Editing Blizzard (section)

===North America===

{{See also|List of NESIS storms|List of Regional Snowfall Index Category 5 winter storms|List of Regional Snowfall Index Category 4 winter storms}}

==== 1700 to 1799 ====
*[[The Great Snow of 1717|The Great Snow 1717]] series of four snowstorms between February 27 and March 7, 1717. There were reports of about five feet of snow already on the ground when the first of the storms hit. By the end, there were about ten feet of snow and some drifts reaching {{convert|25|ft|m}}, burying houses entirely. In the colonial era, this storm made travel impossible until the snow simply melted.<ref name="phactual.com">{{cite web|url=https://www.phactual.com/15-of-the-worst-snowstorms-in-history/|title=15 of the Worst Snowstorms in History|date=9 February 2015|access-date=11 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161018212530/https://www.phactual.com/15-of-the-worst-snowstorms-in-history/|archive-date=18 October 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* Blizzard of 1765. March 24, 1765. Affected area from Philadelphia to Massachusetts. High winds and over {{convert|2|ft|cm}} of snowfall recorded in some areas.<ref name="Northeast Snowstorms pg 299">Northeast Snowstorms, Vol II. Kocin/Uccellini pg 299</ref>
* Blizzard of 1772. "The Washington and Jefferson Snowstorm of 1772". January 26–29, 1772. One of largest D.C. and Virginia area snowstorms ever recorded. Snow accumulations of {{convert|3|ft|cm}} recorded.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.islandnet.com/~see/weather/events/wjsnow1772.htm|title=Weather Events: The Washington and Jefferson Snowstorm of 1772|website=www.islandnet.com|access-date=11 May 2018}}</ref>
* The "Hessian Storm of 1778". December 26, 1778. Severe blizzard with high winds, heavy snows and bitter cold extending from Pennsylvania to New England. Snow drifts reported to be {{convert|15|ft|m}} high in Rhode Island. Storm named for stranded Hessian troops in deep snows stationed in Rhode Island during the Revolutionary War.<ref name="Northeast Snowstorms pg 299"/>
* The Great Snow of 1786. December 4–10, 1786. Blizzard conditions and a succession of three harsh snowstorms produced snow depths of {{convert|2|ft|cm}} to {{convert|4|ft|cm}} from Pennsylvania to New England. Reportedly of similar magnitude of 1717 snowstorms.<ref name="Northeast Snowstorms pg 301">Northeast Snowstorms, Vol II. Kocin/Uccellini pg 301</ref>
* The Long Storm of 1798. November 19–21, 1798. Heavy snowstorm produced snow from Maryland to Maine.<ref name="Northeast Snowstorms pg 301"/>

==== 1800 to 1850 ====
* Blizzard of 1805. January 26–28, 1805. Cyclone brought heavy snowstorm to New York City and New England. Snow fell continuously for two days where over {{convert|2|ft|cm}} of snow accumulated.<ref name="Northeast Snowstorms pg 303">Northeast Snowstorms, Vol II. Kocin/Uccellini pg 303</ref>
* New York City Blizzard of 1811. December 23–24, 1811. Severe blizzard conditions reported on Long Island, in New York City, and southern New England. Strong winds and tides caused damage to shipping in harbor.<ref name="Northeast Snowstorms pg 303"/>
* Luminous Blizzard of 1817. January 17, 1817. In Massachusetts and Vermont, a severe snowstorm was accompanied by frequent lightning and heavy thunder. [[St. Elmo's fire]] reportedly lit up trees, fence posts, house roofs, and even people. [[John Farrar (scientist)|John Farrar]] professor at Harvard, recorded the event in his memoir in 1821.<ref>Extreme Weather record book, 2007 edition, pg 91, Christopher Burt</ref>
* Great Snowstorm of 1821. January 5–7, 1821. Extensive snowstorm and blizzard spread from Virginia to New England.<ref name="Northeast Snowstorms pg 303"/>
* Winter of Deep Snow in 1830. December 29, 1830. Blizzard storm dumped {{convert|36|in|cm}} in Kansas City and {{convert|30|in|cm}} in Illinois. Areas experienced repeated storms thru mid-February 1831.<ref name="The American Weather Book pg 265">The American Weather Book. David Ludlum pg 265</ref>
* "The Great Snowstorm of 1831" January 14–16, 1831. Produced snowfall over widest geographic area that was only rivaled, or exceeded by, the 1993 Blizzard. Blizzard raged from Georgia, to Ohio Valley, all the way to Maine.<ref name="Northeast Snowstorms pg 303"/>
* "The Big Snow of 1836" January 8–10, 1836. Produced {{convert|30|in|cm}} to {{convert|40|in|cm}} of snowfall in interior New York, northern Pennsylvania, and western New England. Philadelphia got a reported {{convert|15|in|cm}} and New York City {{convert|2|ft|cm}} of snow.<ref name="Northeast Snowstorms pg 303"/>

