The very cold Christmas of 1872 began on December 19-20, 1872, when a significant storm system moved northwestward through the Great Lakes. Chicago reported numerous train delays coming from the west, and streets were blocked with drifts in some places. Further east, the storm brought heavy rains to places like Pittsburgh, which saw its river shipping wharfs flooded. Similar to the events of February 1899 and January 1994, this storm seems to have been the catalyst for a major arctic outbreak.
Temperatures began plummeting in the Upper Midwest. By December 21st, reports from Minnesota put temperatures at well below -20, but temperatures were already well below freezing in Ohio. On the 22nd, ice on the Ohio River broke several barges loose from their moorings in Cincinnati and sank them.
Official records of daily weather did not begin in Columbus until the summer of 1878. However, the cold weather did not go unreported. The entire week leading into Christmas was cold, but the arctic air seems to have reached its height on Christmas Eve and Day. Temperatures fell well below zero, with thermometers hitting -10 to -20 across Central Ohio on Christmas Eve. Temperatures continued below zero on Christmas Day. The Columbus Dispatch, barely a year into its first year of publication, wrote about the cold spell on December 26th.
“A cold spell, a tidal wave, so to speak, has been sweeping all around and over us for the last 48 hours. It was a wave not fully reported by ‘Probabilities’ at Washington, but came through the air, without telegraphic warning, from some frigid region adjacent to the North Pole. This morning we hear of various figures below zero. It is well to shut up the doors, double-bank the windows, pile on the coal, wrap up in furs, and make ready for an Esquimaux winter. This morning, the wave brought “beautiful snow”, but it did not tarry long enough to settle down to a steady habit and snow us up. The snow breeze passed on. We are pleased that it delayed, no longer. Three such days were enough, even though one of them was Christmas. We will be content if we never see its like again this winter.”
Temperatures were cold across the Great Lakes during the period. In Cleveland, where Lake Erie normally modifies the temperature, it fell to -12 on the 22nd and was -2 on Christmas morning.
After the Christmas Week cold spell, the rest of the winter had several more bouts of severe cold. In some places in the Midwest and Great Lakes, it was one of the coldest winters ever. In Minneapolis, the average temperature over the 3 winter months was just 7.9 degrees, putting it as one of the top 5 coldest winters ever even today.
What most of Winter 2016-2017 looked like in Ohio.
The Winter 2016-2017 Review supports that the season was one of the warmest, least snowy winters on record. Depending on your viewpoint, that was either a really good or really bad thing.
Temperature and snowfall ranking data goes back to the winter of 1878-1879. Snow depth ranking data goes back to 1940.
December-February Only Average High: 44.4 7th Warmest Average Low: 29.5 6th Warmest Mean: 37.0 6th Warmest Precipitation: 8.55″ 49th Wettest Snowfall: 7.6″ 13th Least Snowy Average Daily Snow Depth: 0.1″ 2nd Lowest 32 or Below Highs: 17 11th Fewest 32 or Below Lows: 54 5th Fewest Measurable Precipitation Days: 43 10th Most Measurable Snowfall Days: 10 6th Fewest Deepest Snow Depth: 3″ on December 14th Days with 1″+ Snow Depth: 7 5th Fewest
Entire Cold Season: October-April Average High: 54.8 1st Warmest Average Low: 36.7 5th Warmest Mean: 45.8 1st Warmest Precipitation: 19.28″ 67th Driest Snowfall: 9.3″ 8th Least Snowy Average Snow Depth: 0.1″ 2nd Lowest 32 or Below Highs: 18 8th Fewest 32 or Below Lows: 80 5th Fewest Measurable Precipitation Days: 86 19th Most Measurable Snowfall Days: 15 6th Fewest Deepest Snow Depth: 3″ on December 14th Days with 1″+ Snow Depth: 8 5th Fewest
Average High By Month October 2016: 69.3 17th Warmest November 2016: 57.7 7th Warmest December 2016: 38.7 38th Coldest January 2017: 43.5 14th Warmest February 2017: 51.8 1st Warmest March 2017: 52.1 36th Warmest April 2017: 71.1 1st Warmest
Average Low By Month October 2016: 49.1 14th Warmest November 2016: 36.3 26th Warmest December 2016: 26.2 50th Coldest January 2017: 30.1 8th Warmest February 2017: 32.6 4th Warmest March 2017: 34.1 32nd Warmest April 2017: 48.3 1st Warmest
