What Winter Was Like the Year You Were Born

The United States has seen a variety of winters over the previous century—the whole lot from heat, gentle years the place people might stroll leisurely by parks in February, to turbulent, frigid seasons the place folks needed to hunker down inside. There had been years the place blizzards swept in unannounced, protecting large swaths of the nation in blankets of snow, whereas different years introduced hurricane-force winds to cities and cities throughout the nation.

The Midwest area is especially prone to chilly winters, particularly in states like Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, and Michigan. In these locations, residents lie in the path of each the low-pressure methods that originate in Alberta and journey southward (generally referred to as “Canadian clippers”) and the shortwave low-pressure methods that come from the southwest, touring northeast towards the Great Lakes area (additionally referred to as “Panhandle hooks”). Additionally, some winters, notably lately, see the polar vortex in the north sending large plenty of freezing Arctic air southward. These usually settle over the Midwest, inflicting jarring and harmful drops in temperature.

The Midwest is not the solely place in America that is susceptible to blustery, bitter-cold winters. New England experiences a lot of hurricane-level storms and cyclones, primarily from nor’easters that type in Canada and journey south. The Rocky Mountains are susceptible to excessive temperature lows in addition to heavy blizzards, particularly in states like Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana (the latter of which may attain temperatures of fifty levels under zero in the thick of winter). Alaska sees freezing, storm-filled winters that usually break data for lowest temperatures and heaviest snowfalls. And the western states usually get hit with torrential rainstorms that trigger widespread flooding and harm. In distinction, Hawaii, Florida, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas take pleasure in a few of the mildest winters in the U.S.

To provide you with an concept of how these winters have performed out over time, Stacker put collectively a slideshow that includes information and statistics for every year of the previous century, starting in 1921 proper up by 2020. In addition to common highs and lows, we have included main climate occasions like storms, blizzards, or different occurrences that captured headlines these years. Much of the information was compiled from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Centers for Environmental Information (NOAA) in January 2021. The common, most, and minimal temperatures and common precipitation information for every year had been gathered from the Climate at a Glance: National Time Series. This information describes winters (designated by NOAA as December of the previous 12 months by February of the present 12 months) in the contiguous U.S. The file one-day snowfall information had been gathered from the NOAA’s Snowfall Extremes.

Take a take a look at the slides to see what winter was like the 12 months you had been born.

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1921: The Great Olympic Blowdown

– Average winter temperature: 35.08°F (#29 hottest 12 months; 7.3% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.36°F (#26 hottest 12 months; 6.1% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 24.80°F (#32 hottest 12 months; 9.7% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.24 in. (#41 driest 12 months; 4.7% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Boulder County, CO on April 15 (76 in.)

In distinction to the earlier season, the winter of 1921 was an abnormally warm year with a mean temperature of 34.8 levels all through the United States. The Library of Congress even has {a photograph} of people swimming in the ocean in Miami Beach on Jan. 2. Still, the Pacific Northwest skilled a quick however highly effective storm in January, generally known as the Great Olympic Blowdown, that resulted in hundreds of {dollars} in harm in the cities of Aberdeen and Hoquiam.

1922: The Knickerbocker Storm

– Average winter temperature: 33.55°F (#50 hottest 12 months; 2.7% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.61°F (#50 hottest 12 months; 2.0% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.50°F (#49 hottest 12 months; 4.0% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.67 in. (#36 wettest 12 months; 13.6% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Los Angeles County, CA on Feb. 24 (40 in.)

In January of 1922, a fierce blizzard tore by the Mid-Atlantic part of the United States, crumbling the Knickerbocker Theatre in Washington D.C. and inflicting different harm. The climate occasion, which got here to be generally known as the Knickerbocker Storm, resulted in the deaths of 98 folks and 133 further accidents.

1923: Major snowfall in Sault Ste. Marie

– Average winter temperature: 35.98°F (#16 hottest 12 months; 10.1% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.63°F (#21 hottest 12 months; 6.7% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 26.35°F (#9 hottest 12 months; 16.6% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.83 in. (#23 wettest 12 months; 20.4% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Sanders County, MT on Dec. 9 (29 in.)

The winter of 1923 was a brutal 12 months for folk in the Midwest, the place temperatures had been particularly low and snowfall was intense. In Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, the place snowfall sometimes averaged round 70 inches, they acquired a staggering 105 inches. By April, the metropolis had amassed greater than 9 ft of snow, and residents reportedly needed to use horses to clear the streets.

1924: Blizzard in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

– Average winter temperature: 27.59°F (#2 coldest 12 months; 15.6% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 37.85°F (#2 coldest 12 months; 11.5% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 17.33°F (#3 coldest 12 months; 23.3% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.62 in. (#38 wettest 12 months; 11.5% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK on Dec. 13 (36 in.)

As the 1924 Winter Olympics was wrapping up in Chamonix, France, residents of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, experienced their own winter storm on Feb. 4 when 20.3 inches of snow fell in 24 hours. The intense climate occasion, which brought about greater than $1 million in harm, marked the largest quantity of snow in a one-day interval in Milwaukee since 1884.

1925: Alaska’s Great Race of Mercy

– Average winter temperature: 32.50°F (#31 coldest 12 months; 0.6% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 42.26°F (#29 coldest 12 months; 1.2% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.75°F (#38 coldest 12 months; 0.7% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.66 in. (#10 driest 12 months; 29.4% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Johnson County, WY on March 21 (49 in.)

In 1925, the distant city of Nome, Alaska, suffered its worst winter in 20 years. With intense blizzards and sub-zero temperatures raging, an outbreak of diphtheria required emergency vaccine provides to be delivered through canine sled to the remoted city. The occasion got here to be generally known as the Great Race of Mercy, and its lead sled canine Balto grew to become a hero memorialized as a statue in New York’s Central Park.

1926: Utah mining city avalanche

– Average winter temperature: 31.33°F (#23 coldest 12 months; 4.1% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 40.87°F (#18 coldest 12 months; 4.4% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 21.81°F (#26 coldest 12 months; 3.5% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.67 in. (#36 wettest 12 months; 13.6% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Banner County, NE on Dec. 14 (30 in.)

On Feb. 17, 1926, a devastating avalanche killed 36 people and injured 13 extra in a small Utah mining city in Bingham County when greater than a dozen cottages and a three-story boarding home had been destroyed. “Because the canyon was so narrow, Bingham only had one street,” writes Catherine Armstrong for Only In Your State. “Homes lined the street all the way up the canyon for seven miles. Unfortunately, this narrow topography would prove to be deadly.”

1927: Record snowfall in Raleigh, North Carolina

– Average winter temperature: 28.22°F (#5 coldest 12 months; 13.6% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 38.61°F (#5 coldest 12 months; 9.7% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 17.83°F (#5 coldest 12 months; 21.1% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.68 in. (#34 wettest 12 months; 14.0% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Tucker County, WV on Feb. 10 (36 in.)

Although the winter of 1927 was pretty gentle all through the United States, the folks of Raleigh, North Carolina, skilled a particularly intense winter with record-breaking snowfall. On March 2, the metropolis acquired 17.8 inches of snow in 24 hours—a file that wasn’t damaged for greater than seven many years till it acquired 17.9 inches in January of 2000.

1928: A light winter in every single place

– Average winter temperature: 32.94°F (#39 coldest 12 months; 0.8% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.38°F (#49 coldest 12 months; 1.4% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.51°F (#34 coldest 12 months; 0.4% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.74 in. (#15 driest 12 months; 26.0% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Custer County, ID on Nov. 30 (42 in.)

The winter of 1928 was a season of respite, and folk in blizzard-prone areas had been spared main storms and catastrophes. The common temperature for many of the nation was above common and even the Atlantic hurricane season that preceded it was gentle with no main storms hanging U.S. land. This was a serious distinction to the earlier season, which noticed 4 hurricanes.

1929: Extreme chilly in the U.S—and Europe

– Average winter temperature: 33.96°F (#42 hottest 12 months; 3.9% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.69°F (#32 hottest 12 months; 4.5% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.22°F (#45 coldest 12 months; 2.7% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.21 in. (#36 driest 12 months; 6.0% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Routt County, CO on March 2 (30 in.)

After two pretty gentle winters in a row, 1929 got here in with a vengeance, hammering the United States with the third-coldest winter in the final century. It was even worse throughout the pond, the place Europe experienced one of its coldest winters in history. Berlin, for instance, was hit with the worst ice wave since 1719, and Vienna noticed its lowest temperatures since 1775. As the cities handled ice-cold circumstances, Europe’s 1,770-mile Danube River froze over fully.

1930: Another average season

– Average winter temperature: 31.17°F (#21 coldest 12 months; 4.6% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 41.00°F (#20 coldest 12 months; 4.1% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 21.33°F (#23 coldest 12 months; 5.6% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.28 in. (#1 driest 12 months; 45.5% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Marquette County, MI on Oct. 23 (27 in.)

The winter of 1930 was a giant 12 months for innovation: The diesel engine made its first auto voyage, and the first field-effect transistor patent was granted. The season was pretty uneventful weather-wise, although. Temperatures had been gentle, with a mean of 32.5 levels and no main storms or blizzards to notice.