==== 1851 to 1900 ====
* Plains Blizzard of 1856. December 3–5, 1856. Severe blizzard-like storm raged for three days in Kansas and Iowa. Early pioneers suffered.<ref>The American Weather Book. David Ludlum pg 263</ref>
* "The Cold Storm of 1857" January 18–19, 1857. Produced severe blizzard conditions from North Carolina to Maine. Heavy snowfalls reported in east coast cities.<ref>Northeast Snowstorms, Vol II. Kocin/Uccellini pg 304</ref>
* Midwest Blizzard of 1864. January 1, 1864. Gale-force winds, driving snow, and low temperatures all struck simultaneously around Chicago, Wisconsin and Minnesota.<ref>The American Weather Book. David Ludlum pg 6</ref>
* Plains Blizzard of 1873. January 7, 1873. Severe blizzard struck the Great Plains. Many pioneers from the east were unprepared for the storm and perished in Minnesota and Iowa.<ref name="The American Weather Book pg 7">The American Weather Book. David Ludlum pg 7</ref>
* Great Plains Easter Blizzard of 1873. April 13, 1873
* Seattle Blizzard of 1880. January 6, 1880. Seattle area's greatest snowstorm to date. An estimated {{convert|4|ft|cm}} fell around the town. Many barns collapsed and all transportation halted.<ref name="The American Weather Book pg 7"/>
* The [[Hard Winter of 1880-81]]. October 15, 1880. A blizzard in eastern South Dakota marked the beginning of this historically difficult season. [[Laura Ingalls Wilder]]'s book ''[[The Long Winter (novel)|The Long Winter]]'' details the effects of this season on early settlers.
* In the three year winter period from December 1885 to March 1888, the Great Plains and Eastern United States suffered a series of the worst blizzards in this nation's history ending with the [[Schoolhouse Blizzard]] and the [[Great Blizzard of 1888]]. The massive explosion of the volcano [[1883 eruption of Krakatoa|Krakatoa]] in the South Pacific late in August 1883 is a suspected cause of these huge blizzards during these several years. The clouds of ash it emitted continued to circulate around the world for many years. Weather patterns continued to be chaotic for years, and temperatures did not return to normal until 1888. Record rainfall was experienced in Southern California during July 1883 to June 1884. The Krakatoa eruption injected an unusually large amount of sulfur dioxide (SO2) gas high into the stratosphere which reflects sunlight and helped cool the planet over the next few years until the suspended atmospheric sulfur fell to ground.
* Plains Blizzard of late 1885. In Kansas, heavy snows of late 1885 had piled drifts {{convert|10|ft|m}} high.<ref name="kshs.org">{{cite web|url=https://www.kshs.org/kansapedia/blizzard-of-1886/11982|title=Blizzard of 1886 - Kansapedia - Kansas Historical Society|website=www.kshs.org|access-date=11 May 2018}}</ref>
* Kansas Blizzard of 1886. First week of January 1886. Reported that 80 percent of the cattle were frozen to death in that state alone from the cold and snow.<ref name="kshs.org"/>
* [[January 1886 blizzard|January 1886 Blizzard]]. January 9, 1886. Same system as Kansas 1886 Blizzard that traveled eastward.
* Great Plains Blizzards of late 1886. On November 13, 1886, it reportedly began to snow and did not stop for a month in the Great Plains region.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.acsu.buffalo.edu/~insrisg/nature/nw04/0119Blizzards.htm|title=Blizzard Years|website=www.acsu.buffalo.edu|access-date=11 May 2018}}</ref>
