The St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm was a powerful

winter storm A winter storm is an event in which wind coincides with varieties of precipitation that only occur at freezing temperatures, such as snow, mixed snow and rain, or freezing rain. In temperate continental climates, these storms are not necessa ...

that hit the

Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also referred to as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical region of the United States. It is located broadly on the eastern portion of the southern United States and the southern por ...

in mid-March 1892, with the heaviest

snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...

falls occurring in Nashville, Tennessee, and the Mid-State region. The event was atypical for this humid subtropical climate. Some portions of Middle Tennessee received record accumulation of up to of snow.

Average climate

The average high temperature in Nashville during the month of March is . The average snowfall is only in the latter half of the month. On St. Patrick's Day, the average temperature in Nashville is with negligible average snowfall.

Winter of 1891–92

The winter of 1891–92 featured very little snowfall in Tennessee, only recorded in Nashville through March 14. The temperature reached into the 60s during several days that March, and even into the 70s on March 4. But a powerful

cold front A cold front is the leading edge of a cooler mass of air at ground level that replaces a warmer mass of air and lies within a pronounced surface trough of low pressure. It often forms behind an extratropical cyclone (to the west in the Northern ...

swept into Middle Tennessee in mid-March, dropping the temperature from on March 13 to only on March 14. Much of the Southeastern United States plummeted into the teens from

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

. On March 15, 1892, Nashville received of snow, most of which melted by the following day.

Storm details

On March 16 around 6:00 pm, snow began falling in Nashville with little accumulating by midnight. By the afternoon of March 17, St. Patrick's Day, the city had been inundated with of snow. Northeast of Nashville,

Riddleton, Tennessee Riddleton is an unincorporated community in Smith County, Tennessee, United States. It is located along Tennessee State Route 25 (Dixon Springs Highway) between Dixon Springs and Carthage Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on ...

, was besieged by over the two-day period. In Nashville, morning trains were delayed while streetcars were unable to function. A

freight train Rail freight transport is the use of railroads and trains to transport cargo as opposed to human passengers. A freight train, cargo train, or goods train is a group of freight cars (US) or goods wagons (International Union of Railways) haul ...

traveling from Chattanooga to Nashville partially derailed when it collided with a train engine near

Murfreesboro Murfreesboro is a city in and county seat of Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 152,769 according to the 2020 census, up from 108,755 residents certified in 2010. Murfreesboro is located in the Nashville metropol ...

. Temperatures hovered between and that day.

Outside of Middle Tennessee

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

received of snow while Mount Carmel, Illinois, received . Even

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, Georgia, received of snow with accumulation measured as far south as

Mobile Mobile may refer to: Places * Mobile, Alabama, a U.S. port city * Mobile County, Alabama * Mobile, Arizona, a small town near Phoenix, U.S. * Mobile, Newfoundland and Labrador Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Mobile ( ...

, Alabama, and as far west as

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

, Texas. The surface storm moved along the

Gulf Coast The Gulf Coast of the United States, also known as the Gulf South, is the coast, coastline along the Southern United States where they meet the Gulf of Mexico. The list of U.S. states and territories by coastline, coastal states that have a shor ...

before dying out, only to regain power as it traveled up the Eastern Seaboard, dropping of snow over the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States.

Records established

*Highest snowfall total in Nashville for a single day at *Highest snowfall total in Nashville for a 24-hour period at *Highest snowfall total in Memphis for a single day at *Highest snowfall total in Memphis for a 24-hour period at *Highest snowfall total in Middle Tennessee in one day at *Highest snowfall total in Nashville for a single month at 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. Only two other snowfalls in Nashville have ever exceeded ; 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.

References

External links

Maps
of the snowfall {{United States winter storms Blizzards in the United States 1892 meteorology 1892 natural disasters 1892 in the United States Natural disasters in Tennessee 1892 natural disasters in the United States March 1892 events Saint Patrick's Day