Historical Events at NWS North Platte

Interesting Local Events

May 29th 1877

Grasshoppers (Rocky Mountain Locusts) reportedly passed overhead "with the wind" continuously from 10 AM to 2 PM.

June 25th 1881

"Around 5:40 PM a tornado moving from west to east one half mile from town overturned houses, blew down windmills, blew off roofs, and destroyed outbuildings in a path of destruction 150 feet wide. The round house of the Union Pacific Railroad was demolished, killing one and injuring two. Some parts of the round house roof weighing up to 10 tons were moved 200 feet."

1883

Local cattle men become interested in the issuance of cold wave warnings to protect their interests.

1884

"A slight shock of an earthquake was felt...with only minor damage in town."

1885 (Posted in front of T. J. Foley's Store)

4.1 inches of snow fell on November 5th and 6th with much blowing and drifting. Trains were blocked west of North Platte by 4 and 5 foot drifts... some runningas much as 10 to 15 hours late. Older citizens say worst ever experienced in past 10 years.

March 27th-28th,1886

A snow storm dumped 8.3 inches of snow with winds piling drifts 5 and 6 feet deep. Very little activity in town. Trains were delayed, cattle frozen, and many homesteaders isolated.

February 12th 1899

Low temperature of 35 degrees below zero occurs, the coldest recorded temperature ever in North Platte.

March 19th and 20th 1912

Winter storm deposits 14 inches of snow with much blowing and drifting. Temperatures dropped from the mid 40's on the 19th to 4 below zero on the 20th.

June 30th 1940

Administration of the Weather Bureau was transferred from the Department of Agriculture to the Department of Commerce.

January 6th 1945

Radiosonde observations of temperature, humidity, and pressure in the upper atmosphere began at 9 AM. Observations were increased to two per day the following month.

July 15th 1963

A facsimile machine was installed and connected to the National Facsimile Circuit, reducing the workload of plotting and analyzing maps locally.

July 13th 1965

The Weather Bureau becomes a component of the newly formed Environmental Science Services Administration (ESSA).

March 22nd-23rd 1966

"A blizzard made a nuisance of itself...with 8.9 inches of snow and winds gusting to 50 mph."

1969

Computation of the upper air observations become computerized by the use of time share computers and telephone lines to Minneapolis, MN, reducing the time factor and "human error" involved with manual computations.