* Great Plains Blizzard of 1887. January 9–11, 1887. Reported 72-hour blizzard that covered parts of the Great Plains in more than {{convert|16|in|cm}} of snow. Winds whipped and temperatures dropped to around {{convert|-50|F|C}}. So many cows that were not killed by the cold soon died from starvation. When spring arrived, millions of the animals were dead, with around 90 percent of the open range's cattle rotting where they fell. Those present reported carcasses as far as the eye could see. Dead cattle clogged up rivers and spoiled drinking water. Many ranchers went bankrupt and others simply called it quits and moved back east. The "Great Die-Up" from the blizzard effectively concluded the romantic period of the great Plains cattle drives.<ref>{{cite web
| title=The 1887 Blizzard That Changed the American Frontier Forever
| url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/1887-blizzard-changed-american-frontier-forever-1-180953852/?no-ist
| first=Laura | last=Clark | work=smithsonianmag.com | publisher=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]] | date=January 9, 2015
}}
</ref>
*[[Schoolhouse Blizzard|Schoolhouse Blizzard of 1888]] North American Great Plains. January 12–13, 1888. What made the storm so deadly was the timing (during work and school hours), the suddenness, and the brief spell of warmer weather that preceded it. In addition, the very strong wind fields behind the cold front and the powdery nature of the snow reduced visibilities on the open plains to zero. People ventured from the safety of their homes to do chores, go to town, attend school, or simply enjoy the relative warmth of the day. As a result, thousands of people—including many schoolchildren—got caught in the blizzard.
*[[Great Blizzard of 1888|Great Blizzard of March 1888]] March 11–14, 1888. One of the most severe recorded blizzards in the history of the United States. On March 12, an unexpected northeaster hit New England and the mid-Atlantic, dropping up to {{convert|50|in|cm|abbr=on|}} of snow in the space of three days. New York City experienced its heaviest snowfall recorded to date at that time, all street railcars were stranded, and the storm led to the creation of the NYC subway system. Snowdrifts reached up to the second story of some buildings. Some 400 people died from this blizzard, including many sailors aboard vessels that were beset by gale-force winds and turbulent seas.
*[[Great Blizzard of 1899]] February 11–14, 1899. An extremely unusual blizzard in that it reached into the far southern states of the US. It hit in February, and the area around Washington, D.C., experienced 51 hours straight of snowfall. The port of New Orleans was totally iced over; revelers participating in the New Orleans [[Mardi Gras]] had to wait for the parade routes to be shoveled free of snow. Concurrent with this blizzard was the extremely cold arctic air. Many city and state record low temperatures date back to this event, including all-time records for locations in the Midwest and South. State record lows: Nebraska reached {{convert|-47|F|C}}, Ohio experienced {{convert|-39|F|C}}, Louisiana bottomed out at {{convert|-16|F|C}}, and Florida dipped below zero to {{convert|-2|F|C}}.