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1931: Pleasant Hill Bus Tragedy

– Average winter temperature: 35.06°F (#31 hottest 12 months; 7.3% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.26°F (#39 hottest 12 months; 3.5% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 25.86°F (#18 hottest 12 months; 14.4% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 3.38 in. (#4 wettest 12 months; 43.8% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Aleutians West Census Area, AK on Feb. 28 (30 in.)

Average precipitation made the winter of 1931 the second-coldest in the previous century. In southeastern Colorado, an particularly fierce March blizzard stranded a college bus in freezing temperatures for 33 hours, claiming the lives of 5 kids together with the driver. The tragedy acquired nationwide consideration and led to many security reforms and a substantial amount of college bus laws that is nonetheless in place right this moment.

1932: Snowfall in Los Angeles

– Average winter temperature: 29.41°F (#9 coldest 12 months; 10.0% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 39.49°F (#11 coldest 12 months; 7.6% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 19.35°F (#9 coldest 12 months; 14.4% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.92 in. (#18 wettest 12 months; 24.3% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Conejos County, CO on Nov. 22 (40 in.)

While Los Angeles is normally sunny and heat, the winter of 1932 introduced a novel snowstorm to Hollywood, covering the region in a blanket of white snow. At the time, the LA Times referred to as it the “first official snowfall recorded in the United States Weather Bureau’s fifty-four year existence in the city.” It was solely 2 inches, but it stays the largest quantity of snow the metropolis has ever seen. Elsewhere in the nation, temperatures had been average with no main blizzards.

1933: Long Beach earthquake

– Average winter temperature: 36.43°F (#7 hottest 12 months; 11.5% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 47.39°F (#4 hottest 12 months; 10.8% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 25.47°F (#20 hottest 12 months; 12.7% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.66 in. (#37 wettest 12 months; 13.2% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Tulare County, CA on Jan. 19 (60 in.)

Although there weren’t any vital blizzards in 1933, the Long Beach earthquake struck Los Angeles County that winter, leading to the second-deadliest on record in the contiguous states (after San Francisco’s 1906 quake). The devastating 6.4 magnitude occasion, which occurred on March 10, resulted in an estimated 115 to 120 deaths and brought about roughly $40 million in harm.

1934: South Dakota’s first Dust Bowl storm

– Average winter temperature: 32.67°F (#34 coldest 12 months; 0.0% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 42.42°F (#30 coldest 12 months; 0.8% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.91°F (#41 coldest 12 months; 1.4% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.92 in. (#21 driest 12 months; 18.3% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Sublette County, WY on May 7 (36.5 in.)

The winter of 1934 was one other 12 months that spared the United States any main blizzards; nonetheless, South Dakota suffered an intense mud storm main as much as it on Nov. 11. The large cloud that swept by the Midwestern state was the first to kick off the Dust Bowl, which lasted a number of years as drought plagued the area.

1935: Times Square blizzard

– Average winter temperature: 30.74°F (#16 coldest 12 months; 5.9% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 40.23°F (#13 coldest 12 months; 5.9% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 21.25°F (#22 coldest 12 months; 6.0% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.77 in. (#17 driest 12 months; 24.7% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Clearwater County, ID on Nov. 27 (30.5 in.)

In 1935, a blizzard struck New York City, burying Times Square underneath almost a foot-and-a-half of snow. As the Big Apple handled its excessive climate state of affairs, locations like Baltimore, Newark, and Philadelphia additionally obtained pummeled, receiving between 10 and 16 inches of snow.

1936: North American Cold Wave

– Average winter temperature: 34.47°F (#34 hottest 12 months; 5.5% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.35°F (#38 hottest 12 months; 3.7% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 24.57°F (#36 hottest 12 months; 8.7% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.79 in. (#27 wettest 12 months; 18.7% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Okanogan County, WA on Jan. 21 (52 in.)

Known as the 1936 North American Cold Wave, this 12 months noticed strikingly low temperatures all through the nation—the second-coldest in the previous century. The Midwest was affected most as Iowa, Minnesota, and North Dakota skilled their coldest winters on file. February was particularly brutal, marking the coldest February on file in the contiguous United States.

1937: Snowstorms in Oregon

– Average winter temperature: 32.70°F (#36 coldest 12 months; 0.1% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 41.95°F (#27 coldest 12 months; 1.9% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.47°F (#50 coldest 12 months; 3.8% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.43 in. (#49 wettest 12 months; 3.4% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Tehama County, CA on Feb. 4 (39 in.)

Although it is sometimes a reasonably gentle state weather-wise, Oregon acquired an enormous quantity of snow over the winter of 1937. Between Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, a heavy blizzard dumped almost 17 inches in Portland and 2 feet in Salem—a quantity that is still the latter’s file snowfall. Meanwhile, as the cities dug themselves out, large snow drifts blocked highways all through the Cascade Range.

1938: Michigan’s nice snowstorm

– Average winter temperature: 34.21°F (#38 hottest 12 months; 4.7% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.56°F (#33 hottest 12 months; 4.2% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.86°F (#44 hottest 12 months; 5.6% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.71 in. (#12 driest 12 months; 27.2% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Archuleta County, CO on Feb. 17 (39 in.)

Michigan was the recipient of nature’s frigid fury in 1938, when the Upper Peninsula region was pounded with 50 mile-per-hour winds throughout a storm NPR referred to as “surreal.” The blizzard trapped college students in colleges, stalled trains, and brought about a number of fires. Damages in the metropolis of Marquette—the epicenter of the vicious climate—amounted to what could be about $6.5 million right this moment.

1939: Washoe County snowfall file

– Average winter temperature: 37.72°F (#2 hottest 12 months; 15.4% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 48.83°F (#1 hottest 12 months; 14.2% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 26.60°F (#6 hottest 12 months; 17.7% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.88 in. (#19 driest 12 months; 20.0% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Washoe County, NV on Feb. 11 (41 in.)

Although loads of storms blew by in 1938, the following 12 months was pretty gentle with average temperatures and semi-average precipitation. The folks of Washoe County in Nevada, nonetheless, noticed file one-day snowfall on Feb. 11 when the area was pummeled with 41 inches—virtually 3.5 ft.

1940: Armistice Day Blizzard

– Average winter temperature: 36.05°F (#14 hottest 12 months; 10.3% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.66°F (#20 hottest 12 months; 6.8% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 26.42°F (#8 hottest 12 months; 16.9% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.84 in. (#22 wettest 12 months; 20.9% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Oxford County, ME on March 13 (38 in.)

The Armistice Day blizzard was a disastrous, far-reaching storm that pelted the Midwest with snow and 50-mile-per-hour winds from Nov. 10 to 12, 1940. The blizzard brought about 145 fatalities, a lot of which got here from a big group of duck hunters who grew to become stranded on the Mississippi River as 5-foot waves washed out their encampments. Some froze whereas others drowned. One notable survivor was Gerald Tarras, a Minneapolis boy who huddled between two Labrador retrievers. His father, brother, and uncle froze to dying, however the canines’ physique warmth is credited with the kid’s survival.

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1941: Ides of March blizzard

– Average winter temperature: 36.12°F (#12 hottest 12 months; 10.5% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.66°F (#20 hottest 12 months; 6.8% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 26.56°F (#7 hottest 12 months; 17.5% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.81 in. (#25 wettest 12 months; 19.6% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Colfax County, NM on Nov. 24 (36 in.)

On March 15, 1941, a brutal storm tore by the Red River Valley alongside the Minnesota-North Dakota border, killing 72 folks. A lot of people who perished in what got here to be generally known as the Ides of March blizzard had been stranded motorists. “It slammed into the valley virtually out of nowhere with the force of a tornado or a hurricane, and turned what had been a bright, sunny, warm springlike day into a raging nightmare,” wrote Kevin Bonham for Inforum.

1942: Midwestern New Year’s blizzard

– Average winter temperature: 32.97°F (#41 coldest 12 months; 0.9% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 42.84°F (#37 coldest 12 months; 0.2% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.13°F (#44 coldest 12 months; 2.3% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 3 in. (#15 wettest 12 months; 27.7% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Lake County, MN on Jan. 7 (36 in.)

The Midwest was as soon as once more the topic of winter’s wrath in 1942 when a blizzard swept throughout the area, burying it beneath 2 ft of snow in some locations. The storm, which occurred on New Year’s Day, kicked off a chilly spell that plunged temperatures into single digits. Ames, Iowa, hit a frigid 24 levels under zero. A photographer who became stranded in the blizzard turned his expertise right into a two-page journal unfold.

1943: Northern Rockies storm in January

– Average winter temperature: 32.59°F (#33 coldest 12 months; 0.3% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 42.93°F (#38 coldest 12 months; 0.4% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.28°F (#27 coldest 12 months; 1.4% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.74 in. (#15 driest 12 months; 26.0% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Washington County, MD on March 29 (31 in.)

From Jan. 18 to 25, 1943, a harmful Category 5 storm spread across the Northern Rockies and Plains, affecting residents in Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Apart from this main storm, that winter was pretty gentle, with a mean temperature of about 33 levels.

