamath Falls, Ore. No damage was reported.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2282  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:20
Location: Ashland, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 42 20
Longitude (deg.,min.): 122 45
RF Intensity: 3
Number of Shocks: 1
Duration (sec.): 6
Sounds: None
Remarks:Felt by many
Observer:J. Dodge
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2283  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:Jnauary 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:20
Location: Bend, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 44 00
Longitude (deg.,min.): 121 20
RF Intensity: 2
Number of Shocks: 1
Duration (sec.):
Sounds: None
Remarks:Felt by several?
Observer:Bend Bulletin
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2284  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:30
Location: Brookings, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 42 00
Longitude (deg.,min.): 124 15
RF Intensity: 5?
Number of Shocks: 2
Duration (sec.): 60, 6
Sounds:
Remarks:Felt by many
Observer:J. Reyan
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2285  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:30
Location: Brookings, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 42 00
Longitude (deg.,min.): 124 15
RF Intensity: 2
Number of Shocks: 1
Duration (sec.):
Sounds: None
Remarks:Felt by many
Observer:P. S. Allyn
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2286  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:10
Location: Central Point, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 42 20
Longitude (deg.,min.): 123 00
RF Intensity: 5
Number of Shocks: 3
Duration (sec.): 3, 3, 3
Sounds: None
Remarks:Felt by nearly everyone
Observer:K. Beebe
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2287  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:10
Location: Chiloquin, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 42 40
Longitude (deg.,min.): 122 00
RF Intensity:
Number of Shocks:
Duration (sec.):
Sounds:
Remarks:Slight shocks felt by few
Observer:
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2000  Unknown, UC Berkeley  1922  UC Berkeley Seismograph Station Clippings Collection - 1922 
Transcription: Oregon Towns Shaken by Shock
Portland, Ore., Jan. 31. -- Earthquake shocks were felt early this morning at points in central and southern Oregon, the time corresponding with records of severe shocks recorded on seismographs all the way from Washington, DC, to Seattle, Wash.
Eugene, Grants Pass, Roseburg, Brownsville and Marshfield in Oregon and Eureka in Northern California, reported feeling sharp tremors which shook windows and rattled dishes, but all points reported no damage done.
Efforts were made to obtain verification from ships on the Pacific of deductions at Harvard University and the University of California that the center of the disturbance was on the floor of the Pacific ocean off the coast of Washington or Oregon, but several vessels which were spoken by the navy radio station at North Head failed to report any unusual occurrence.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
400  Byerly, Perry, 1952, Pacific Coast Earthquakes, Condon Lecture, pp. 33-38  1952  U.W. Library, N979 B991p, Special Collections) 
Transcription: 1922, January 31 Epicenter at sea off Cape Mendocino, California. Felt in southern Oregon.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2291  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:25
Location: Medford, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 42 20
Longitude (deg.,min.): 122 50
RF Intensity: 4?
Number of Shocks:
Duration (sec.): 180 ca
Sounds:
Remarks:Felt by many
Observer:R. V. Earl
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2295  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:20
Location: Talent, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 42 10
Longitude (deg.,min.): 122 50
RF Intensity: 3
Number of Shocks: 1
Duration (sec.): 5-10
Sounds: None
Remarks:Felt by a few
Observer:F. C. Reimer
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2298  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:20
Location: Wolf Creek, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 42 40
Longitude (deg.,min.): 123 10
RF Intensity: 3
Number of Shocks: 2
Duration (sec.):
Sounds: None
Remarks:Felt by several
Observer:Mrs. F. M. Stason
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2293  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:20
Location: Port Orford, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 42 40
Longitude (deg.,min.): 124 30
RF Intensity:
Number of Shocks: 1
Duration (sec.):
Sounds: None
Remarks:Felt by a few
Observer:J. D. Louets
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2297  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:15
Location: Winchester Bay, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 43 15
Longitude (deg.,min.): 123 25
RF Intensity:
Number of Shocks:
Duration (sec.):
Sounds:
Remarks:
Observer:Oscar Wiren
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2288  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:20
Location: Cottage Grove, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 43 40
Longitude (deg.,min.): 123 00
RF Intensity: 2
Number of Shocks: 3
Duration (sec.):
Sounds: None
Remarks:Felt by several
Observer:C. E. Stewart
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2296  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:30
Location: Williams, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 42 10
Longitude (deg.,min.): 123 10
Intensity: 2-3
Number of Shocks: 2
Duration (sec.): Few
Sounds: None
Remarks:Felt by many
Observer:J. W. Tuney
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2294  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:15?
Location: Prospect, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 42 40
Longitude (deg.,min.): 122 30
RF Intensity: 2
Number of Shocks: 2
Duration (sec.): 30
Sounds: None
Remarks:Felt by several
Observer:E. B. Price
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2289  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:20
Location: Eugene, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 44 00
Longitude (deg.,min.): 123 00
RF Intensity:
Number of Shocks:
Duration (sec.): Brief
Sounds: Faint
Remarks:Felt by many
Observer:L. Gaetschins
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
545  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: 1922 January 31. 5:17 a.m. Southern Oregon. A severe shock with its epicenter at sea off Cape Mendocino, California, was felt in southern Oregon on January 31. It was reported felt in Ashland, Grants Pass, Canyonville, Roseburg, Marshfield, Medford, and Eugene. One report says that the shock was also felt in Klamath Falls. See the California list for a more complete account of the shock. S.F. Journal, February 1, 1922; MWR, 50, 112.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
637  Reid, unpub., Scrapbook and Cardfile, on microfilm at USGS in Menlo Park     
Transcription: Felt in Oregon 41 degrees 8' N; 125 degrees 30' W PST 5:17:21 am 31 Jan, 1922 GMT 13h 17m 21s Strong submarine shock off Coast of California.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
1614  Mail Tribune  1922  Jan 31, 1922. Sent by Marjorie O'Hara in her note dated Jan 21, 1992. 
Transcription: Summary: Medford feels Earthquake. 1 minute, all sections pacific coast, no (local) damage. Loved one quote: Professor Reamer: "They're blowing up the bank again." Article also says in Oct 1912 earthquake felt in this section.... also jolt from San Francisco quake 1906.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2536  U. S. Dept. of Commerce, 1973, Earthquake History of the United States, V. 41-1, revised ed., pp. 137-189  1973   
Transcription: 1922, January 31, Northwest of Cape Mendocino. Large submarine shock, but so far from land that the greatest intensity on shore was VI at Eureka. Felt at San Jose, northward into Oregon, and in northwesten Nevada. Magnitude 7.6