==== 1901 to 1939 ====
*[[Great Lakes Storm of 1913]] November 7–10, 1913. "The White Hurricane" of 1913 was the deadliest and most destructive [[natural disaster]] ever to hit the [[Great Lakes Basin]] in the Midwestern United States and the Canadian province of [[Ontario]]. It produced {{convert|90|mph|km/h|abbr=on|}} wind gusts, [[ocean surface wave|waves]] over {{convert|35|ft|m|abbr=on|}} high, and [[whiteout (weather)|whiteout]] [[snowsquall]]s. It killed more than 250 people, destroyed 19 ships, and stranded 19 others.
* Blizzard of 1918. January 11, 1918. Vast blizzard-like storm moved through Great Lakes and Ohio Valley.<ref name="The American Weather Book pg 7"/>
*[[1920 North Dakota blizzard]] March 15–18, 1920
*[[Knickerbocker Storm]] January 27–28, 1922

==== 1940 to 1949 ====
*[[Armistice Day Blizzard|Armistice Day Blizzard of 1940]] November 10–12, 1940. Took place in the Midwest region of the United States on [[Armistice Day]]. This "[[Panhandle hook]]" winter storm cut a {{convert|1000|mi|km|abbr=on|adj=mid|-wide path}} through the middle of the country from [[Kansas]] to [[Michigan]]. The morning of the storm was unseasonably warm but by mid afternoon conditions quickly deteriorated into a raging blizzard that would last into the next day. A total of 145 deaths were blamed on the storm, almost a third of them duck hunters who had taken time off to take advantage of the ideal hunting conditions. Weather forecasters had not predicted the severity of the oncoming storm, and as a result the hunters were not dressed for cold weather. When the storm began many hunters took shelter on small islands in the Mississippi River, and the {{convert|50|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} winds and {{convert|5|ft|m|adj=on}} waves overcame their encampments. Some became stranded on the islands and then froze to death in the single-digit temperatures that moved in over night. Others tried to make it to shore and drowned.
*[[North American blizzard of 1947]] December 25–26, 1947. Was a record-breaking snowfall that began on Christmas Day and brought the Northeast United States to a standstill. Central Park in New York City got {{convert|26|in|cm}} of snowfall in 24 hours with deeper snows in suburbs. It was not accompanied by high winds, but the snow fell steadily with drifts reaching {{convert|10|ft|m|abbr=on}}. Seventy-seven deaths were attributed to the blizzard.<ref name="The American Weather Book pg 265"/>
* The Blizzard of 1949 - The first blizzard started on Sunday, January 2, 1949; it lasted for three days. It was followed by two more months of blizzard after blizzard with high winds and bitter cold. Deep drifts isolated southeast Wyoming, northern Colorado, western South Dakota and western Nebraska, for weeks. Railroad tracks and roads were all drifted in with drifts of {{convert|20|ft|m}} and more.  Hundreds of people that had been traveling on trains were stranded.  Motorists that had set out on January 2 found their way to private farm homes in rural areas and hotels and other buildings in towns; some dwellings were so crowded that there was not enough room for all to sleep at once.  It would be weeks before they were plowed out. The Federal government quickly responded with aid, airlifting food and hay for livestock.  The total rescue effort involved numerous volunteers and local agencies plus at least ten major state and federal agencies from the U.S. Army to the National Park Service. Private businesses, including railroad and oil companies, also lent manpower and heavy equipment to the work of plowing out. The official death toll was 76 people and one million livestock.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pbs.org/video/2365629270/|title=Blizzard of '49 - Wyoming History|website=[[PBS]] |access-date=11 May 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Hein|first1=Rebecca|title=The Notorious Blizzard of 1949|url=https://www.wyohistory.org/encyclopedia/notorious-blizzard-1949|website=The Wyoming State Historical Society|access-date=December 20, 2017}}</ref> [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gl6Iz4dXGdg Youtube video  ''Storm of the Century - the Blizzard of  '49''] [https://www.weather.gov/unr/1949-01 Storm of the Century - the Blizzard of '49]

==== 1950 to 1959 ====
*[[Great Appalachian Storm of November 1950]] November 24–30, 1950
*[[March 18–21, 1958 nor'easter|March 1958 Nor'easter blizzard]] March 18–21, 1958.
* The Mount Shasta California Snowstorm of 1959 – The storm dumped {{convert|189|in|cm}} of snow on Mount Shasta. The bulk of the snow fell on unpopulated mountainous areas, barely disrupting the residents of the Mount Shasta area. The amount of snow recorded is the largest snowfall from a single storm in North America.