1944: California storm evokes a well-known picture

– Average winter temperature: 30.67°F (#15 coldest 12 months; 6.2% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 40.71°F (#17 coldest 12 months; 4.8% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 20.62°F (#18 coldest 12 months; 8.8% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.06 in. (#30 driest 12 months; 12.3% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Chelan County, WA on Jan. 20 (44 in.)

It was a comparatively heat 12 months in 1944; nonetheless, the aftermath of a light-weight snowstorm in California’s Sierra Nevada mountains impressed certainly one of famed photographer Ansel Adams’ better-known images: “Clearing Winter Storm.” As the title suggests, the {photograph} depicts snowfall and swirling clouds as a storm clears in Yosemite National Park.

1945: Great Midwestern snowstorm

– Average winter temperature: 29.08°F (#8 coldest 12 months; 11.0% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 38.84°F (#6 coldest 12 months; 9.2% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 19.35°F (#9 coldest 12 months; 14.4% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.7 in. (#31 wettest 12 months; 14.9% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Wasatch County, UT on Feb. 15 (28 in.)

Although 1945 wasn’t a chilly winter total, a December blizzard early in the season created havoc in the Midwest, killing 25 folks and dumping snow onto a big swath of the U.S. and southeastern Canada. “Airports had been clogged, flights had been cancelled, and vehicles had been stranded whereas inch after inch of snow blanketed the entire United States,” wrote Jessica Hilburn for Titusville’s NWPA Stories.

1946: Moderately heat temperatures nationwide

– Average winter temperature: 36.18°F (#10 hottest 12 months; 10.7% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 46.78°F (#9 hottest 12 months; 9.4% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 25.56°F (#19 hottest 12 months; 13.1% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.94 in. (#23 driest 12 months; 17.4% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Mariposa County, CA on March 30 (36 in.)

The winter of 1946 was a average 12 months with temperatures that had been hotter than common, notably in Kansas, Nebraska, and Montana which had loved the warmest January to March interval on file as much as that point. “Temperatures during 1946 averaged higher than usual over practically the entire country, with the exception of California and Oregon,” wrote Robert N. Culnan for the Monthly Weather Review.

1947: Colorado blizzard

– Average winter temperature: 32.92°F (#38 coldest 12 months; 0.7% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 42.96°F (#39 coldest 12 months; 0.5% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.87°F (#40 coldest 12 months; 1.2% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.99 in. (#25 driest 12 months; 15.3% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Huerfano County, CO on Nov. 4 (48 in.)

During the 1947 winter season, temperatures had been common all through most of the nation and precipitation was lighter than regular. In the months main as much as the winter, Colorado’s Eastern Plains skilled one of the biggest blizzards in the state’s historical past. On Nov. 2, 1946, a storm swept the state. Denver reported 30.4 inches—about 2.5 ft—whereas different elements of the state acquired as much as 3 ft of snow.

1948: North American blizzard of 1947

– Average winter temperature: 32.58°F (#32 coldest 12 months; 0.3% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 42.75°F (#34 coldest 12 months; 0.0% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.41°F (#31 coldest 12 months; 0.8% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.59 in. (#39 wettest 12 months; 10.2% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Bergen County, NJ on Dec. 26 (29.1 in.)

This historic storm has come to be generally known as the “North American blizzard of 1947” as a result of it started in late December of that 12 months; nonetheless, it occurred at the starting of the 1948 winter season. During the sensational climate occasion, record-breaking snowfall blanketed most of the nation, although most states had been spared heavy winds. The snowfall started on Christmas Day and continued by Dec. 26, throughout which period New York’s Central Park acquired greater than 2 ft of snow.

1949: Nebraska’s nice blizzard

– Average winter temperature: 33.26°F (#44 coldest 12 months; 1.8% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.11°F (#40 hottest 12 months; 3.2% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.42°F (#33 coldest 12 months; 0.8% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.22 in. (#38 driest 12 months; 5.5% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Colusa County, CA on Dec. 27 (26 in.)

It was Nebraska that fell sufferer to a few of the nation’s extra intense climate throughout the winter of 1949—certainly one of the worst on file for the Cornhusker State. On Nov. 18, heavy winds whipped by the Great Plains, pounding the total area with snow and sleet. Writing for the Ganzel Group, Claudia Reinhardt and Bill Ganzel described the storm as such: “Roads were blocked, schools closed, snow drifted over rooftops and livestock were stranded. Travelers filled hotels to overflowing. Trains were stuck, and telephone service was disrupted. The Weather Bureau called the storm ‘one of the most severe blizzards on record.'”

1950: Arctic storms in the Pacific Northwest

– Average winter temperature: 33.01°F (#42 coldest 12 months; 1.0% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.75°F (#47 hottest 12 months; 2.3% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.28°F (#27 coldest 12 months; 1.4% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.93 in. (#22 driest 12 months; 17.9% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Jackson County, SD on Jan. 5 (48 in.)

On Jan. 13, 1950, the Pacific Northwest—notably northern Washington—was pounded by certainly one of its heaviest winter storms on record. Not solely did a number of ft of snow pummel the area, it was accompanied by hurricane pressure winds and frigid, single-digit temperatures. To make issues worse, the January storm was solely the first in a sequence of arctic storms that might disrupt the space all winter lengthy.

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1951: Great Appalachian Storm

– Average winter temperature: 31.23°F (#22 coldest 12 months; 4.4% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 41.38°F (#21 coldest 12 months; 3.2% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 21.07°F (#19 coldest 12 months; 6.8% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 3.12 in. (#9 wettest 12 months; 32.8% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Sitka City and Borough, AK on March 11 (42 in.)

In November of 1950, as the 1950–51 winter season was getting underway, a historically massive storm hit the Appalachian region of the U.S. on Thanksgiving weekend. NOAA referred to as it “one of the most damaging and meteorologically unique winter storms to strike the eastern United States.” When all was mentioned and completed, the climate occasion had lined the area in 57 inches of snow—almost 5 ft—incomes the title of the most expensive storm on file at the moment.

1952: February 1952 nor’easter

– Average winter temperature: 33.44°F (#48 coldest 12 months; 2.3% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 42.76°F (#35 coldest 12 months; 0.0% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 24.12°F (#40 hottest 12 months; 6.7% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.45 in. (#48 wettest 12 months; 4.3% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Yuba County, CA on Jan. 14 (75 in.)

New England skilled the brunt of the 1952 winter when a Category 1 storm rolled in, hammering the space with hurricane-force winds and heavy snow. 42 folks had been killed and greater than 1,000 motorists had been stranded on highways. Offshore, at the very least two ships cracked amid the robust winds.

1953: Warm temps in the U.S. as Europe is hammered

– Average winter temperature: 33.69°F (#46 hottest 12 months; 3.1% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.95°F (#44 hottest 12 months; 2.8% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.41°F (#49 coldest 12 months; 3.6% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.5 in. (#45 wettest 12 months; 6.4% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Kodiak Island Borough, AK on Jan. 28 (24 in.)

In the United States, the winter of 1953 was a heat 12 months with above-average temperatures and below-average precipitation. Even its file one-day snowfall was decrease than common, with 24 inches in Kodiak, Alaska. Europe, nonetheless, suffered certainly one of its fiercest storms in historical past. Striking off the East Coast of England, it resulted in the deaths of a whole lot, and brought about widespread flooding.

1954: Montana units file for coldest day

– Average winter temperature: 33.91°F (#44 hottest 12 months; 3.8% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.47°F (#36 hottest 12 months; 4.0% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.32°F (#48 coldest 12 months; 3.2% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2 in. (#27 driest 12 months; 14.9% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Lassen County, CA on Jan. 17 (38 in.)

Although the nation as a complete skilled a warmer-than-average winter in 1954, Montana set an all-time file for the coldest day in recorded history of the contiguous U.S. The file occurred on Jan. 20 when a temperature of 70 levels under zero was clocked at Rogers Pass. Precipitation was additionally decrease than common that 12 months, with a mean of simply over 6.5 inches.

1955: Historical Wyoming blizzard

– Average winter temperature: 31.71°F (#24 coldest 12 months; 3.0% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 41.88°F (#26 coldest 12 months; 2.1% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 21.52°F (#25 coldest 12 months; 4.8% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.24 in. (#41 driest 12 months; 4.7% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Mason County, WA on Jan. 25 (36 in.)

Wyoming was hit with its worst blizzard in history in April of 1955, when 4 ft of snow dumped down on the Cowboy State in fewer than 48 hours. “It just goes to show, no matter how bad you think the snow is in Wyoming, it could always be worse,” Lisa Jensen wrote for Only In Your State.

1956: New England storms

– Average winter temperature: 36.23°F (#9 hottest 12 months; 10.9% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 47.26°F (#5 hottest 12 months; 10.5% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 25.18°F (#24 hottest 12 months; 11.4% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2 in. (#27 driest 12 months; 14.9% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Pierce County, WA on Nov. 26 (70 in.)

The winter of 1956 was a big season for snowfall in New England, which noticed three main storms in a 10-day interval in March. The blizzards introduced snow cover at the Blue Hill Weather Observatory exterior Boston to a degree of almost 50 inches. Meanwhile, Pierce County, Washington, set the 12 months’s one-day snowfall file with 70 inches.