1922, Jan. 31, 05:17 PST, Northwest off Cape Mendocino, 41N, 125.5W, 400000 miles, MM VI
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2541  The San Andreas Fault System, California, Chapter 6: "Earthquake History, 1769-1989" by William L. Ellsworth, USGS Professional Paper 1515. 1990  1990  p. 169, 185 
Transcription: January 31. 1922 (M=7.3)
The intensity pattern of the large earthquake of January 31, 1922, is generally similar to that of the 1899 event. This event was well recorded throughout the world.

From Table 6.1:
1922/01/31, 13:17 GMT, M=7.3, 41N, 125.5W, West of Eureka, MG-R=7.3, MS=7.4
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
638  Reid, unpub., Scrapbook and Cardfile, on microfilm at USGS in Menlo Park     
Transcription: Southwest Oregon PST 5:18 am 31 Jan, 1922 GMT 13h 18m III-V in Oregon MWR (Feb 1922) Origin submarine off coast of Northern California. Felt over at least 10,000 sq. mi. in Oregon.
 
Source ID Publication Pub Date Pub Details
2290  Monthly Weather Review  1922  V. 50, p. 112 
Transcription: Date:January 31, 1922
Time (Greenwich Civil): 13:25
Location: Florence, Oregon
Latitude (deg., min.): 44 00
Longitude (deg.,min.): 124 00
RF Intensity: 2
Number of Shocks: 1
Duration (sec.): 30
Sounds: None
Remarks:Felt by many
Observer:R. E. Abben
 


UW Logo ESS Logo