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The Hurricane of '38 | Article

The Path of the Hurricane of '38

Before the system of naming hurricanes was initiated during the early 1950s, tropical storms and hurricanes were often named with reference to the year of their occurrence and the area they devastated.

The Hurricane of '38 | Timeline

U.S. Storm Disasters

The Great Colonial Hurricane in 1963 to Hurricane Ike's landfall in Galveston, Texas, in 2008.

The Hurricane of '38 | Article

Arthur Small

Captain Arthur A. Small had kept the lighthouse on Palmer's Island near New Bedford since 1919.

The Hurricane of '38 | Article

Benedict Thielen

In Chilmark, on the island of Martha's Vineyard, Benedict Thielen and his wife watched as water began to trickle into their summer home.

The Hurricane of '38 | Article

Harrison McDonald

Harrison McDonald was traveling by train from Albany, New York, to Boston, Massachusetts during the 1938 Hurricane.

The Hurricane of '38 | Article

Helen Joy Lee

Helen Joy Lee, daughter of the founder of the Packard Motor Car Company, summered at Watch Hill, Rhode Island for a number of years.

The Hurricane of '38 | Article

Mrs. Orris B. Norman

Florida resident Mrs. Norman was not surprised and sat down to observe what she thought was a peach of a windstorm.

The Hurricane of '38 | Article

Frank A. Crosson

On September 21, 1938, the headlines in the Boston Evening Transcript read "Czechs in Surrender" and below that: "Raging Floods Sweep N.E. [New England], 11 Dead in 4-Day Rain."

The Hurricane of '38 | Article

The Hurricane's Aftermath

The material damage of the storm has been calculated to be $4.7 billion in 2001 dollars. Six hundred and eighty lives were lost in the destruction and rising waters.

The Hurricane of '38 | Article

A Brief History of the National Weather Service

On November 1, 1870, weather forecasts for the eastern United States were being issued for the first time, although these were just 24 hours ahead.

The Hurricane of '38 | Article

The Perfect Storm

Hurricanes are among earth's most ferocious natural forces. But how do these swirling weather patterns develop?

Hoover Dam | Trailer

Hoover Dam: Trailer

During the Great Depression, Americans built the Hoover Dam, overcoming technical challenges to erect one of the greatest engineering works in history.