1957: Cyclone-level storms in Kansas

– Average winter temperature: 37.00°F (#3 hottest 12 months; 13.2% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 47.77°F (#3 hottest 12 months; 11.7% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 26.26°F (#11 hottest 12 months; 16.2% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.4 in. (#49 driest 12 months; 2.1% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: El Paso County, CO on April 2 (54 in.)

Between March 23 and 25, 1957, western Kansas was hit with cyclone-level winds blended with exceptionally low temperatures over the Great Plains. In Dodge City, there was a 44-hour stretch with nonstop heavy snow and fewer than a quarter-mile visibility, in response to NOAA.

1958: New England nor’easter

– Average winter temperature: 32.22°F (#29 coldest 12 months; 1.4% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.34°F (#48 coldest 12 months; 1.4% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 21.09°F (#20 coldest 12 months; 6.7% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.32 in. (#2 driest 12 months; 43.8% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Placer County, CA on April 3 (49 in.)

The winter of 1958 was one other 12 months with comparatively gentle circumstances that noticed below-average temperatures. In March, an enormous storm swept by New England and the Mid-Atlantic, dropping giant quantities of snow from Maine to North Carolina.

1959: Mount Shasta Snowstorm

– Average winter temperature: 35.94°F (#17 hottest 12 months; 10.0% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.93°F (#15 hottest 12 months; 7.4% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 25.97°F (#17 hottest 12 months; 14.9% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.22 in. (#38 driest 12 months; 5.5% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Douglas County, CO on Dec. 21 (48 in.)

In 1959, Northern California acquired record-setting snowfall in February throughout what grew to become certainly one of the largest blizzards in U.S. historical past. In a single storm, Mount Shasta Ski Bowl collected 189 inches of snow—virtually 16 ft. The staggering quantity stays the largest snowfall from a single storm in North America’s recorded historical past, though some argue that 1993’s “Storm of the Century” surpassed it in quantity factoring in the expansive space it lined.

1960: Three main storms

– Average winter temperature: 30.40°F (#14 coldest 12 months; 7.0% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 40.69°F (#15 coldest 12 months; 4.8% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 20.08°F (#14 coldest 12 months; 11.2% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.9 in. (#20 driest 12 months; 19.1% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Anchorage Municipality, AK on Dec. 23 (44 in.)

The winter of 1960 was a brutal season that included three main storms, starting in December when an unlimited nor’easter pounded the Mid-Atlantic and elements of New England. Next, North Carolina and its surrounding areas acquired a sequence of 5 back-to-back blizzards that battered the area between Feb. 13 and March 26. They created “snowdrifts that threatened to swallow houses,” in response to Monte Mitchell at the Winston-Salem Journal, and resulted in the snowiest period on record for the Southern Appalachian region. Meanwhile, as Appalachia was coping with its file snowfall, New England was hit with one other nor’easter in March that ranked Category 4 on the hurricane scale.

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1961: New York receives 40 inches of snow

– Average winter temperature: 31.08°F (#20 coldest 12 months; 4.9% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 40.69°F (#15 coldest 12 months; 4.8% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 21.49°F (#24 coldest 12 months; 4.9% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.69 in. (#33 wettest 12 months; 14.5% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Iron County, UT on Oct. 10 (36 in.)

In 1961, temperatures had been chilly all through the nation and Utah acquired file one-day snowfall with an early-season October storm that dumped 3 ft. However, it was New York that actually obtained pummeled when a February storm dropped 40 inches of snow in some elements of the state, in addition to vital quantities in different elements of New England.

1962: Ash Wednesday Storm of 1962

– Average winter temperature: 33.40°F (#46 coldest 12 months; 2.2% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.10°F (#42 hottest 12 months; 3.1% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.71°F (#37 coldest 12 months; 0.5% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.58 in. (#8 driest 12 months; 32.8% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Chaffee County, CO on Oct. 29 (38 in.)

In 1962, as many people alongside the Mid-Atlantic coast had been making ready to attend church plenty for Ash Wednesday, a Category 5 storm was brewing offshore. Between March 5 to 9, an excessive storm got here ashore, lashing the area with 85 mile-per-hour wind gusts in some locations, together with heavy snow and ice-cold temperatures, When all was mentioned and completed, 40 folks had been useless, greater than 1,000 had been injured, and a whole lot of thousands and thousands of {dollars} in harm had been completed. To date, this climate occasion nonetheless ranks as certainly one of the prime 10 worst storms of the twentieth century.

1963: Big Freeze of 1963

– Average winter temperature: 27.90°F (#4 coldest 12 months; 14.6% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 38.32°F (#3 coldest 12 months; 10.4% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 17.49°F (#4 coldest 12 months; 22.6% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.48 in. (#6 driest 12 months; 37.0% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Penobscot County, ME on Dec. 30 (40.0 in.)

The winter of 1963 was a frigid one in the United States. In phrases of common precipitation, it was the fourth-coldest winter in the previous century and for the lowest minimal temperature, it was the fifth coldest. Britain additionally suffered a chilly spell, experiencing certainly one of the coldest winters in the historical past of the nation: the “Big Freeze of 1963.” Lakes and rivers froze over as snow drifts piled as much as 20 ft. January temperatures averaged two levels under zero.

1964: New Year’s Eve 1963 snowstorm

– Average winter temperature: 32.04°F (#27 coldest 12 months; 2.0% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 41.72°F (#23 coldest 12 months; 2.4% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.37°F (#29 coldest 12 months; 1.0% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 3.33 in. (#5 wettest 12 months; 41.7% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Juab County, UT on March 18 (20 in.)

A low-pressure system moved up from the Gulf of Mexico over the U.S. Appalachians on Dec. 31, pounding Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee with snow and wind. Three folks died and harm amounted to roughly $418,500 right this moment. Huntsville, Alabama, broke the metropolis’s all-time snowfall file with greater than 17 inches.

1965: Albany’s worst ice storm on file

– Average winter temperature: 35.85°F (#19 hottest 12 months; 9.7% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.72°F (#17 hottest 12 months; 6.9% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 25.97°F (#17 hottest 12 months; 14.9% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.16 in. (#33 driest 12 months; 8.1% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Socorro County, NM on Feb. 3 (41 in.)

The metropolis of Albany, New York, skilled its worst ice storm on record. According to NOAA, on Dec. 4, freezing rain shut down the total east central a part of the Empire State. Power was out in the metropolis and surrounding areas for 2 weeks, with many residents fleeing to Massachusetts for momentary shelter. Other elements of the area had been impacted as properly, as the ice unfold from Buffalo to Boston.

1966: North American blizzard of 1966

– Average winter temperature: 32.68°F (#35 coldest 12 months; 0.0% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 42.60°F (#31 coldest 12 months; 0.4% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.77°F (#39 coldest 12 months; 0.8% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.54 in. (#43 wettest 12 months; 8.1% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: King County, WA on Jan. 2 (45 in.)

The North American blizzard of 1966, which blew throughout the United States from Jan. 26 to 31, was certainly one of the most notable storms in U.S. historical past. The nor’easter affected giant swaths of the nation, wreaking specific havoc on New York City and surrounding areas the place winds reached as much as 100 miles per hour. At least 200 folks perished in the storm, a lot of whom froze to dying or died in fires began by residents attempting to heat their properties. Another lethal storm hit North Dakota that March, inflicting 70-mile-per-hour winds and killing 18 folks.

1967: Chicago Blizzard of 1967

– Average winter temperature: 32.07°F (#28 coldest 12 months; 1.9% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 41.79°F (#24 coldest 12 months; 2.3% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.37°F (#29 coldest 12 months; 1.0% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 3.06 in. (#12 wettest 12 months; 30.2% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Oneida County, NY on Feb. 1 (50 in.)

Chicago was the website of a historic blizzard in the winter of 1967 when the Windy City lived as much as its nickname as 50 mile-per-hour gusts blew by the metropolis. The storm—which introduced the largest snowfall thus far in Chicago’s historical past—killed 26 folks, together with a 10-year-old woman who was caught in the crossfire of police and looters, and a minister who was run over by a snowplow.

1968: Tennessee snow storm

– Average winter temperature: 30.04°F (#13 coldest 12 months; 8.1% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 40.15°F (#12 coldest 12 months; 6.1% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 19.92°F (#13 coldest 12 months; 11.9% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.82 in. (#24 wettest 12 months; 20.0% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Plumas County, CA on Jan. 29 (48 in.)

1968 was a average 12 months, with below-average temperatures. In late March, Tennessee received a surprise storm that dumped giant quantities of snow on Nashville, Memphis, and different main cities—greater than 16 inches in 19 hours. The storm brought about energy outages, site visitors accidents, and three deaths.

1969: Big storms in New England

– Average winter temperature: 33.46°F (#49 coldest 12 months; 2.4% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.11°F (#42 coldest 12 months; 0.8% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.81°F (#45 hottest 12 months; 5.4% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.94 in. (#17 wettest 12 months; 25.1% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Fresno County, CA on Feb. 24 (42 in.)

