Snowstorms From Back in "The Good Old Days" (1900 - 1949)

 

 

By far the most popular posts on this site are about snowstorms.  And after reading a recent photo essay in the New York Times about snowstorms of the distant past I was inspired to write another - this one about those that crippled New York in the first half of the 20th century.  It's worth noting that back then snow removal was on the primitive side, largely dependent upon on manual labor, so relatively modest accumulations created problems that might happen nowadays with significantly greater accumulations (i.e., six inches in 1910 might be comparable in inconvenience to what a foot or more of snow creates today).  Furthermore, since the work ethos of that era was different than what it is today, employers weren't as forgiving when treacherous weather conditions made it difficult for workers to get to their jobs.

 

WINTER OF 1901-02

Feb. 17, 1902 - This storm dropped 10".  (Similar to a few other winter storms in the first decade of the century, I was unable to find details about when the snow fell, what the hourly amounts were or what the wind speed and direction were for each hour of the day.)

 

WINTER OF 1902-03

Dec. 25, 1902- This was the second significant snowfall in the past two weeks.  After 6.4" fell on Dec. 12-14 (most of it falling on the 13th), 6.5" fell today. 

Feb. 15-17, 1903 - This was a snow and sleet storm, which began mid-day on the 15th, continued through much of the 16th, and ended mid-day on the 17th.  In total 9.8" accumulated (accounting for all of February's snow).  During the first two days temperatures ranged between 28° and 30° then fell into the teens around daybreak on the 17th.

 

WINTER OF 1903-04

Jan. 2-3, 1904 - All but a half-inch of the storm's eight inches fell today during the afternoon and evening.  Temperatures fell slowly thru the day, dropping from 26° to 13°. 

 

WINTER OF 1904-05

Dec. 17-18, 1904 - Bringing to mind December 1902, two significant snowfalls fell in the course of a week as seven inches fell on Dec. 12-13 and a half foot fell today.  Snowfall from both was pretty evenly split between the two days of each snowfall. 

Jan. 3-4, 1905 - Seven inches of snow fell between mid-afternoon on 1/3 and mid-morning the following day.  After passage of a cold front mid-morning on the 3rd (with winds shifting from the northeast to the northwest) temperatures fell from the low-40s to mid-20s, when snow began falling, and were in the mid-teens when the snow came to an end.  The snow was blown around by winds gusting between 25-30 mph. 

Jan. 24-25, 1905 - Snow began falling after 9PM and continued for 24 hours, accumulating 11".  It was a fluffy snow with just 0.54" of water content.  During the course of the storm the temperature dropped from mid-20s to low teens.  Snow fell heaviest between 8AM and noon on the 25th when an Arctic front moved through.  Besides the cold and snow, the afternoon also featured gusty winds (25-30 mph).

 

 

WINTER OF 1905-06

Feb. 8-9, 1906 - Six inches of snow fell, much of it during the morning of the 9th.  Temperatures were mostly in the 31° to 33° range.  Snow changed to sleet and freezing rain shortly after daybreak on the 9th and continued through mid-day. 

March 15, 1906 - This cold, late winter storm had temperatures that were only in the mid-20s (typical high for mid-March is mid-40s) as a half-foot of snow piled up.  Snow began falling shortly before daybreak and continued until 10PM.  Despite the cold temperatures it was a wet snow, with 1.09" of liquid measured.

 

WINTER OF 1906-07

Jan. 17, 1907 - It was very cold during this quick-moving six-inch snowfall, with temperatures in the mid-teens when the snow began, rising into the low 20s during the afternoon.  The snow fell during the daylight hours, coming down heaviest in the early afternoon.

Feb. 4-5, 1907 - Snow began around noon and continued for nearly 24 hours, accumulating 11".  It fell heaviest between 8PM and 4AM.  Temperatures stayed in a narrow range of 19° to 22°.  This storm followed a snowfall of four inches on the first two days of the month.

 

 

Feb. 24, 1907 - Six inches of snow piled up between 1PM and 10PM.  Temperatures rose steadily, from low 20s when the snow started, to the mid-30s when it changed to rain and sleet in the final few hours.

March 10, 1907 - Much of today's six-inch accumulation fell between 1:00 and 5PM.  Temperatures ranged between 27° and 30°.  This was the winter's fourth snowfall of six inches or more since mid-January.

 

WINTER OF 1907-08

Jan. 23-24, 1908 - A 10-inch snowstorm began after dark on the 23rd, with three inches measured thru midnight, and an additional seven inches during the morning of the 24th.

 

 

Feb. 5-6, 1908 - The day began bitterly cold with a low of 1° above zero (the coldest reading of the winter).  Then the temperature rose all day and was 32° by midnight.  Snow began falling in the afternoon and continued into the next day with four inches falling on each day.  After 8" had fallen the snow changed to rain as the temperature rose to 40° (it tumbled back to 29° by midnight).  This snowstorm came almost one year to the day of an 11-inch snowstorm.