==== 1960 to 1969 ====
*[[March 1960 nor'easter|March 1960 Nor'easter blizzard]] March 2–5, 1960
*[[December 1960 nor'easter|December 1960 Nor'easter blizzard]] December 12–14, 1960. Wind gusts up to {{convert|50|mph}}.<ref>The American Weather Book. David Ludlum pg 264</ref>
*[[Ash Wednesday Storm of 1962|March 1962 Nor'easter]] Great March Storm of 1962 – Ash Wednesday. North Carolina and Virginia blizzards. Struck during Spring high tide season and remained mostly stationary for almost 5 days causing significant damage along eastern coast, Assateague island was under water, and dumped {{convert|42|in|cm}} of snow in Virginia.
*[[North American blizzard of 1966]] January 27–31, 1966
*[[Chicago Blizzard of 1967]] January 26–27, 1967
*[[February 1969 nor'easter]] February 8–10, 1969
*[[March 1969 nor'easter|March 1969 Nor'easter blizzard]] March 9, 1969
*[[December 1969 nor'easter|December 1969 Nor'easter blizzard]] December 25–28, 1969.

==== 1970 to 1979 ====
*The [[Great Storm of 1975]] known as the "Super Bowl Blizzard" or "Minnesota's Storm of the Century". January 9–12, 1975. Wind chills of {{convert|-50|F|C}} to {{convert|-80|F|C}} recorded, deep snowfalls.<ref name="The American Weather Book pg 7"/>
*[[Groundhog Day gale of 1976]] February 2, 1976
*[[Blizzard of 1977|Buffalo Blizzard of 1977]] January 28 – February 1, 1977. There were several feet of packed snow already on the ground, and the blizzard brought with it enough snow to reach Buffalo's record for the most snow in one season – {{convert|199.4|in|cm}}.<ref name="phactual.com"/>
*[[Great Blizzard of 1978]] also called the "Cleveland Superbomb". January 25–27, 1978. Was one of the worst snowstorms the Midwest has ever seen. Wind gusts approached {{convert|100|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}, causing snowdrifts to reach heights of {{convert|25|ft|m|abbr=on}} in some areas, making roadways impassable. Storm reached maximum intensity over southern Ontario Canada.
*[[Northeastern United States Blizzard of 1978]] – February 6–7, 1978. Just one week following the Cleveland Superbomb blizzard, New England was hit with its most severe blizzard in 90 years since 1888.<ref>Extreme Weather record book, 2007 edition, pg 241, Christopher Burt</ref>
*[[Chicago Blizzard of 1979]] January 13–14, 1979

==== 1980 to 1989 ====
*[[February 1987 nor'easter|February 1987 Nor'easter blizzard]] February 22–24, 1987

==== 1990 to 1999 ====
*[[1991 Halloween blizzard]] Upper Mid-West US, October 31 – November 3, 1991
*[[December 1992 nor'easter|December 1992 Nor'easter blizzard]] December 10–12, 1992
*[[1993 Storm of the Century]] March 12–15, 1993. While the southern and eastern U.S. and Cuba received the brunt of this massive blizzard, the Storm of the Century impacted a wider area than any in recorded history.
*[[February 1995 nor'easter|February 1995 Nor'easter blizzard]] February 3–6, 1995
*[[Blizzard of 1996]] January 6–10, 1996
*[[April Fool's Day Blizzard]] March 31 – April 1, 1997. US East Coast
*[[1997 Western Plains winter storms]] October 24–26, 1997
*[[Blizzard of 1999|Mid West Blizzard of 1999]] January 2–4, 1999