Two main storms struck the U.S. in the winter of 1969, starting in February when a powerful nor’easter developed over the Mid-Atlantic and New England, burying New York City and surrounding areas in snow. That storm killed 94 folks and left hundreds extra stranded on highways or at airports. In March, one other blizzard—this one with 80 mile-per-hour winds—blew into the Gulf of Mexico, up by Georgia, and into New England the place it dumped snow on Maryland, Delaware, and Massachusetts.

1970: Christmas Day tornadoes

– Average winter temperature: 33.58°F (#49 hottest 12 months; 2.8% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.10°F (#42 hottest 12 months; 3.1% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.07°F (#43 coldest 12 months; 2.1% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.22 in. (#38 driest 12 months; 5.5% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Coos County, NH on Feb. 25 (49.3 in.)

On Christmas Day, 1969, a strong nor’easter that started over Texas made its strategy to the Northeastern U.S., morphing right into a sequence of full-blown tornadoes at it moved and bringing giant quantities of snow and freezing rain with it. Homes had been destroyed, and dozens of individuals had been killed. In complete, 16 tornadoes broke out over three days, making it the largest Christmas Day tornado outbreak on record.

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1971: Alaska units U.S. file for coldest temperature ever recorded

– Average winter temperature: 33.98°F (#41 hottest 12 months; 4.0% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.23°F (#44 coldest 12 months; 1.1% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 24.75°F (#33 hottest 12 months; 9.5% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 3.2 in. (#8 wettest 12 months; 36.2% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Boise County, ID on Jan. 19 (40 in.)

On Jan. 23, 1971, a chilly snap in the north resulted in the coldest-ever recorded temperature in the United States. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the file was set in ice-cold Alaska the place a thermometer gauge clocked a studying of 80 levels under zero in Prospect Creek, simply north of Fairbanks.

1972: Mild U.S. winter however the deadliest ever in the Middle East

– Average winter temperature: 29.86°F (#12 coldest 12 months; 8.6% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 39.40°F (#9 coldest 12 months; 7.9% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 20.34°F (#16 coldest 12 months; 10.0% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 3.02 in. (#13 wettest 12 months; 28.5% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Glacier County, MT on Dec. 18 (35 in.)

The winter of 1972 was a mean 12 months in the U.S. that featured pretty typical temperatures. One huge storm in Minnesota introduced in 60 mile-per-hour winds, inflicting stranded commuters and one practice derailment (although no deaths had been straight attributed to it). However, it is price noting that this was the 12 months by which the deadliest blizzard in history occurred. It passed off in Iran, and brought about roughly 4,000 fatalities.

1973: The Great Southeastern Snowstorm

– Average winter temperature: 33.71°F (#45 hottest 12 months; 3.2% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.77°F (#46 hottest 12 months; 2.4% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.63°F (#47 hottest 12 months; 4.6% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 3.09 in. (#10 wettest 12 months; 31.5% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Flathead County, MT on Jan. 20 (44 in.)

While the southern U.S. states hardly ever see vital snowfall, 1973 was an distinctive 12 months. In early February, a serious storm entrance introduced large blizzards, showering the entire Southeastern portion of the country in as much as 2 ft of snow. The occasion set data at the time in each Wilmington, North Carolina, and Charleston, South Carolina States alongside the coast from Texas to Florida felt flurries.

1974: Super Tornado Outbreak

– Average winter temperature: 33.66°F (#48 hottest 12 months; 3.0% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.30°F (#47 coldest 12 months; 1.3% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 24.03°F (#41 hottest 12 months; 6.3% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.42 in. (#50 wettest 12 months; 3.0% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Lawrence County, SD on March 14 (52 in.)

In 1974, the winter months had been pretty heat, with temperatures barely above common. However, simply weeks after winter ended and spring started, an outbreak of tornadoes made up for the average winter as the climate wreaked havoc on an enormous portion of the nation, starting in the Great Lakes area and spreading south. In complete, 148 tornadoes had been recorded throughout 13 states, certainly one of which stays on the top 10 list of costliest tornadoes in U.S. history.

1975: Great Storm of 1975

– Average winter temperature: 34.29°F (#37 hottest 12 months; 4.9% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.55°F (#34 hottest 12 months; 4.2% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 24.01°F (#42 hottest 12 months; 6.2% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.11 in. (#32 driest 12 months; 10.2% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Blaine County, ID on Feb. 11 (38 in.)

The Great Storm of 1975 was a catastrophic blizzard that struck giant areas of the central and Southeastern United States on Super Bowl Sunday. Fifty-eight folks died in the Midwest, and 12 extra had been killed in the Southeast as a cluster of 45 tornadoes raged by the area. During the three days, wind chills had been recorded as little as 80 levels under zero.

1976: Groundhog Day gale of 1976

– Average winter temperature: 30.92°F (#18 coldest 12 months; 5.4% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.16°F (#43 coldest 12 months; 0.9% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 18.68°F (#8 coldest 12 months; 17.3% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.36 in. (#4 driest 12 months; 42.1% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Apache County, AZ on Nov. 30 (40 in.)

On Groundhog Day, 1976, a large winter storm blew by the Northeastern portion of the United States, affecting Massachusetts, Maine, New York, and Vermont. The storm, which was categorized as a Category 2 hurricane with winds as much as 102 miles per hour, brought about the Penobscot River in Maine to rise 12 ft, flooding the city of Bangor and submerging greater than 200 vehicles underneath water.

1977: Snowfall in Miami

– Average winter temperature: 33.28°F (#45 coldest 12 months; 1.8% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.25°F (#45 coldest 12 months; 1.1% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.31°F (#47 coldest 12 months; 3.1% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.72 in. (#30 wettest 12 months; 15.7% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Aleutians East Borough, AK on Feb. 26 (25.3 in.)

The winter of 1977 kicked off with an intense chilly snap in the southeastern a part of the U.S. that originated from a high-pressure system over the Mississippi River Valley. The frigid climate sample brought about chilly air to hover as far south as Florida, prompting the only trace of snow in recorded historical past to ever fall in Miami. The chilly air in the south was additionally a contributing issue to the blizzard that pounded Western New York at the finish of the month with excessive winds and heavy snowfall for 5 days.

1978: New England Blizzard of 1978

– Average winter temperature: 29.80°F (#11 coldest 12 months; 8.8% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 40.24°F (#14 coldest 12 months; 5.9% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 19.38°F (#11 coldest 12 months; 14.2% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.53 in. (#44 wettest 12 months; 7.7% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Rio Blanco County, CO on Feb. 20 (26 in.)

The New England Blizzard of 1978 impacted Massachusetts, New York, and Rhode Island. However, it was Boston that reeled most from the huge blizzard, accumulating greater than 27 inches of snow in lower than 48 hours. The snowfall set an all-time file for the metropolitan space.

1979: Hawaii units a file for coldest day

– Average winter temperature: 36.03°F (#15 hottest 12 months; 10.3% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 47.14°F (#6 hottest 12 months; 10.2% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 24.93°F (#30 hottest 12 months; 10.3% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.86 in. (#18 driest 12 months; 20.9% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Mora County, NM on May 2 (36 in.)

The Aloha State, which has by no means recorded a sub-zero temperature, is not recognized for chilly climate. However, its volcanic areas do get frigid at instances and in 1979, the state set an all-time file for coldest temperature when it hit 12 levels at the Mauna Kea Observatory. The viewing level sits at an elevation of 13,796 ft.

1980: Massive North Carolina storm

– Average winter temperature: 35.19°F (#27 hottest 12 months; 7.7% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 46.17°F (#12 hottest 12 months; 8.0% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 24.21°F (#38 hottest 12 months; 7.1% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.57 in. (#7 driest 12 months; 33.2% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Shasta County, CA on Dec. 24 (48 in.)

On March 2, 1980, North Carolina was hit by a turbulent winter storm that blew by most of the state, dumping as much as 30 inches. Gusts of greater than 50 miles per hour had been recorded in the japanese a part of the state, the largest of which occurred at Cape Hatteras. In addition to killing 13 folks and inflicting almost $22 million in property harm, the storm value the poultry business almost $10 million.

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1981: A light winter with just a few scattered storms

– Average winter temperature: 33.66°F (#48 hottest 12 months; 3.0% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.45°F (#50 coldest 12 months; 1.6% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.86°F (#44 hottest 12 months; 5.6% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.41 in. (#50 driest 12 months; 2.6% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Hood River County, OR on Jan. 9 (47 in.)

In 1981, temperatures had been considerably hotter than common, and the most winter temperature was the Tenth-hottest of the previous century. Most of the nation was spared any main storms, although there have been just a few scattered all through the Midwest and the Southeast. One dumped 1.5 feet of snow from Illinois to South Carolina, whereas one other hit Nebraska, killing three folks in storm-related automotive accidents.

1982: A frigid winter with snowfall data in Mt. Shasta

– Average winter temperature: 35.82°F (#20 hottest 12 months; 9.6% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.05°F (#28 hottest 12 months; 5.4% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 26.60°F (#6 hottest 12 months; 17.7% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 3.76 in. (#2 wettest 12 months; 60.0% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: El Dorado County, CA on Jan. 5 (67 in.)