 

WINTER OF 1909-10

Dec. 25-26, 1909 - Snow began mid-afternoon on Christmas Day and fell for nearly 24 hours, accumulating eight inches.  Much of the snow fell on the 25th, and in above-freezing temperatures.

Jan. 14, 1910 - The biggest snowfall of the winter blanketed the City with 10" (0.5" of it fell on 1/15).  This came three weeks after a snowfall of eight inches.  Snow began falling shortly after midnight and fell steadily through late afternoon.  After the temperature rose to 33° late in the morning it fell steadily until 9PM when it was 20°.

 

WINTER OF 1911-12  

Dec. 4, 1911 - A morning snowfall of seven inches ended up being the biggest snowfall of the winter.  Precipitation began yesterday evening as rain but changed to snow overnight. The day's high/low of 33/19 made this the coldest day of the month.

 

WINTER OF 1912-13

Dec. 24, 1912 - A morning snowstorm dumped 11.4", making this Christmas Eve's biggest snowfall on record.  Snow fell heaviest between 4-9AM, when it fell at a rate of 1.5" per hour.

 

 

WINTER OF 1913-14

Feb. 13-14, 1914 - On the 13th the temperature rose from -1° to the mid-20s by midnight.  Snow began falling after 7PM, fell heavily through the overnight hours and then changed to sleet around daybreak as the temperature rose into the low 30s.  9.7" accumulated.  Then on 2/16 there was a five-inch snowfall during the morning in temperatures that were in the teens.

March 1, 1914 - Rain in the morning changed to snow around lunchtime and by midnight 13.5" had accumulated (an additional inch fell after midnight on 3/2).  It was a very heavy, wet snow with a high water content (2.65") until around 9PM when Arctic air moved in.  This was the century's first snowstorm of a foot or more, and the first since February 1899, when 16 inches piled up.  This remains the longest period between snowstorms of 12 inches or more.

 

 

WINTER OF 1914-15

April 3, 1915 - The biggest snowfall of the "winter" blanketed the City on what was Easter Saturday as ten inches of heavy snow fell between 9AM and 11PM (eight inches fell between 11AM and 6PM).  During the storm winds from out of the north gusted to 25 mph and temperatures hovered around 30°, producing wind chills in the teens.

 

 

WINTER OF 1916-17

Dec. 15, 1916 - A snowstorm dumped 12.7" of snow between 7AM-9PM, with nearly ten inches on the ground by mid-afternoon.  The snow was very powdery, produced from just 0.59" of water (and by daybreak on 12/16 it had packed down to nine inches on the ground).  The day's high was 28°, the first of five days in a row with highs in the 20s.

April 9, 1917 - One of April's biggest snowstorms dumped 6.5" (0.1" of it fell late last night).  This brought the winter's total snowfall to 50.7" for the second year in a row.  The snow was over by 7AM and by noon the temperature was in the upper 30s, where it stayed for the remainder of the afternoon.  Combined with sunny skies, substantial melting took place and by nightfall there was less than two inches on the ground in Central Park.

 

WINTER OF 1917-18

Dec. 13, 1917 - The biggest snowfall of the winter began late in the afternoon and by the time the snow ended in the early hours of 12/14 9.5" had accumulated (eight inches fell today).  The temperature rose into the mid-30s as midnight approached, making it a very wet snow, with rain mixed in at times. 

 

 

WINTER OF 1919-20

Feb. 4-7, 1920 - One of New York's most extended onslaughts of winter weather of all time brought 72 hours of snow, sleet and freezing rain (beginning after 2AM on 2/4 and ending around dawn on 2/7).  During this punishing storm, 4.41" of liquid precipitation fell, 17.5" of it in the form of snow (five to six inches of snow fell on 2/4, 2/5 and 2/6); the rest was sleet and freezing rain.  For much of the storm temperatures were in the 20s, and winds gusted between 35 and 45 mph, with wind chills in the single digits.

 

 

WINTER OF 1920-21

Feb. 20, 1921 - The winter's biggest snowfall amounted to 12.5".  Beginning shortly after midnight as rain, it quickly changed over to snow after 1AM and continued until early evening; it was a very wet snow, with 2.68" of liquid precipitation measured.  The temperature fell slowly through the day, from 35° to 22° (on the way to 14° by daybreak on the 21st).  Winds gusted to 41 mph.

 

WINTER OF 1921-22

Jan. 28-29, 1922 - New York was on the northern fringe of a winter storm that became known as the "Knickerbocker Snowstorm", named after a movie theater in Washington, DC whose roof collapsed from the weight of snow the night of 1/28, killing 98 moviegoers.  And although NYC escaped the paralyzing amounts of snow that piled up in Virginia, DC, Maryland and southeastern PA (6.5" fell in Central Park, the biggest snowfall of the winter), gale force winds clocked at between 35 and 50 mph howled for nearly 24 hours, beginning mid-day on the 28th.  Temperatures throughout the storm were in the 29° to 31° range, with chills in the low teens.

