St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm Explained

The St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm was a powerful winter storm that hit the Southeastern United States in mid-March 1892, with the heaviest snowfalls occurring in Nashville, Tennessee, and the Mid-State region.^[1] The event was atypical for this humid subtropical climate.^[2] Some portions of Middle Tennessee received record accumulation of up to 26inches of snow.^[3]

Average climate

The average high temperature in Nashville during the month of March is 61°F.^{[4] [5]} The average snowfall is only 0.32inches in the latter half of the month.^{[6] [7]} On St. Patrick's Day, the average temperature in Nashville is 61.3°F with negligible average snowfall.^[8]

Winter of 1891–92

The winter of 1891–92 featured very little snowfall in Tennessee, only 0.3inches recorded in Nashville through March 14.^[9] The temperature reached into the 60s during several days that March, and even into the 70s on March 4.^[10] But a powerful cold front swept into Middle Tennessee in mid-March, dropping the temperature from 65°F on March 13 to only 40°F on March 14.^[11]

Much of the Southeastern United States plummeted into the teens from Arkansas to Alabama.^[12] On March 15, 1892, Nashville received 4.2inches of snow, most of which melted by the following day.^[13]

Storm details

On March 16 around 6:00 pm, snow began falling in Nashville with little accumulating by midnight.^{[14] [15]} By the afternoon of March 17, St. Patrick's Day, the city had been inundated with 17inches of snow.^{[16] [17] [18]} Northeast of Nashville, Riddleton, Tennessee, was besieged by 26inches over the two-day period.^[19]

In Nashville, morning trains were delayed while streetcars were unable to function.^[20] A freight train traveling from Chattanooga to Nashville partially derailed when it collided with a train engine near Murfreesboro.^[21] Temperatures hovered between 28°F and 30°F that day.^[22]

Outside of Middle Tennessee

Memphis received 18inches of snow while Mount Carmel, Illinois, received 12inches.^{[23] [24]} Even Atlanta, Georgia, received 0.3inches of snow with accumulation measured as far south as Mobile, Alabama, and as far west as San Antonio, Texas.^[25] The surface storm moved along the Gulf Coast before dying out, only to regain power as it traveled up the Eastern Seaboard, dropping 33inches of snow over the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States.^[26]

Records established

• Highest snowfall total in Nashville for a single day at 17inches^{[27] [28] [29] [30]}
• Highest snowfall total in Nashville for a 24-hour period at 17inches^{[31] [32] [33] [34] [35]}
• Highest snowfall total in Memphis for a single day at 18inches^[36]
• Highest snowfall total in Memphis for a 24-hour period at 18inches^[37]
• Highest snowfall total in Middle Tennessee in one day at 18.7inches^[38]
• Highest snowfall total in Nashville for a single month at 21.5inches^{[39] [40] [41] [42] [43]}

The St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm also ranks as the second-deepest snow in Nashville history, only topped by the 22.8-inch (57.9-cm) snow that fell over a 48-hour period in February 1886.^[44] Only two other snowfalls in Nashville have ever exceeded 10inches; a 15-inch (38.1-cm) snow in February 1929 and a 10.2-inch (25.9-cm) snow that concluded on New Year's Day of 1964.^{[45] [46]}