What the winter of 1981 lacked in winter storms, the following 12 months made up for with a vengeance. The 1982 winter season noticed virtually the total nation buried in snow. In Northern California, the state set a four-day snow record at Mt. Shasta with a staggering 145 inches—greater than 12 ft. Meanwhile, the Midwest, Southeast, and Northeast all skilled main storms, in addition to cold snaps that caused 85 deaths.

1983: Winter flooding in the western states

– Average winter temperature: 25.47°F (#1 coldest 12 months; 22.1% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 34.43°F (#1 coldest 12 months; 19.5% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 16.52°F (#1 coldest 12 months; 26.9% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 3.44 in. (#3 wettest 12 months; 46.4% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Benewah County, ID on Jan. 22 (60 in.)

Although temperatures weren’t chilly sufficient for snow in every single place, a sequence of extreme rainstorms from December to March brought about major flooding throughout the western United States, leading to 50 deaths. Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, and Nevada had been affected. In California, El Niño introduced record-setting rainfall to the Sierra Mountains, inflicting landslides and flooding.

1984: A mixture of chilly spells, storms, and hail

– Average winter temperature: 34.54°F (#33 hottest 12 months; 5.7% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.46°F (#37 hottest 12 months; 4.0% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 24.64°F (#34 hottest 12 months; 9.0% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.49 in. (#46 wettest 12 months; 6.0% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Owyhee County, ID on May 2 (60 in.)

The winter of 1983 began out with a heavy cold snap in December that dropped temperatures all through many elements of the nation to freezing ranges, resulting in 100 deaths. As winter continued, scattered storms affected varied areas from the Midwest to the Northeast. In June, after winter had supposedly ended, Colorado, South Dakota, and Nebraska had been hit with late-season storms and hail, which added one other fatality to the listing.

1985: The Freeze of the Century

– Average winter temperature: 28.81°F (#7 coldest 12 months; 11.8% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 39.47°F (#10 coldest 12 months; 7.7% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 18.14°F (#6 coldest 12 months; 19.7% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.46 in. (#5 driest 12 months; 37.9% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Bennington County, VT on March 14 (37 in.)

In January of 1985, an early winter chilly spell descended on the United States, bringing excessive temperatures to just about each a part of the nation. The frigid climate, which The New York Times referred to as “The Freeze of the Century,” contributed to 150 fatalities over the course of the month. In addition to the deaths, it devastated Florida’s citrus crop and compelled Ronald Reagan’s presidential inauguration to be held inside.

1986: Pacific storms and flooding

– Average winter temperature: 34.43°F (#35 hottest 12 months; 5.4% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.72°F (#48 hottest 12 months; 2.2% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 25.14°F (#26 hottest 12 months; 11.2% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2 in. (#27 driest 12 months; 14.9% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Taos County, NM on March 12 (36 in.)

In 1986, most of the winter climate catastrophes concerned rain and flooding. The harm largely occurred in the western a part of the nation, which was battered by storms. In mid-February, a sequence of torrential rain storms hit the west coast, pounding the area with “a destructive combination of heavy precipitation and moderately high snow levels,” in response to NOAA. The 10-day climate occasion brought about devastating floods in the northern a part of California and western Nevada.

1987: Warm, however with heavy storms in the Mid-Atlantic

– Average winter temperature: 34.54°F (#33 hottest 12 months; 5.7% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.92°F (#45 hottest 12 months; 2.7% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 25.18°F (#24 hottest 12 months; 11.4% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.87 in. (#20 wettest 12 months; 22.1% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Greenlee County, AZ on Feb. 25 (38 in.)

Although temperatures had been hotter than common in 1987, the Mid-Atlantic a part of the nation was hit with a serious nor’easter in February that wreaked havoc from New York all the way down to West Virginia. Prior to that, Washington D.C. was also pelted with a major winter storm in January that stranded six trains and brought about 130 buses to get caught in the snow.

1988: Offshore blizzard causes Alaska shipwreck

– Average winter temperature: 33.46°F (#49 coldest 12 months; 2.4% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.51°F (#35 hottest 12 months; 4.1% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.41°F (#31 coldest 12 months; 0.8% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.69 in. (#11 driest 12 months; 28.1% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Hot Springs County, WY on Feb. 23 (24.3 in.)

Temperatures had been under common in 1988, with a smattering of storms and blizzards all through the United States. In Alaska, the place blustery climate is commonplace, one storm drew consideration when a fishing vessel was shipwrecked during a blizzard amid “blinding snow and 60-mile-an-hour wind.” The crew of 15 was rescued close to Nikolski Bay, however the Alaska Star sank into the sea.

1989: Extreme Alaska chilly spell

– Average winter temperature: 27.73°F (#3 coldest 12 months; 15.1% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 38.89°F (#7 coldest 12 months; 9.1% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 16.57°F (#2 coldest 12 months; 26.7% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.34 in. (#3 driest 12 months; 43.0% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Lewis County, NY on Jan. 6 (47.5 in.)

Alaska drew consideration once more in the winter of 1989, this time as a consequence of the exceptionally chilly temperatures that peaked throughout a two-week interval in January. During this time, specialists predicted the state’s record temperature might be surpassed in the town of Tanana, the place it reached 76 levels under zero. In Fairbanks, temperatures hit 51 levels under, whereas in Anchorage they hit 30 under. “Fan belts under the hoods of cars snapped like pretzels; the ice fog was thick and smothering, and the city came as close as it ever comes to a halt,” Ned Rozell for the Anchorage Daily News.

1990: Storms and chilly snaps countrywide

– Average winter temperature: 30.83°F (#17 coldest 12 months; 5.7% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 41.86°F (#25 coldest 12 months; 2.1% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 19.80°F (#12 coldest 12 months; 12.4% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.69 in. (#33 wettest 12 months; 14.5% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Schoolcraft County, MI on Dec. 12 (24 in.)

During the winter of 1990, roughly 100 folks had been killed in December when a series of storms and cold snaps hit the Northeast, Southeast, and southern elements of the U.S. Nearly half of the states in the nation had been impacted by the storms. Another chilly snap stunned Colorado in July, prompting the costliest hail storm in the state’s historical past.

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1991: Ice storm in Rochester, New York

– Average winter temperature: 35.74°F (#22 hottest 12 months; 9.4% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.37°F (#25 hottest 12 months; 6.1% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 26.10°F (#12 hottest 12 months; 15.5% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.77 in. (#28 wettest 12 months; 17.9% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: San Bernardino County, CA on March 27 (36 in.)

The winter of 1991 was pretty common, with typical temperatures throughout most of the nation. Quite a few storms hit the Midwest, Northeast, and Southeast, impacting Kansas, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, and surrounding states. Among the more notable weather events was a large ice storm in Rochester, New York, that pummeled the metropolis, inflicting $375 million in harm.

1992: Midwest Halloween blizzard

– Average winter temperature: 31.75°F (#25 coldest 12 months; 2.8% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 40.87°F (#18 coldest 12 months; 4.4% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.60°F (#35 coldest 12 months; 0.0% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.79 in. (#27 wettest 12 months; 18.7% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: St. Louis County, MN on Nov. 1 (29.0 in.)

Winter arrived early in the 1991–92 season when a blizzard blew by the Midwest on Halloween. The turbulent storm raged for 4 days, bringing heavy snowfall and ice to elements of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa. Twenty-two folks died on account of the storm, and greater than 100,000 misplaced energy.

1993: Storm of the Century

– Average winter temperature: 34.20°F (#39 hottest 12 months; 4.7% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.02°F (#43 hottest 12 months; 2.9% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 24.37°F (#37 hottest 12 months; 7.8% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.96 in. (#24 driest 12 months; 16.6% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: McKean County, PA on March 11 (30.2 in.)

Few winters in the twentieth century evaluate to 1993, the 12 months the “Storm of the Century” hit. The far-reaching blizzard swept throughout 26 states and most of japanese Canada, setting file lows in a number of cities and leaving greater than 10 million properties with out energy. A complete of 208 folks had been killed and NOAA estimated that 40 p.c of the nation’s inhabitants was impacted by the storm.

1994: Southeast ice storm

– Average winter temperature: 36.23°F (#9 hottest 12 months; 10.9% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.70°F (#18 hottest 12 months; 6.9% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 26.76°F (#4 hottest 12 months; 18.4% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.19 in. (#35 driest 12 months; 6.8% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Franklin County, NY on March 14 (42 in.)

One of the costliest storms in U.S. historical past hit between Feb. 8 and 13, 1994, when a forceful ice storm descended on a big portion of the southeastern United States. Stretching from Texas to North Carolina, the blizzard brought about 9 fatalities and price a staggering $5.2 billion, in response to NOAA.

1995: California flooding

– Average winter temperature: 33.42°F (#47 coldest 12 months; 2.3% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.29°F (#46 coldest 12 months; 1.2% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.56°F (#48 hottest 12 months; 4.2% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.25 in. (#43 driest 12 months; 4.3% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Sierra County, CA on March 23 (44 in.)