 

WINTER OF 1922-23

Jan. 3-4, 1923 - The biggest snowfall of the winter began this afternoon and continued until daybreak on the 4th, accumulating nine inches.  The temperature fell slowly through the storm, dropping from 33° to 29°.

Jan. 14, 1923 - Snow began falling after 10AM and by 5PM 7.8" had accumulated; then it changed to light rain for the next three hours as the temperature rose into the mid-30s.

 

 

March 6-7, 1923 - Snow began falling around 10AM and continued light and steady for the next 24 hours, accumulating 7.3" (along with a mix with sleet and freezing rain after 4PM). This was the tenth snowfall of three inches or more this winter.  Besides the snow/ice, winds gusted to 30-35 mph, and temperatures were very cold on the 6th, with a high/low of only 25/19.

 

WINTER OF 1923-24

April 1, 1924 - It was no April Fool's joke as 8.5" of heavy, wet snow fell from mid-afternoon through 9PM.  Interestingly, snow fell mostly with temperatures two or three degrees above freezing.  Besides the snow, gale force winds gusted to 35 mph.

 

WINTER OF 1924-25

Jan. 2, 1925 - A blizzard dumped close to a foot of snow (11.5").  Snow began falling around daybreak and lasted until 11PM.  In addition to snow there were also periods of heavy sleet in the early afternoon.  Temperatures throughout the storm were in the mid-20s, but howling winds gusting between 35-40 mph produced wind chills in the single digits.

 

 

Jan. 20, 1925 - A fierce storm dumped seven inches of snow and ice, with much of the snow falling between 1:00 and 8AM before it changed to sleet, which was driven by winds that gusted close to 40 mph. The sleet came down heaviest during the mid-day hours as the temperature rose above freezing briefly before falling back into the 20s.  Snow returned in the storm's last few hours. 

 

WINTER OF 1925-26

Feb. 10, 1926 - Less than a week after a fierce blizzard brought 10.4" of snow and sleet (accompanied by wind gusts of 40-45 mph) another snowstorm dumped a foot on the City, much of it falling this morning between 3:00 and 9:00 (light snow began last night and accumulated 1.6").  Winds from this storm gusted between 30 and 35 mph.  Temperatures in the morning held steady in the low 20s and then fell slowly during the afternoon, reaching 11° by midnight.  (In a similar fashion, two snowstorms of 9.2" and 12.8" occurred just three days apart in early February during the winter of 1994.)

 

 

WINTER OF 1926-27

Dec. 5, 1926 - 7.9" of snow fell on a very cold day, which had a high/low of just 24/11.  Snow fell heaviest from 1PM until 7PM.  This was the biggest snowfall of the winter and was the snowiest 12/5 until 2003, when 8.0" fell.

 

WINTER OF 1928-29

Feb. 21, 1929 - More than half of the winter's 13.8" of snow fell today as eight inches accumulated between 5AM and 2PM.  Temperatures were in the low-to-mid-twenties during the storm.

 

WINTER OF 1932-33

Dec. 17, 1932 - Snow that began late in the morning continued through the early AM on 12/18 and amounted to 7.2".  It was also a very cold day, with a high/low of only 20/11.  (The snow was gone by Christmas Day, which had a high of 59°.)  The next measurable snowfall wouldn't be for another seven weeks (on 2/4).

Feb. 11, 1933 - In just eight hours (1-9:00 AM) ten inches of snow fell, the biggest snowstorm in seven years.  Sleet mixed in during the final few hours even though temperatures were in the low 20s.

 

 

WINTER OF 1933-34

Dec. 26, 1933 - A little more than 24 hours after temperatures were in the mid-50s, a snowstorm swept into the City shortly after daybreak and by early afternoon ten inches had fallen, and temperatures were in the mid-20s.  An additional inch of snow fell in the early evening, bringing the day's snowfall total to 11.2". (Much larger accumulations would later fall on this date in 1946 and 2010).

Feb. 25, 1934 - On a brutally cold day (high/low of 16/9) light snow began falling mid-afternoon and fell steadily thru the following afternoon, accumulating 9.3".  This was the third snowfall of 7.5" or more this month and brought February's total snowfall to 27.9" (the other major snowfalls were on 2/1 and 2/19-20).  At the time this was the second snowiest month on record (now ranked sixth) and the snowiest February (since topped by Feb. 2010 and 2014).

