Charleston Earthquake 1886

The Earthquake of 1886 occurred just six months after Thomas and Julia were married. I remember hearing stories from Granny Ball that she must have heard from her parents and uncles. She told of people running out of their houses into the streets in their nightgowns, underwear or with only towels wrapped around themselves since the quake hit at 9:50 p.m. on a Sunday night when most were asleep or retiring for the evening.

"The seismic history of the southeastern United States is dominated by the 1886 earthquake that occurred in the Coastal Plain near Charleston, South Carolina. It was one of the largest historic earthquakes in eastern North America, and by far the largest earthquake in the southeastern United States. A major shock, occurred August 31, 1886 at approximately 9:50 p.m. and lasted less than one minute, but resulted in about sixty deaths and extensive damage to the city of Charleston."

South Carolina Seismic Network,  University of South Carolina