 | It has been suggested that this article be merged into 1887 Atlantic hurricane season. (Discuss) Proposed since October 2024. |
 Track map of the storm | |
| Meteorological history | |
|---|---|
| Formed | October 29, 1887 |
| Extratropical | October 31, 1887 |
| Dissipated | November 6, 1887 |
| Tropical storm | |
| 1-minute sustained (SSHWS/NWS) | |
| Highest winds | 70 mph (110 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 993 mbar (hPa); 29.32 inHg |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | 2 total |
| Damage | ~$7,000 (1887 USD) |
| Areas affected | Gulf Coast, Florida, Georgia, The Carolinas, Virginia, East Coast of the United States, Atlantic Canada |
| IBTrACS | |
Part of the 1887 Atlantic hurricane season | |
The 1887 Halloween tropical storm was a late-season tropical cyclone that caused significant damage along the East Coast of the United States during Halloween of 1887. The sixteenth tropical storm of the annual hurricane season, it formed from an area of disturbed weather over the Gulf of Mexico on October 29. The storm later came ashore along the west coast of Florida. After crossing the state, it produced severe thunderstorms along the North Carolina–Virginia coastline before becoming extratropical on November 1. The extratropical system intensified into the equivalent of a Category 1 hurricane on the modern-day Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale. It eventually dissipated on November 6, shortly after hitting northwest France.
The storm affected the town of Norfolk, where it became the most damaging storm since 1879. Despite the damage inland, the storm is best known for the unusually high number of shipwrecks and maritime incidents it caused. One ship, a schooner called the Manantico, capsized, killing the captain and one of its crew members. Three other ships were driven ashore on Virginia beaches from False Cape to Cape Henry, and numerous others were put in danger.