 

WINTER OF 1934-35

Jan. 22-23, 1935 - This was a two-stage storm.  On 1/22 precipitation began in the morning as rain which changed to snow around mid-day as the temperature fell from the low 40s into the upper 20s; five inches was measured.  Then after a 13-hour break, winds shifted from the northwest to northeast and heavy snow returned late on the morning of 1/23.  Between 1:00 and 7PM it fell at a rate of an inch or more per hour and accumulated nearly thirteen inches.  Flakes fell until the wee hours of the next day.  Temperatures fell slowly throughout the day, dropping from 26° to 18° (and they'd continue to fall slowly the following day).  This was the first snowstorm of a foot or more in nine years. 

 

 

 

WINTER OF 1935-36

Jan. 19, 1936 - A winter storm brought heavy snow, sleet and gusty winds.  After beginning as light rain late last night, nine inches of snow piled up in the morning (mostly between 3:00-9:00) and the afternoon saw an onslaught of sleet that was propelled by 25-35 mph winds, producing wind chills in the single digits (the air temperature was in the mid-20s).  The sleet accumulated 2.5".

 

 

WINTER OF 1937-38

April 6-9, 1938 - This was a sloppy four days of weather, with 6.4" of snow falling on April 6 and 7 (the biggest snowfall of the winter) and 0.95" of rain on April 8 and 9.  During these days temperatures were mostly in the 30s.  The low of 28° on 4/6 was the only April day in the 1930s with a low in the 20s.

 

WINTER OF 1938-39

Nov. 27, 1938 - Just six weeks after the latest 90-degree reading on record, back-to-back snowstorms dropped nearly 13 inches of snow in four days.  The first, on 11/24-25  measured 8.8" (3.9" on Thanksgiving Day, 4.9" the day after) while the snowfall that ended before dawn today (and began late last night) brought an additional four inches.  The high/low during these four days was 32/20, which was 18 degrees below average.  This was the snowiest month of the winter and the third snowiest November on record (after Nov. 1898 and 1882).

Jan. 13, 1939 - Beginning mid-afternoon, a snowfall of 8.8" (1.0" fell on 1/14) tied the Thanksgiving snowstorm of 11/24-25 as the biggest snowfall of the season.

 

WINTER OF 1939-40

Feb. 14, 1940 - It was a wintry day, as wind-blown sleet and snow fell throughout the day, accumulating 7.7" (an additional 1.3" fell overnight).  Late in the morning winds gusted to 50 mph.  Temperatures fell slowly, from the low-30s in the morning to low-20s by midnight.

 

WINTER OF 1940-41

March 8, 1941 - A fierce winter storm that began late last night brought heavy snow, sleet and high winds during the morning.  By 11AM 18.1" of snow had fallen (15.7" of it fell today); the precipitation then changed to light drizzle in the afternoon (the day's high was 33°).  At the time this tied with a snowstorm in January 1935 as New York's second biggest snowfall (it's now ranked tenth).

 

 

WINTER OF 1942-43

Jan. 28, 1943 - The winter's nastiest storm dropped 7.1" of snow and sleet, which was accompanied by northeasterly winds that gusted to 34 mph.  Precipitation began at daybreak and continued through early evening.

 

WINTER OF 1943-44

April 5, 1944 - Four days before Easter Sunday a late season snowstorm dumped 6.5".  Beginning as rain a little after midnight, it changed to snow around 2AM and mixed with sleet around lunchtime before ending in mid-afternoon.  The snow came down heaviest between 3-5AM when three inches accumulated.  The day's high/low was 34/29.

 

WINTER OF 1945-46

Dec. 19, 1945 - An afternoon/evening snowstorm dropped 8.3" (all but 0.3" fell today).  This would be the biggest snowfall of the winter (and since March 1941).  Besides the snow, temperatures were also quite cold, with a high/low of just 23/20 (fifteen degrees below average).

 

WINTER OF 1946-47

Feb. 21, 1947 - Snow that began yesterday evening (accumulating 4.2" by midnight) continued through this morning and piled up an additional 6.5".  This 10.7" snowfall was the biggest in six years.  Temperatures were very cold, with a high/low of 24/14, sixteen degrees below average.

 

 

 

WINTER OF 1947-48

Dec. 26, 1947 - Snow began falling around 3:30 AM on the 26th and fell steadily all day, at times at a rate of two inches per hour (the forecast at daybreak called for a five-inch accumulation).  Winds gusted as high as 36 mph during the evening and temperatures hovered around 29° for much of the storm.  By midnight 25.5" had piled up and an additional 0.9" fell after midnight, breaking the previous snowfall record of 21" set by the great blizzard of March 1888; it would remain the City's greatest snowfall of all time until 26.9" fell in February 2006 (it now ranks third).  This storm came three days after a snowfall of 2.5".