On the heels of the catastrophic ice storm, 1995 introduced one other certainly one of the nation’s most costly climate disasters when California was as soon as once more hit with torrential rainstorms and flooding. From January by March, the highly effective climate occasions brought about rainfall of 20 to 70 inches, killing 27 folks and costing $4.3 billion.

1996: Another East Coast nor’easter

– Average winter temperature: 33.91°F (#44 hottest 12 months; 3.8% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.68°F (#49 hottest 12 months; 2.2% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 24.12°F (#40 hottest 12 months; 6.7% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 3.29 in. (#6 wettest 12 months; 40.0% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Jefferson County, CO on Dec. 21 (48 in.)

In 1996, a large nor’easter brought about harm and destruction all through the East Coast, incomes an “extreme” ranking on the Northeast Snowfall Impact Scale (NESIS). Four ft of snow dumped down on the area, burying elements of New York City, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., and New England in snow. In Virginia, eight folks died. Meanwhile, highly effective rain storms in the west brought about extreme flooding in California, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Nevada, and Montana.

1997: April Fool’s Day blizzard

– Average winter temperature: 34.00°F (#40 hottest 12 months; 4.0% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 43.05°F (#41 coldest 12 months; 0.7% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 24.94°F (#29 hottest 12 months; 10.4% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.31 in. (#46 driest 12 months; 1.7% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Mineral County, CO on Jan. 14 (55 in.)

A late-season storm took people in the Northeastern United States unexpectedly on April 1, 1997, when it pummeled the area with sleet and snow. Spanning from Maine to Massachusetts, it was the third-biggest storm in Boston’s history at the time. “Towns already had begun to put away their plows for summer when the storm hit,” wrote Jon Marcus for the Associated Press. “Hardware stores with patio furniture displays had to break out the shovels again.”

1998: Ice storm in the Northeast

– Average winter temperature: 35.55°F (#23 hottest 12 months; 8.8% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.99°F (#14 hottest 12 months; 7.6% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 25.11°F (#28 hottest 12 months; 11.1% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.08 in. (#31 driest 12 months; 11.5% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Greene County, NY on April 1 (37 in.)

Sixteen folks had been killed in January of 1998 when a four-day ice storm tore throughout elements of the Northeast, leaving 80 p.c of Maine residents with out energy. The violent storm, which dropped 3 inches of freezing rain, passed off from Jan. 5 to 9 and price $2 billion, making it certainly one of the most expensive storms of the past 40 years.

1999: North American blizzard of 1999

– Average winter temperature: 36.10°F (#13 hottest 12 months; 10.5% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 47.10°F (#8 hottest 12 months; 10.1% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 25.11°F (#28 hottest 12 months; 11.1% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.73 in. (#14 driest 12 months; 26.4% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Clark County, NV on Feb. 24 (30 in.)

Although common temperatures had been heat in 1999, two back-to-back blizzards in January left 25 folks useless and brought about roughly $2 billion in harm. The turbulent storms struck the Midwest, Northeast, and southern states first, adopted by the central and japanese states two weeks later. Chicago, which acquired 22 inches of snow, ranked the storm as the second-worst blizzard of the 20th century.

2000: Holy Week Blizzard

– Average winter temperature: 28.44°F (#6 coldest 12 months; 13.0% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 38.53°F (#4 coldest 12 months; 9.9% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 18.34°F (#7 coldest 12 months; 18.8% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.71 in. (#12 driest 12 months; 27.2% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Barry County, MO on March 15 (23 in.)

Most of the winter of 2000 went off with no hitch as hotter temperatures enveloped the nation. In late April throughout Holy Week (the week main as much as Easter) Wyoming, South Dakota, and Nebraska had been hit with a late-season blizzard. Wet, heavy snow rolled in on April 19, tumbling bushes and knocking over phone poles. According to NOAA, “The snow in some areas in the central and southern Black Hills was the greatest amount ever recorded during a single storm, and most of the snow fell in lower than 12 hours.”

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2001: A chilly winter with minimal blizzards

– Average winter temperature: 36.12°F (#12 hottest 12 months; 10.5% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 46.17°F (#12 hottest 12 months; 8.0% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 26.08°F (#13 hottest 12 months; 15.4% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.36 in. (#47 driest 12 months; 0.4% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Bay County, MI on Dec. 13 (25 in.)

The winter of 2001 was colder than common, and whereas there weren’t any huge blizzards, there have been sufficient smaller storms and chilly spells to maintain folks on their toes. One notable instance was a December storm system that moved from the Texas panhandle as much as northwest Ohio and the Great Lakes, bringing wind gusts of 70 to 80 miles per hour, together with snow, rain, and sleet.

2002: Blizzards and ice storms all through the U.S.

– Average winter temperature: 35.08°F (#29 hottest 12 months; 7.3% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.87°F (#29 hottest 12 months; 4.9% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 25.27°F (#22 hottest 12 months; 11.8% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 3 in. (#15 wettest 12 months; 27.7% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Belknap County, NH on Feb. 6 (29 in.)

The East Coast acquired quite a few storms throughout the winter of 2002, the first of which was a New Year’s blizzard that ran from Virginia all the way down to Florida. Thousands of individuals had been stranded in airports and on highways, whereas at the very least six folks died in storm-related auto accidents. Just a few weeks later, an ice storm caught the Central Plains of the U.S. on Jan. 29, inflicting electrical transformers to blow up, bushes to snap, and greater than 650,000 folks to lose energy. Among the fallen bushes had been two bicentennials estimated to be greater than 200 years previous mixed.

2003: Presidents’ Day storm

– Average winter temperature: 35.29°F (#26 hottest 12 months; 8.0% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.45°F (#24 hottest 12 months; 6.3% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 25.14°F (#26 hottest 12 months; 11.2% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.38 in. (#48 driest 12 months; 1.3% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Park County, CO on March 19 (38 in.)

Amid the President’s Day storm of 2003, which struck the East Coast between Feb. 17 and 18, Boston set an all-time snowfall file for the metropolis with 27.5 inches. Meanwhile, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania had been pummeled with snow and ice as properly, inflicting most main airports to close down and just about all roadways to return to a halt. Several buildings and buildings collapsed, together with an aluminum patio roof that killed a 79-year-old girl when it fell underneath the weight of the snow.

2004: Blizzard in Charlotte, North Carolina

– Average winter temperature: 35.06°F (#31 hottest 12 months; 7.3% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.52°F (#23 hottest 12 months; 6.5% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 24.62°F (#35 hottest 12 months; 8.9% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.18 in. (#34 driest 12 months; 7.2% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Meagher County, MT on Dec. 27 (48 in.)

The winter of 2004 was pretty uneventful, with average ranges of precipitation and common temperatures. There weren’t any main blizzards; nonetheless, Charlotte, North Carolina, received a surprising storm on Feb. 26—a rarity for the Southern metropolis. By the time it was over, roughly 17 inches had collected, making it certainly one of the largest storms in the metropolis’s historical past.

2005: A cluster of high-wind blizzards

– Average winter temperature: 32.70°F (#36 coldest 12 months; 0.1% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 42.78°F (#36 coldest 12 months; 0.0% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.62°F (#36 coldest 12 months; 0.1% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.29 in. (#45 driest 12 months; 2.6% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Juneau City and Borough, AK on Dec. 28 (32.5 in.)

Temperatures had been hotter than common in the winter of 2005; nonetheless, that did not cease quite a few main storms from sweeping in. The first two passed off proper earlier than Christmas—one in the Ohio Valley and one other in Texas. The first one hammered elements of Tennessee, Arkansas, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio with ice, sleet, snow, and heavy winds. The storms brought about $900 million in harm, and 18 folks died. The Lone Star State skilled its first recorded white Christmas. A month later, one other storm battered the Northeast with high-speed winds and greater than 3 ft of snow.

2006: New York City Blizzard of 2006

– Average winter temperature: 36.57°F (#5 hottest 12 months; 11.9% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 47.10°F (#8 hottest 12 months; 10.1% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 26.02°F (#15 hottest 12 months; 15.1% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.57 in. (#42 wettest 12 months; 9.4% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Gila County, AZ on March 11 (32 in.)

New York City’s blizzard of 2006 passed off between Feb. 11 and 13, and has been ranked as the eighth-biggest snowstorm of all time. Although it affected a big chunk of the Northeastern U.S., the heavy snow was confined largely to the Big Apple. It did not have the robust winds which might be attribute of different storms in the area; nonetheless, the sheer quantity of snow was dramatic. At almost 27 inches, it marked the highest quantity of snow New York City had acquired since 1869.

2007: Valentine’s Day storm

– Average winter temperature: 33.22°F (#43 coldest 12 months; 1.7% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 42.98°F (#40 coldest 12 months; 0.5% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.47°F (#50 coldest 12 months; 3.8% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.97 in. (#16 wettest 12 months; 26.4% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Lewis and Clark County, MT on March 9 (51.8 in.)

During the winter of 2007, a large winter storm closely impacted the japanese half of the United States for the three days main as much as Valentine’s Day. 37 folks died in 13 states, and a 50-mile backup on Interstate 78 stranded drivers for almost 24 hours. The storm ranked as certainly one of the three largest in the Northeastern U.S since 1940.