External links

• Maps of the snowfall

Notes and References

1. Web site: St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm of 1892 . Weather.gov . Mark A.. Rose. September 24, 2017.
2. Web site: Climate of Nashville, Tennessee . USAToday.com . Amy. Harris. September 24, 2017.
3. Web site: St. Patrick's Day: Wild Weather Ride . WeatherBug.com . September 24, 2017.
4. Web site: U.S. climate data . USClimateData.com . September 24, 2017.
5. Web site: Nashville Weather – Average Nashville Weather Temperatures . TripSavvy.com . Jan. Duke. December 10, 2016. September 24, 2017.
6. Web site: U.S. climate data . USClimateData.com . September 24, 2017.
7. Web site: Nashville Weather – Average Nashville Weather Temperatures . TripSavvy.com . Jan. Duke. December 10, 2016. September 24, 2017.
8. Web site: U.S. climate data . USClimateData.com . September 24, 2017.
9. Web site: St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm of 1892 . Weather.gov . Mark A.. Rose. September 24, 2017.
10. Web site: St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm of 1892 . Weather.gov . Mark A.. Rose. September 24, 2017.
11. Web site: St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm of 1892 . Weather.gov . Mark A.. Rose. September 24, 2017.
12. Web site: A Look Back at Two Unusual, Historic Snowstorms in Mid-March . WEVV.com . Chad. Evans. March 18, 2016. September 24, 2017.
13. Web site: St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm of 1892 . Weather.gov . Mark A.. Rose. September 24, 2017.
14. Web site: A Look Back at Two Unusual, Historic Snowstorms in Mid-March . WEVV.com . Chad. Evans. March 18, 2016. September 24, 2017.
15. Web site: St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm of 1892 . Weather.gov . Mark A.. Rose. September 24, 2017.
16. Web site: A Look Back at Two Unusual, Historic Snowstorms in Mid-March . WEVV.com . Chad. Evans. March 18, 2016. September 24, 2017.
17. Web site: Accumulation won't break March snow record . Tennessean.com . Holly. Meyer. March 4, 2015. September 24, 2017.
18. Web site: St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm of 1892 . Weather.gov . Mark A.. Rose. September 24, 2017.
19. Web site: St. Patrick's Day: Wild Weather Ride . WeatherBug.com . September 24, 2017.
20. Web site: St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm of 1892 . Weather.gov . Mark A.. Rose. September 24, 2017.
21. Web site: St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm of 1892 . Weather.gov . Mark A.. Rose. September 24, 2017.
22. Web site: 7 Cities with Unlucky St. Patrick's Day Weather . Weather.com . Linda. Lam. March 17, 2017. September 24, 2017.
23. Web site: St. Patrick's Day: Wild Weather Ride . WeatherBug.com . September 24, 2017.
24. Web site: A Look Back at Two Unusual, Historic Snowstorms in Mid-March . WEVV.com . Chad. Evans. March 18, 2016. September 24, 2017.
25. Web site: A Look Back at Two Unusual, Historic Snowstorms in Mid-March . WEVV.com . Chad. Evans. March 18, 2016. September 24, 2017.
26. Web site: A Look Back at Two Unusual, Historic Snowstorms in Mid-March . WEVV.com . Chad. Evans. March 18, 2016. September 24, 2017.
27. Web site: A look at Nashville's biggest snowstorms . Tennessean.com . Lance. Williams. February 15, 2015. September 24, 2017.
28. Web site: St. Patrick's Day: Wild Weather Ride . WeatherBug.com . September 24, 2017.
29. Web site: Accumulation won't break March snow record . Tennessean.com . Holly. Meyer. March 4, 2015. September 24, 2017.
30. Web site: St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm of 1892 . Weather.gov . Mark A.. Rose. September 24, 2017.
31. Web site: A look at Nashville's biggest snowstorms . Tennessean.com . Lance. Williams. February 15, 2015. September 24, 2017.
32. Web site: St. Patrick's Day: Wild Weather Ride . WeatherBug.com . September 24, 2017.
33. Web site: Accumulation won't break March snow record . Tennessean.com . Holly. Meyer. March 4, 2015. September 24, 2017.
34. Web site: St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm of 1892 . Weather.gov . Mark A.. Rose. September 24, 2017.
35. Web site: Nashville Weather Records (1871–present) . Weather.gov . September 24, 2017.
36. Web site: 7 Cities with Unlucky St. Patrick's Day Weather . Weather.com . Linda. Lam. March 17, 2017. September 24, 2017.
37. Web site: 7 Cities with Unlucky St. Patrick's Day Weather . Weather.com . Linda. Lam. March 17, 2017. September 24, 2017.
38. Web site: Nashville Weather Records (1871–present) . Weather.gov . September 24, 2017.
39. Web site: A look at Nashville's biggest snowstorms . Tennessean.com . Lance. Williams. February 15, 2015. September 24, 2017.
40. Web site: St. Patrick's Day: Wild Weather Ride . WeatherBug.com . September 24, 2017.
41. Web site: Accumulation won't break March snow record . Tennessean.com . Holly. Meyer. March 4, 2015. September 24, 2017.
42. Web site: St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm of 1892 . Weather.gov . Mark A.. Rose. September 24, 2017.
43. Web site: Nashville Weather Records (1871–present) . Weather.gov . September 24, 2017.
44. Web site: A look at Nashville's biggest snowstorms . Tennessean.com . Lance. Williams. February 15, 2015. September 24, 2017.
45. Web site: A look at Nashville's biggest snowstorms . Tennessean.com . Lance. Williams. February 15, 2015. September 24, 2017.
46. Web site: St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm of 1892 . Weather.gov . Mark A.. Rose. September 24, 2017.