 

 

WINTER OF 1948-49

Dec. 19, 1948 - One year after the record-setting 26.4" snowstorm of Dec. 26 another formidable snowstorm crippled the City with 16.0".  At the time this was the shortest length of time between major snowstorms.  Since then there have been seven pairs of major snowstorms (of one foot or more) that have occurred with less than 12 months in between (the shortest time between being four weeks in January and February 1978.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Very Wet 2018 Ends With Wet December

 

 

2018 was New York's fourth wettest year on record (third if the disputed 1983 is excluded) and the final month of the year followed that theme.  December was the year's fifth month with six inches or more of precipitation (all of them occurring in the second half of the year).  The month ended with the wettest New Year's Eve since 1948, and for the first time since 1994 rain fell during the ball drop in Times Square (pictured).  Most of the month's 6.51" of rain (the ninth wettest December on record) fell after 12/13.  This followed a ten-day dry spell, which was the longest in more than a year.  Four days had an inch or more of rain, all in the second half of the month. 

 

December was 2.6 degrees milder than average.  The month started out colder than average, with Dec. 1-13 averaging three degrees below average, then a shift occurred and the rest of the month was nearly six degrees above average.  The final twelve days of the month all had above average temperatures (as did sixteen of the last eighteen).  The range in temperatures was rather narrow, from 24° to 61° (the coldest reading in December is typically in the upper teens while the mildest reading is in the low 60s).

 

November 2018 was snowier and had colder readings than December (two days had lows in the teens).  Typically December is ten degrees colder than November but this year it was only four degrees colder.  Just ten other Decembers have been closer to November's average temperature.

 

 

After 6.4" of snow fell in November (all on 11/15) there was just a trace of snow in December.  This was the twentieth December on record with a trace of snow or less (nine of them have been in the past 25 years).  And it joined a handful of Decembers with much less snow than November. 

 

 

Finally, December had the same average temperature as March (40.1°).  December is typically about five degrees colder.  However, while the overall temperature was the same as March's, December's average high was about a degree colder than March while its average low was about one degree milder.  And while both month's had above average precipitation, March was much snowier, with 11.6" measured.

 

Other December recaps:

2017

2016

2015

 

Longest Streaks of High Temperatures of 32 Degrees or Colder

 

 

Since the winter of 1940 there have been ten streaks of ten days or longer with high temperatures that were 32° or colder (streaks of this length occur, on average, once every eight years).  The most recent, a streak of fourteen days, occurred in the winter of 2017-18 (Dec. 26 thru Jan. 8).  It was the third longest on record, behind a sixteen-day streak in the winter of 1961, and a fifteen-day streak in the winter of 1881.  This winter's streak closely mirrored one during the winter of 2001 that also started in December and ended in January.  (However, it's temperatures weren't as cold and was one day shorter.)  What follows are some other interesting observations about New York's longest cold streaks (nine days or longer):

 

• As mentioned above, the longest streak came in the winter of 1961 when the City shivered through sixteen days in a row of sub-freezing highs from Jan. 19 thru Feb. 3.  The "warmest" temperature during this time frame was 29°.  It would be seventeen years before another streak of ten days or longer occurred.

• No winter has had two of these lengthy streaks, but 1958 had one in February of twelve days and a ten-day streak in December.  Additionally, there have been numerous winters with two or more smaller streaks of four, five or six days.

• The earliest of the streaks occurred at the beginning of the winter of 1957-58 when there was a ten-day streak from Dec. 7 to 16.  The latest streaks were in February 1958 (Feb. 8-19) and February 1979 (Feb. 9-19).  What was remarkable about the 1979 streak was the fact that, not only was it late in the winter, but it had the most days with lows in the single digits - eight.  It followed closely behind a nine-day streak in January 1968 as the coldest of the cold waves; Feb. 1979, however, had the coldest average high (20.5) while Jan. 1968 had the coldest average low (6.4).

• There were extended streaks in the consecutive winters of 1977, 1978 and 1979 (and there was one in 1981).  1977's streak was book-ended by smaller streaks of five days before (broken up a day with a high of 41°) and four days after (broken up by a day with a high of 36°).  In total, 18 of the 20 days between Jan. 5-24 saw highs at freezing or below.  There was also another cluster of winters with lengthy cold waves, during the winters of 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2005.

• Thirteen of the seventeen streaks of nine days or longer saw some mornings with lows in the single digits or colder (three had sub-zero readings).

• Three of the streaks of nine days or longer had snowstorms of 12 inches or more. 1961's cold wave nearly had two snowstorms but two-thirds of the 17.4" accumulation from the snowstorm on Feb. 3-4 fell on the day when the 16-day streak ended as the high reached 34°.  

 

 

• The 13-day steak during the winter of 2000-01 had the highest mean temperature. 