2008: Great Coastal Gale

– Average winter temperature: 31.87°F (#26 coldest 12 months; 2.5% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 42.60°F (#31 coldest 12 months; 0.4% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 21.15°F (#21 coldest 12 months; 6.4% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.84 in. (#22 wettest 12 months; 20.9% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: San Juan County, UT on Dec. 23 (36 in.)

In 2008, three back-to-back storms struck the Pacific Northwest between Dec. 1 and 4, impacting giant areas of Oregon and Washington. Hurricane-force winds dominated the storm, with gusts as much as 137 miles per hour alongside the coastal area. At least 18 folks had been killed, and greater than 110,000 prospects had been left with out energy.

2009: January storms in the Midwest and South

– Average winter temperature: 29.64°F (#10 coldest 12 months; 9.3% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 38.98°F (#8 coldest 12 months; 8.8% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 20.30°F (#15 coldest 12 months; 10.2% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 3.08 in. (#11 wettest 12 months; 31.1% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Franklin County, NY on March 14 (42 in.)

On New Year’s Eve, a Canadian clipper hammered the Midwest with wind and snow, notably round the Great Lakes space. Later in the month, a brutal ice storm in the south adopted the blizzard, affecting residents of Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Illinois, Ohio, and surrounding areas. Sixty-five folks misplaced their lives, a lot of whom died of carbon monoxide poisoning from power generators, or hypothermia.

2010: Snowmaggedon in Washington D.C.

– Average winter temperature: 32.47°F (#30 coldest 12 months; 0.6% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 42.03°F (#28 coldest 12 months; 1.7% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 22.91°F (#41 coldest 12 months; 1.4% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.45 in. (#48 wettest 12 months; 4.3% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Malheur County, OR on April 8 (60 in.)

As the title may counsel, “Snowmaggedon” dumped excessive volumes of snow onto Washington D.C. and surrounding areas. Between Feb. 5 and 6, the capital acquired almost 18 inches at Reagan National Airport, making it the fourth-highest snowfall in the city’s recorded history. The nickname was additionally utilized to 2 different February storms that adopted, together with one which hit the Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, and elements of New England between Feb. 9 and 10. Another spanned Feb. 25 to 27, dubbed “Snowicane.”

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2011: Groundhog Day blizzard II

– Average winter temperature: 35.40°F (#25 hottest 12 months; 8.3% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.52°F (#23 hottest 12 months; 6.5% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 25.27°F (#22 hottest 12 months; 11.8% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.26 in. (#44 driest 12 months; 3.8% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Kern County, CA on March 21 (41 in.)

Similarly to the Groundhog Day blizzard of 1979, this storm passed off throughout the Midwest and northeastern elements of the nation. Stretching greater than 2,000 miles throughout 22 states, it was extra highly effective than its predecessor, with 60 mile-per-hour winds and a number of other tornadoes touching down: 36 folks had been killed, with the storm causing $2 billion in damage.

2012: A blizzard in the South

– Average winter temperature: 35.92°F (#18 hottest 12 months; 9.9% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.82°F (#16 hottest 12 months; 7.2% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 26.02°F (#15 hottest 12 months; 15.1% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.88 in. (#19 wettest 12 months; 22.6% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Haines Borough, AK on Jan. 2 (42 in.)

Two months after Hurricane Sandy devastated the northeastern United States, a serious blizzard struck the South, with winds as much as 80 miles per hour. Arkansas and Alabama, the most affected states, noticed hailstones measuring greater than an inch huge. Thousands of individuals had been left with out energy.

2013: February nor’easter brings a Category 3 storm

– Average winter temperature: 31.06°F (#19 coldest 12 months; 5.0% under 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 41.52°F (#22 coldest 12 months; 2.9% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 20.61°F (#17 coldest 12 months; 8.8% under 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.21 in. (#36 driest 12 months; 6.0% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Polk County, OR on March 1 (39.0 in.)

The winter of 2013 introduced warmer-than-average temperatures; nonetheless, a big nor’easter led to a Category 3 winter storm in February. The blizzard pounded the Southeast, Northeast, and Mid-Atlantic with snow, wind, and ice. A complete of 18 folks had been killed, three of which had been attributed to heart attacks while shoveling snow.

2014: California floods and Mid-Atlantic blizzards

– Average winter temperature: 36.81°F (#4 hottest 12 months; 12.6% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 45.34°F (#27 hottest 12 months; 6.0% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 28.26°F (#2 hottest 12 months; 25.0% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.58 in. (#40 wettest 12 months; 9.8% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Pennington County, SD on Oct. 5 (35 in.)

The winter of 2014 was one other 12 months of large rainstorms and flash flooding on the West Coast—notably in California. Other elements of the nation, against this, noticed heavy snow, particularly throughout a Jan. 5 to eight blizzard that blanketed most of the Mid-Atlantic. Wind chill despatched temperatures plummeting to 60 levels under zero. The storm caused more than $1 billion in damage, and 16 folks misplaced their lives.

2015: A sequence of blizzards and chilly spells

– Average winter temperature: 38.66°F (#1 hottest 12 months; 18.3% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 48.06°F (#2 hottest 12 months; 12.4% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 29.25°F (#1 hottest 12 months; 29.4% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 4.06 in. (#1 wettest 12 months; 72.8% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Erie County, NY on Nov. 20 (47.5 in.)

The winter of 2015 was filled with blizzards and storms, starting with January’s snow drops over New England. The snow continued by March, when a blizzard and its chilly spell broke temperature data as far south as Florida. That mentioned, 2015 was hotter than common basically all through the nation.

2016: Category 5 storm in the East

– Average winter temperature: 32.95°F (#40 coldest 12 months; 0.8% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 42.64°F (#33 coldest 12 months; 0.3% under 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.27°F (#46 coldest 12 months; 3.0% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.72 in. (#30 wettest 12 months; 15.7% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Worcester County, MA on Jan. 27 (31.9 in.)

A devastating storm lashed the japanese a part of the nation with snow and heavy winds from Jan. 22 to 24, affecting 11 states together with New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. The Category 5 storm, which ranks as “extreme,” brought about at the very least 55 deaths and injured, stranded, or displaced a whole lot extra. The complete value of the storm was estimated to be between $500 million and $3 billion.

2017: California’s wettest 12 months

– Average winter temperature: 34.29°F (#37 hottest 12 months; 4.9% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.83°F (#30 hottest 12 months; 4.8% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 23.74°F (#46 hottest 12 months; 5.0% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.59 in. (#9 driest 12 months; 32.3% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Loudoun County, VA on Jan. 24 (36.6 in.)

In 2017, California skilled intense rains that broke earlier data, making it the wettest winter in virtually a century. Five folks died and the street harm totaled greater than $1 million. Later in the winter, a late-season blizzard poured snow over the northeastern U.S., hammering states like New York, Vermont, and New Hampshire.

2018: North American blizzard in January

– Average winter temperature: 35.51°F (#24 hottest 12 months; 8.7% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 44.78°F (#31 hottest 12 months; 4.7% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 26.26°F (#11 hottest 12 months; 16.2% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 3.25 in. (#7 wettest 12 months; 38.3% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Otsego County, NY on March 15 (35.2 in.)

The Mid-Atlantic as soon as once more bore the brunt of a serious winter blizzard in January of 2018 when these states, together with elements of New England, had been battered by heavy winds and intense snowfall. 300,000 residents misplaced energy in consequence. The storm, dubbed a “historic bomb cyclone,” brought about a whole lot of flight cancellations and 22 deaths.

2019: Storm batters from West to East

– Average winter temperature: 36.43°F (#7 hottest 12 months; 11.5% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 46.08°F (#13 hottest 12 months; 7.8% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 26.78°F (#3 hottest 12 months; 18.5% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 2.57 in. (#42 wettest 12 months; 9.4% above 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Montgomery County, MO on Jan. 12 (13.4 in.)

What began out as a bomb cyclone in Oregon and California spawned the storm that dropped snow for almost two days straight in varied areas all through the Northeast. Sections of central and western New England acquired near 2 ft of snow. It was certainly one of Albany’s prime 10 storms, and the two-phase storm introduced an fascinating phenomenon to an space north of the Massachusetts Turnpike generally known as thundersnow.

2020: Christmas week storms throughout a pandemic

– Average winter temperature: 35.74°F (#22 hottest 12 months; 9.4% above 100-year common)
– Maximum winter temperature: 46.65°F (#10 hottest 12 months; 9.1% above 100-year common)
– Minimum winter temperature: 24.82°F (#31 hottest 12 months; 9.8% above 100-year common)
– Average precipitation: 1.99 in. (#25 driest 12 months; 15.3% under 100-year common)
– Record one-day snowfall: Garfield County, CO on Feb. 7 (21.8 in.)

The vacation season was already troublesome as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. The week of Christmas introduced a number of climate occasions, which conspired so as to add one other degree of hardship. Parts of the Plains and higher Midwest noticed blizzard circumstances, which brought about an interstate pileup in South Dakota and the cancellation of greater than 400 flights, whereas the Eastern states noticed heavy rains and powerful winds.

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