Hurricane History Map

Hurricanes that hit Massachusetts: hurricane history

63 storms have passed within 50 km of Massachusetts from 1851 to 2021, drawn on the map and coloured by intensity.

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Years1842 to 2026
Ocean basin

Choosing a minimum category hides storms with no wind speed in the record. To see which storms have passed near you, search a town or ZIP code, or tap the map.

Key
  • Tropical depression Winds below 34 knots (39 mph)
  • Tropical storm 34 to 63 knots (39 to 73 mph)
  • Category 1 64 to 82 knots (74 to 95 mph)
  • Category 2 83 to 95 knots (96 to 110 mph)
  • Category 3 96 to 112 knots (111 to 129 mph), major
  • Category 4 113 to 136 knots (130 to 156 mph), major
  • Category 5 137 knots (157 mph) or more, major
  • Unknown intensity No wind speed in the record
  • Post-tropical Storm has become post-tropical (dashed line)

How to read the lines. Each line is the track of one storm, drawn through its six-hourly positions and coloured by its intensity at each point (the Saffir-Simpson scale), so a line changes colour as the storm strengthens or weakens. Tap a line for its details, or tap anywhere else to see which storms have passed nearby. Weaker storms appear as you zoom in. Hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones are the same kind of storm with different names in different oceans.

Storms near Massachusetts

The record holds 63 tropical cyclones whose tracks passed within 50 km of Massachusetts between 1851 and 2021. The busiest month is September, with 26 of them. The strongest, measured where each came closest to the place, reached category 3 strength. 2 of the storms have no wind speed in the record.

  • 63storms within 50 km
  • 4major (category 3 to 5) near here
  • 21at category 1 strength or more

A storm counts once, however many times it came close. The category is the storm's strongest point within 50 km, which can be weaker than its peak elsewhere.

How strong were the storms near Massachusetts?

Category near hereStormsShare
Tropical depression12%
Tropical storm3962%
Category 11117%
Category 2610%
Category 346%
Category 400%
Category 500%
Unknown intensity23%

The agency behind most of the intensity figures here is the NOAA National Hurricane Center (HURDAT2, Atlantic).

Massachusetts storms over time

Storms by decade
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 7 in 1880s.1850s1870s1890s1910s1930s1950s1970s1990s2010s

The 2020s only run to 2021, so that bar is for a shorter period. This place's record starts in 1851, and records before the satellite era (about the 1960s) are far less complete.

Show the numbers
PeriodCount
1850s3
1860s6
1870s6
1880s7
1890s5
1900s1
1910s2
1920s2
1930s3
1940s2
1950s5
1960s5
1970s3
1980s2
1990s4
2000s3
2010s1
2020s3

Earlier decades hold fewer storms partly because they were harder to see. Before weather satellites (about the 1960s) many storms that stayed at sea went unrecorded, so compare decades with care.

Storms by month
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 26 in Sep.Jan0Feb0Mar0Apr0May1Jun0Jul6Aug20Sep26Oct9Nov1Dec0
Show the numbers
PeriodCount
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr0
May1
Jun0
Jul6
Aug20
Sep26
Oct9
Nov1
Dec0

Strongest storms near Massachusetts

  • Unnamed storm of September 1938 (North Atlantic)9 September 1938 to 23 September 1938, Category 3 (105 kt) near here, peak Category 5 (140 kt), 940 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of September 1869 (North Atlantic)2 September 1869 to 9 September 1869, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 950 hPa
  • Carol (1954)25 August 1954 to 1 September 1954, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 955 hPa
  • Edna (1954)5 September 1954 to 14 September 1954, peak Category 3 (110 kt), 943 hPa
  • Bob (1991)16 August 1991 to 29 August 1991, Category 2 (95 kt) near here, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 950 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of September 1869 (North Atlantic)26 September 1869 to 5 October 1869, peak Category 2 (90 kt)

Most recent storms near Massachusetts

  • Henri (2021)15 August 2021 to 24 August 2021, Tropical storm (40 kt) near here, peak Category 1 (65 kt), 986 hPa
  • Elsa (2021)30 June 2021 to 10 July 2021, Tropical storm (50 kt) near here, peak Category 1 (75 kt), 991 hPa
  • Isaias (2020)28 July 2020 to 5 August 2020, Tropical storm (55 kt) near here, peak Category 1 (80 kt), 986 hPa
  • Irene (2011)21 August 2011 to 30 August 2011, Tropical storm (55 kt) near here, peak Category 3 (105 kt), 942 hPa
  • Hanna (2008)28 August 2008 to 8 September 2008, Tropical storm (45 kt) near here, peak Category 1 (75 kt), 977 hPa

Many of these storms killed people and destroyed homes. The figures are the official record's, and this page says nothing about their human cost.

Notable storms near Massachusetts with their own pages

  • Carol (1954)25 August 1954 to 1 September 1954, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 955 hPa
  • Edna (1954)5 September 1954 to 14 September 1954, peak Category 3 (110 kt), 943 hPa
  • Bob (1991)16 August 1991 to 29 August 1991, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 950 hPa
  • Donna (1960)29 August 1960 to 14 September 1960, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 930 hPa
  • Gloria (1985)16 September 1985 to 2 October 1985, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 920 hPa
  • Esther (1961)10 September 1961 to 27 September 1961, peak Category 5 (140 kt), 919 hPa
  • Belle (1976)6 August 1976 to 10 August 1976, peak Category 3 (105 kt), 957 hPa
  • Bertha (1996)5 July 1996 to 17 July 1996, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 960 hPa
  • Irene (2011)21 August 2011 to 30 August 2011, peak Category 3 (105 kt), 942 hPa
  • Floyd (1999)7 September 1999 to 19 September 1999, peak Category 4 (135 kt), 921 hPa

Massachusetts counties

Every county that a storm has come near is listed, most storms first. 14 of them have at least 3 storms and their own page.

CountyStormsStrongest near the county
Worcester County32Category 3
Middlesex County29Category 3
Bristol County28Category 3
Hampden County28Category 3
Norfolk County27Category 3
Essex County26Category 3
Plymouth County24Category 3
Nantucket County23Category 3
Suffolk County23Category 3
Barnstable County22Category 3
Hampshire County22Category 3
Dukes County20Category 3
Franklin County20Category 3
Berkshire County18Category 3

Other states

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