 

 

 

December Weather Recap - 2017 Ends With Harsh Cold Wave

 

 

Although 2017 featured two months, February and October, that were the warmest on record, the year may be best remembered for December's Arctic outbreak that moved in on Christmas Day, and stayed locked in place through the first week of 2018.  On Dec. 28 the high/low of 18°/11° made it the coldest day of the year (based on mean temperature), followed on Dec. 31 by the coldest temperature of the year, when the mercury fell to 9° shortly before the ball-drop in Times Square.  The last five days of the month had highs of 25° or colder, the first streak of this length since January 2004.  Here are some other observations:

 

• The first six days of December were six degrees above average, while the final six days were 15 degrees below average.  Overall, the month was 2.5 degrees colder than average and was the coldest December in seven years (and the third coldest in 20 years).  Until the Arctic front moved through on Christmas Day the month had close to average temperatures.
  

• For the first time since 2002 December was the coldest month of the year, just the 15th time since 1900 that this has happened.  
  

• The month had 2.21" of precipitation, joining three other months in 2017 with less than 2.50" of precipitation.  This was the driest December since 2006 (when 2.15" was measured).  The biggest rainfall, 0.75", was on Dec. 5, pouring down that night.  This was also the mildest day of the month, with a high/low of 61°/50°.

• Measurable snow fell on four days, totaling 7.7".  The first snowfall, on 12/9, was the biggest, with 4.6" measured.

• In addition to the Arctic outbreak at the end of the month, there was a cold snap mid-month that had three days in a row with highs of 32° or colder (Dec. 13-15).  During this outbreak there were two 1.2" snowfalls on consecutive days (Dec. 14 and 15).

• The month's nine days with highs of 32° or colder was the most in December since 2000 (which, like this December, ended with an extended Arctic outbreak, the second longest on record, that lasted 13 days, from Dec. 22 to Jan. 3).

• The six-day streak with highs of 32° or colder is behind eight streaks in December of seven days or longer.

 

• Finally, the high of 18° on Dec. 28 was just the fifth time since 1960 that there was a high in the teens in December.

 

Here are other December recaps:

December 2016

December 2015 

 

 

The Magic & Beauty of the Season's First Snowfall

 

 

 

Oftentimes the first snowfall of the winter is inconsequential, e.g., since 1970 half of first snowfalls have been less than an inch.  Occasionally, however, the first snowfall produces a significant accumulation and transforms the City into a breathtaking winter wonderland.  Such was the case with the first snowfall of the winter of 2017-18 when 4.6" fell on Dec. 9.  What made it extra special was the fact that it fell over the weekend and during the run-up to Christmas.  Every year I think I won't traipse around in the snow taking countless photos, because how different can they be from previous snowfalls of previous winters?  Yet I can't resist the ineffable drawing power of snow, as shown in the photo gallery below.

  

 

Washington Square Park

 

A curtain of white, looking south on Sixth Ave. in Greenwich Village

 

Traffic lights, with their green & red lights, serve as giant ornaments at Christmastime, even more so during a snowfall

 

Washington Square Park

 

A view of the Washington Square Christmas tree seen through Ai Weiwei's art installation (thru Feb. 2018), titled "Good Fences Make Good Neighbors"

 

Snow has a softening effect on wrought iron fences

 

Because Washington Square Park is just two blocks from my apartment  it's often where I start my picture taking

 

Giant illuminated snowflakes on Varick Street looked a little less out of place

 

Brings to mind an illustration by Currier & Ives

  

White lights form a tree over the fountain in Father Demo Square (corner of Bleecker St. and Sixth Ave.)

 

The snow-laden Christmas tree in Washington Square Park

 

North Square Restaurant sits on the northwest corner of Washington Square Park

 

A streetlight illuminates tree branches laden with snow and leaves (Barrow St.)

 

Photo Gallery from Winter 2017

Photo Gallery: Snowfalls of Winter 2017

Taking a break from weather statistics and analyses, here's a gallery of this winter's snowfalls in New York as captured through the lens of my smartphone. (There have been eight snowfalls thru mid-March - oops, I slipped a statistic in there!) 

 

0.4" of snow fell the evening of Dec. 11

 

Snow in lamp light on Barrow St. (Dec. 4)

 

Nearly 3" of snow fell the morning of Dec. 17.  This photo shows the slush that resulted when the temperature rose into the upper 30s during the afternoon.

 

Dec. 17, Hudson St. (Greenwich Village)

 

5.1" of snow fell on Saturday, Jan. 7. These apartment buildings are on West 10th St., off of Seventh Ave. South.

 

Of all the photos chosen for this post, this one of famed Village Cigar may be my favorite

 

Looking north on 7th Ave. South from the  second floor of my gym (Jan. 7)

 

I found the white & gray of the snow & steel on this parked on Washington Place aesthetically pleasing (Jan. 7)

 

West 23rd St. (evening of Jan. 7)

 

The park on the corner of 7th Ave. and Greenwich Ave. (Jan. 7)

 

This is the front door of my apartment building (Jan. 7)

 

Two days after a record high of 66 degrees, afternoon temperatures on Jan. 14 were below freezing and about an inch of snow fell.  This photo was taken at Sheridan Square Park.