==== 2000 to 2009 ====
*[[January 25, 2000 Southeastern United States winter storm]] January 25, 2000. North Carolina and Virginia
*[[December 2000 nor'easter|December 2000 Nor'easter blizzard]] December 27–31, 2000
*[[North American blizzard of 2003]] February 14–19, 2003 (Presidents' Day Storm II)
*[[December 2003 nor'easter|December 2003 Nor'easter blizzard]] December 6–7, 2003
*[[North American blizzard of 2005]] January 20–23, 2005
*[[North American blizzard of 2006]] February 11–13, 2006
*[[Early winter 2006 North American storm complex]] Late November 2006
*[[Colorado Holiday Blizzards (2006–07)]] December 20–29, 2006 Colorado
*[[February 2007 North America blizzard]] February 12–20, 2007
*[[January 2008 North American storm complex]] January, 2008 West Coast US
*[[North American blizzard of 2008]]  March 6–10, 2008
*[[2009 Midwest Blizzard]] 6–8 December 2009, a bomb cyclogenesis event that also affected parts of Canada
*[[North American blizzard of 2009]] December 16–20, 2009
*[[2009 North American Christmas blizzard]] December 22–28, 2009

==== 2010 to 2019 ====
*[[February 5–6, 2010 North American blizzard]] February 5–6, 2010 Referred to at the time as [[Snowmageddon]] was a Category 3 ("major") nor'easter and severe weather event.
*[[February 9–10, 2010 North American blizzard]] February 9–10, 2010
*[[February 25–27, 2010 North American blizzard]] February 25–27, 2010
*[[October 2010 North American storm complex]] October 23–28, 2010
*[[December 2010 North American blizzard]] December 26–29, 2010
*[[January 31 – February 2, 2011 North American blizzard]] January 31 – February 2, 2011. Groundhog Day Blizzard of 2011
*[[2011 Halloween nor'easter]] October 28 – Nov 1, 2011
*[[Hurricane Sandy]] October 29–31, 2012. West Virginia, western North Carolina, and southwest Pennsylvania received heavy snowfall and blizzard conditions from this hurricane
*[[November 2012 nor'easter]] November 7–10, 2012
*[[December 17–22, 2012 North American blizzard]] December 17–22, 2012
*[[Late December 2012 North American storm complex]] December 25–28, 2012
*[[February 2013 nor'easter]] February 7–20, 2013
*[[February 2013 Great Plains blizzard]] February 19 – March 6, 2013
*[[March 2013 nor'easter]] March 6, 2013
*[[October 2013 North American storm complex]] October 3–5, 2013
* Buffalo, NY blizzard of 2014. Buffalo got over {{convert|6|ft|m}} of snow during November 18–20, 2014.
*[[January 2015 North American blizzard]] January 26–27, 2015
*[[Late December 2015 North American storm complex]] December 26–27, 2015 Was one of the most notorious blizzards in the state of New Mexico and West Texas ever reported. It had sustained winds of over {{convert|30|mph|km/h}} and continuous snow precipitation that lasted over 30 hours. Dozens of vehicles were stranded in small county roads in the areas of Hobbs, Roswell, and Carlsbad New Mexico. Strong sustained winds destroyed various mobile homes.
*[[January 2016 United States blizzard]] January 20–23, 2016
*[[February 2016 North American storm complex]] February 1–8, 2016
*[[February 9–11, 2017 North American blizzard|February 2017 North American blizzard]] February 6–11, 2017
*[[March 2017 North American blizzard]] March 9–16, 2017
*[[Early January 2018 nor’easter]] January 3–6, 2018
*[[March 2019 North American blizzard]] March 8–16, 2019
*[[April 2019 North American blizzard]] April 10–14, 2019

==== 2020 to present ====
*[[December 5–6, 2020 nor'easter]] December 5–6, 2020
*[[January 31 – February 3, 2021 nor'easter]] January 31 – February 3, 2021
*[[February 13–17, 2021 North American winter storm]] February 13–17, 2021
*[[March 2021 North American blizzard]] March 11–14, 2021
*[[January 2022 North American blizzard]] January 27–30, 2022
*[[December 2022 North American winter storm]] December 21–26, 2022
*[[March 2023 North American winter storm]] March 12–15, 2023
*[[January 8–10, 2024 North American storm complex]] January 8–10, 2024
*[[January 10–13, 2024 North American storm complex]] January 10–13, 2024
*[[January 5–6, 2025 United States blizzard]] January 5–6, 2025
*[[2025 Gulf Coast blizzard]] January 20–22, 2025