Texas Hurricane History:
Late 19th Century (continued)

September 22nd-23rd, 1886: Battered Texas coast struck again, this time at Brownsville. Nearly 26 inches of rain (25.98") fell at Brownsville. In the already cursed city of Indianola, water began to invade the city from Matagorda Bay, becoming waist deep just after noon. Winds increased to 60 mph by 6 P.M.. People fled from town in a mass exodus during the early stages of the storm, all except for one family.   The cast-iron Matagorda lighthouse was battered by the powerful storm. The tower shook violently in the winds; part of the lens was smashed on the floor of the lantern. Everything in its vicinity, outside the lighthouse and keeper's quarters, was swept away by the storm surge. Victoria also saw a northeast gale that evening.

To the left, in red, are the counties that were effected by the hurricane.

Near Abbott, people watched in awe as a tornado touched town 3 miles west of town. It unroofed a barn and plowed through a corn field before lifting back into the clouds; its width was only a couple hundred yards. In Galveston, winds increased to 25 mph out of the east on the fringe of this storm. The railroad track was buried in sand. Only slight damage occurred.

October 12-13th, 1886: This hurricane proved much more devastating. At Galveston, winds reached 50 m.p.h., causing the Gulf to invade the island. Little, if any, damage was seen there. At Orange, trees were downed and the Catholic Church was leveled.  Sabine Pass, at the time a small city of several hundred, was "virtually swept out of existence." The full fury raged during the afternoon of the 12th. The winds began out of the east and became southerly with time. By 5 P.M., winds reached 100 m.p.h.. Waves 20 feet high rolled in from the Gulf. Nearly every house in the area was moved from its foundation, including a hotel with 15-20 people inside, which was washed out to sea.  Ten to eleven miles of railroad track was damaged. Furniture was strewn along the coast. One hundred two people perished in that city alone. Thousands of dead cattle, hogs, horses, and fowl laid everywhere after the storm. The schooner Henrietta went ashore and was considered a total loss. The schooner Silas was shoved across the railroad track, out onto the prairie.  Johnson's Bayou and Sabine Pass were overwashed by a storm surge of up to 7 feet, which extended 20 miles inland. A woman crossed Sabine Lake on a feather mattress during and after the storm. She was without food for 40 hours. In all, between 175 and 200 lives were lost. See See Louisiana Hurricane History for what the storm did in that state.

September 21st, 1887: This storm eyed the battered Middle Coast before turning west prior to landfall. Brownsville saw its second hurricane in as many years. Winds were observed out of the North at 78 m.p.h.. The pressure fell to 28.93" and stayed below 29 inches for several hours. Subsequent flooding from the thirty-six hours of rain invaded low areas, damaging crops.  In Galveston, three days of wind were seen. Between 8 and 9 P.M., winds reached 36 mph at the observation site and 50 mph along the coast. Water covered only low spots on the island. Corpus Christi experienced a northeast gale, but no damage. Fourteen sailors were lost at sea.

June 16-17th, 1888: The North Texas coast was struck by a hurricane. Corpus Christi saw a pressure of 28.72" and three inches of rain.

On July 5th, 1888, a second hurricane hits Galveston, making 8 hurricane landfalls in 3 seasons for the battered Texas coast. Corpus Christi saw 2" of rain.

July 13th, 1891: Hurricane forms in Bay of Campeche on July 3rd and makes landfall near Sabine Pass on the 13th. Affected the entire coast; part of Galveston was inundated.

August 29th, 1895: Hurricane moves through Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico before making landfall 80 miles south of Rio Grande on August 29th. The town of Abasola in Mexico was completely washed away. The nearby town of Rodriguez no longer has a house standing. Corpus Christi saw 75 mph winds; trees and houses were leveled. Rockport has a severe gale set in for 36 hours, building high tides not seen since 1883. Velasco experienced winds of 40-50 mph, heavy rain, and storm surges up to 4 feet. The tide was high enough in Galveston to flood several blocks of the city.

September 12th, 1897: Minimal hurricane entered extreme Southeast Texas from Louisiana. At New Sabine Pass, water was 6 feet deep; only 2 buildings were left intact. Sabine Pass had 3 1/2 feet of water in its streets. Port Arthur was nearly wiped out. Winds began blowing a gale there at 10 am. By 2 P.M., Sabine Lake had become a "seething, rolling body of water" (Houston Post 9/14/1897). By 6 P.M., winds had reached hurricane force. The air was filled with flying boards and timber. Conditions improved after 9 P.M.. Hardly a building escaped unharmed. The newly completed pier was washed away, as well as miles of railroad track in Jefferson County.

The map to the left, in red, shows which counties were effected by the hurricane.

In Winnie, every house in town saw damage. Every rice farm in Taylor's Bayou was leveled. Winnie reported a $12,000 loss to its rice crop. The storm raged until midnight at these locations. In Beaumont, winds were highest between 6 and 11 P.M.. The Baptist Church in Beaumont was demolished. Telegraph and telephone lines were downed. It was considered the worst storm at Orange since 1875. Roofs were blown off, trees uprooted, and windows were smashed. Homes in Liberty County suffered as well. Cotton was in jeopardy across much of East Texas. In Galveston, sections of the roof were peeled off Olympia; its third floor caved in. Smaller ships in the Bay perished in the high seas. The steamer Umberland was delayed getting into port at Corpus Christi, also due to high seas.  A frightening Union Pacific railroad trip between Beaumont and Devers, on the way to Houston, had its headlight torn away, the smoker's roof sheared off, and the ladies' coach twisted during the storm. The train was only an hour and 20 minutes late. The bark Ceries and the tug boats Fannie, Florence, Guillotte, and John P. Smith met their fate. Looters invaded the area, but quickly left when threatened with hanging. Sea gulls were blown inland as far as Bryan. Six died at Port Arthur, three offshore, four in Sabine Pass, and 16 others perishing at Beaumont; damage totaled 150 thousand dollars. See Louisiana Hurricane History for more previous details on this storm.

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