 

Snow-covered balloons outside of my gym (Jan. 14)

 

Geese foraging in Hudson River Park (Jan. 15)

 

Wintry sunset at Bloomfield Place in lower Manhattan (Jan. 15)

 

An inch of snow fell late in the morning of Jan 31. This photo (looking at the Grand Hyatt) was taken near the corner of Lexington Ave. and 42nd St.

 

9.4" of snow fell the morning of Feb. 9, the day after a high of 62 degrees. I took this photo as I was walking to the subway.

 

This was the sight that greeted me when I stepped out of my apartment building on Washington Place

 

The clock tower of Jefferson Market Library on Sixth Ave. in Greenwich Village.  Visibility for much of the morning was less than 1/4 mile (Feb. 9).

 

In front of the NY Public Library on Fifth Ave. (10AM on Feb. 9)

 

Profiles of famed lions, Patience and Fortitude, who guard the NY Public Library (Feb. 9)

 

The obscured Chrysler Building, looking east on 42nd St./Fifth Ave. (Feb. 9)

 

On a snowy day like this it's more appropriate to call this a "Trudge" sign (Feb. 9)

 

Corner of Madison & 42nd St. (Feb. 9)

 

At the height of the snowstorm's fury (Feb. 9)

 

Steakhouse across the street from my office building (150 E. 42nd St.)

 

Lunchtime, Lexington Ave. near the corner of 42nd St. (Feb. 9)

 

Slush & snowmelt at sidewalk's edge on Lexington Ave. brings to mind modern art (Feb. 9).

 

Snowdrifts in Greenwich Village, night of Feb. 9 (Sheridan Square Park, along Christopher St.)

 

Tribeca patios prepared for evening cocktails (March 14)

 

Snow-covered statue of Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia on LaGuardia Place in Greenwich Village (March 14)

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December 2016 Weather Recap - The Streak Continues ...

 

 

After last year's extraordinarily mild December, the warmest on record by a wide margin (13.3 degrees above average), December 2016 fell back to earth, 0.8 degrees above average.  Through 12/21 the month was two degrees colder than average, but then the jet stream reversed itself and temperatures were seven degrees above average during the last ten days of the month, pushing the month into the above-average column - the eighteenth month in a row with above average temperatures.  With every month of 2016 experiencing above average temperatures, it was no surprise that the year was one of the mildest on record, ranking fourth (joining 2015, 2012 and 2010 in the top 10).  Here are a few other observations:

 

• Wintry conditions took hold from 12/9-12/20, with temperatures five degrees below average.  This included the winter's first measurable snowfall (0.4" during the evening of 12/11) and first snowfall of one-inch or more (2.8" during the evening of 12/17).  Two days had highs below freezing (and four other days had highs between 33° and 35°).  And the low of 17° on 12/16 was the coldest reading in December in seven years.  That day's high/low of 27/17 made it one of the five coldest days of the entire year.  And while last December was the first to have no reading of 32° or colder, this December had 11 such days (which is fairly typical).

 

 

• Heading into the last week of the month it looked like this might be the first December since 2005 to have no temperatures in the 60s, but then the high reached 60° on 12/27.

• After having the wettest November in ten years (5.41"), December reversed course and was the driest in ten years (2.89").  Despite this below average amount measurable precipitation fell on twelve days.  For the second year in a row the year's total precipitation was well below average (42.17" vs. the average of 49.94"; 2015 had 1.20" less precipitation than this year).  The last time there were comparable back-to-back dry years was in 1985 and 1986.

 

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December 2015 Weather Recap - El Niño on Steroids

 

 

To sum up December 2015's weather in one word - "WOW"!

 

As you may recall, November 2015 was New York's mildest on record, edging out November 2001 by 0.1 degree.  In December, 2015 once again beat out 2001 as mildest ever, but this time it was by a wide margin - 6.7 degrees.  Never before has a warmest/coldest month been that far ahead of the second ranked month.  (The previous greatest margin between the top two was 2.8 degrees, February 1934 vs. 1899.) 

 

December 2015 was consistently mild throughout the month and was 13.3 degrees above average - the most above average of any month on record.  In fact, it wasn't much cooler than the record-mild November and was 3.1 degrees milder than a typical November.  Every day of the month had an above average mean daily temperature - the only month in which this has ever occurred.  The chilliest day was 12/19, when the mean temperature was two degrees above average (high/low of 40°/35°). 

 

 

No day in December had a temperature of 32° or colder - a first for December (the coldest reading was 34°).  Previously, the mildest daily minimum temperature in December was 28°.  18 days had mean temperatures that were 10+ degrees above average; 13 were 15+ degrees above average, and seven were 20+ degrees above average.  There was one streak of nine days with mean temperatures 10+ degrees above average - only a ten-day streak in December 1998 was longer. 