Mean By Month October 2016: 59.2 12th Warmest November 2016: 47.0 13th Warmest December 2016: 32.4 44th Coldest January 2017: 36.8 12th Warmest February 2017: 42.2 1st Warmest March 2017: 43.1 35th Warmest April 2017: 59.7 1st Warmest
Precipitation By Month October 2016: 1.73″ 45th Driest November 2016: 1.02″ 13th Driest December 2016: 3.09″ 49th Wettest January 2017: 2.83″ 53rd Wettest February 2017: 2.63″ 51st Wettest March 2017: 5.39″ 15th Wettest April 2017: 2.59″ 44th Driest
Snowfall By Month October 2016: 0.0″ Least Snowy November 2016: Trace 2nd Least Snowy December 2016: 5.4″ 40th Snowiest January 2017: 1.6″ 13th Least Snowy February 2017: 0.6″ 4th Least Snowy March 2017: 1.7″ 27th Least Snowy April 2017: Trace 2nd Least Snowy
Average Snow Depth By Month October 2016: 0″ November 2016: 0″ December 2016: 0.3″ January 2017: Trace February 2017: 0.1″ March 2017: Trace April 2017: 0″
Maximum High By Month October 2016: 83 on the 18th November 2016: 80 on the 1st December 2016: 69 on the 26th January 2017: 67 on the 12th February 2017: 78 on the 24th March 2017: 77 on the 30th April 2017: 85 on the 26th and 30th
Record Highs -The 83 on October 18th tied the record for the date set in 1938. -The 80 on November 1st tied the record for the date set in 1950. This is also a tie for the warmest temperature ever recorded in November. -The 79 on November 2nd tied the record for the date set in 1897. -The 75 on November 18th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 73 set in 1954. -The 69 on November 26th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 62 set in 1889 and 1982. -The 67 on January 12th tied the record for the date set in 1916. -The 64 on January 17th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 62 set in 1952. -The 66 on February 18th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 63 set in 2011. -The 72 on February 23rd was a record for the date, beating the old record of 66 set in 1905 and 1986. -The 78 on February 24th was a record for the date in 3 ways: 1. It beat the old daily record of 72 set in 1961. 2. It beat the record for the warmest February temperature ever of 75 set on 2/26/2000. 3. It broke the record for the warmest temperature for meteorological winter (Dec-Feb) of all-time, beating the old record of 76 set on 12/3/1982.
Minimum High By Month October 2016: 52 on the 22nd November 2016: 35 on the 20th December 2016: 14 on the 15th January 2017: 16 on the 6th and 7th February 2017: 25 on the 3rd March 2017: 29 on the 14th April 2017: 49 on the 1st
Maximum Low By Month October 2016: 69 on the 18th November 2016: 56 on the 2nd December 2016: 48 on the 26th January 2017: 47 on the 17th February 2017: 59 on the 24th March 2017: 58 on the 25th April 2017: 63 on the 16th and 19th
Record Maximum Lows -The 69 on October 18th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 65 set in 2007. -The 54 on February 22nd was a record for the date, beating the old record of 51 set in 1930. -The 52 on February 23rd was a record for the date, beating the old record of 51 set in 1930. -The 59 on February 24th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 50 set in 2000. -The 58 on March 25th tied the record for the date set in 1949.
Minimum Low By Month October 2016: 35 on the 25th November 2016: 21 on the 22nd December 2016: 4 on the 15th and 16th January 2017: 6 on the 7th February 2017: 9 on the 4th March 2017: 15 on the 15th April 2017: 32 on the 8th
Highest Daily Precipitation By Month October 2016: 0.74″ on the 19th November 2016: 0.36″ on the 28th December 2016: 1.07″ on the 17th January 2017: 0.80″ on the 3rd February 2017: 0.76″ on the 7th March 2017: 1.53″ on the 26th April 2017: 0.80″ on the 9th
Highest Daily Snowfall By Month October 2016: 0.0″ November 2016: Trace on the 19th and 20th December 2016: 3.2″ on the 13th January 2017: 0.9″ on the 5th February 2017: 0.6″ on the 8th March 2017: 0.6″ on the 13th April 2017: Tract on the 6th and 7th
Deepest Snow Depth By Month October 2016: 0″ November 2016: 0″ December 2016: 3″ on the 14th January 2017: 1″ on the 6th February 2017: 1″ on the 9th and 10th March 2017: 1″ on the 14th April 2017: 0″