 

11 days had highs of 60° or warmer, another December record.  The high of 72° on 12/24 was the tenth time NYC had a high in the 70s in December.  And the low that day was the mildest ever reported in December, 63° (13 degrees above that day's previous record).  Christmas Eve's mean temperature was 33 degrees above average - the most above average day on record.  All told, the month saw four new record highs (and one tied a record) and five record-high minimums (and two ties).  

 

 

December was the third month in 2015 that was warmest ever.  Additionally, May and August were second and third warmest, respectively.  These warm months almost completely overshadowed February, which was the second coldest since 1900.  (Remember the frozen fountain in Bryant Park, or the ice-clogged Hudson River at month's end?)

 

 

 

 

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When March is Colder Than December

 

 

Typically, the month of December is four degrees colder than March, but since 1900 March has been colder once every five years (in the years 1869-1899 it was once every three years).  The last time it happened (through 2021) was in 2014 and 2015.  In 2014 March, the coldest, in in 30 years was three degrees colder than December, while 2015 had the most extreme difference as March was 12.7 degrees colder than December as Dec. 2015 was the mildest on record.  Here are some other tidbits ...

 

• Of the 34 years in which March has been colder than December, both months had below average temperatures in five of them.  The last time this happened was in 1916.  And in 1982 and 2006, despite March being colder than December, both months were milder than average.

• The most consecutive years in which December was colder than March is fourteen, from 1942 thru 1955.  The most years in a row in which March was colder than December is three - 1887 thru 1889.   
  

• In 1870 and 2018 March and December had the same average temperatures.

• Interestingly, one of the coldest Marches on record, in 1960, wasn't colder than that year's December, which was also much below average.

 

LAST 10 YEARS WHEN MARCH
WAS COLDER THAN DECEMBER
	Mean Temp		Difference
	March	Dec.	March v Dec.
Average*	42.4	38.2	+4.2
2015	38.1	50.8	-12.7
2014	37.7	40.5	-2.8
2011	42.3	43.3	-1.0
2006	43.1	43.6	-0.5
2001	39.6	44.1	-4.5
1996	38.9	41.3	-2.4
1994	40.7	42.2	-1.5
1984	36.7	43.8	-7.1
1982	42.0	42.8	-0.8
1971	40.1	40.8	-0.7
*1980-2019
GREATEST TEMP DIFFERENCE
(MARCH vs. DECEMBER)
	Mean Temp		Difference
	March	Dec.	March v Dec.
2015	38.1	50.8	-12.7
1984	36.7	43.8	-7.1
1891	35.8	42.3	-6.5
1923	36.8	42.0	-5.2
1885	30.6	35.7	-5.1
1911	34.7	39.4	-4.7
1888	30.0	34.7	-4.7
2001	39.6	44.1	-4.5

Winter Festival: A Celebration of Snow As Portrayed by Covers of The New Yorker

 

 

Before it turns to slush, newly-fallen snow in New York brings a blanket of serenity even to the great metropolis.  And wintertime covers of The New Yorker perfectly capture the ineffable beauty of the season.  Here are a few dozen of my favorites (captions are mine) ...

 

Snowstorm Meets Roaring Twenties (Jan. 29, 1927)

 

Snow Beautiful (Jan. 16, 1932)

 

Wintry Tableau (Feb. 27, 1937)

 

Little Siberia (Feb. 2, 1946)

 

The Excitement Builds (Jan. 21, 1950)

 

Eager Anticipation (Jan. 20, 1951)

 

Sisyphus In Winter (Jan. 7, 1956)

 

Hibernation, Manhattan Style (Jan. 21, 1956)

 

Manhattan on Ice (March 2, 1957)

 

Polar Express (Jan. 11, 1958)

 

 

Flight Delay (Jan 8, 1966)

 

Old Man Winter's Calling Card (Jan. 7, 1967)

 

Veil of White (March 2, 1968)

 

Mantle of White (Jan. 4, 1969)

 

A Cold Winter's Night That Was So Deep (Jan. 22, 1979)

 

In Winter's Grip (Jan. 7 1974)

 

Cozy Inside (Jan. 12, 1976)

 

Travel Advisory (Feb. 7, 1977)

 

Snow Day (Jan. 29, 1979)

 

Serenity (Jan. 26, 1981)

 

Rush in Slush (Dec. 13, 1982)

 

Neither Sleet nor Snow ... (Feb. 16, 1987)

 

Winter Gridlock (Jan. 28, 1991)

 

Cold Comfort (March 6, 1995)

 

Fashion Statement (March 1, 2010)

 

Cold Reality (Dec. 20, 2010)

 

50 Shades of Gray (Jan. 23, 2012)

 

Double Duty (March 10, 2014)

 

 

 

 

I've written a similar post about my favorite summertime covers.  Large reproductions of these covers, as well as every New Yorker cover (nearly 5,000), are available for purchase on Conde Nast's website.  (And small versions are sold by street vendors throughout midtown Manhattan.)

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