The wonderful map designed and hand plotted by Michael Ferragamo of the hurricane landfalls on the United States coastline from 1851 to 2024 has piqued my interest in exploring further some of the key patterns over this period.
Distribution of Hurricanes by State – 1851 to 2024 (10 or more hurricanes making landfall)
| State | Total Number of Hurricanes | Cat 4 and 5 Hurricanes |
| Florida | 120 | 14 |
| Texas | 64 | 6 |
| Louisiana | 63 | 6 |
| North Carolina | 55 | 1 |
| South Carolina | 30 | 2 |
| Alabama | 24 | 2 |
| Georgia | 22 | 1 |
| Mississippi | 19 | 3 |
| New York | 15 | |
| Massachusetts | 12 | |
| Virginia | 12 | |
| Connecticut | 11 | |
| Rhode Island | 10 |
Note that totals may not equal the national total since some storms impact multiple states, and pre-1901 data may be underestimated due to sparse observations. Source: NOAA’s Hurricane Research Division and Statista,
If we consider the pattern along the Atlantic coast, the Mid-Atlantic states of Virginia, Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey being notably less impacted. The north-south orientation of the coast makes it challenging for a northeast-moving storm to strike directly from the ocean. An unusual high-pressure “blocking” pattern, that can be seen at times, would be needed for hurricane development.
In terms of the most active decade we need to look at the 1880s with a total of 20 US hurricane landfalls with particularly active seasons in 1886 and 1887.
Analysis of the strongest US hurricane landfalls by lowest pressure
| Hurricane | Year | Landfall State | Pressure mbar | Sustained Wind Speed mph |
| Labor Day Hurricane | 1935 | Florida | 892 | 185 |
| Hurricane Camille | 1969 | Mississippi | 900 | 175 |
| Hurricane Katrina | 2005 | Louisiana | 920 | 125 |
| Hurricane Michael | 2018 | Florida | 919 | 160 |
| Hurricane Andrew | 1992 | Florida | 922 | 165 |
| Hurricane | 1881 | Georgia / South Carolina | 924 | 140 |
| Great Miami Hurricane | 1926 | Florida | 930 | 150 |
| Hurricane Donna | 1960 | Florida | 930 | 140 |
| Hurricane Ian | 2022 | Florida | 937 | 150 |
Source: NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML)
Further work by Michael Farragamo has seen him produce another astonishingly detailed map of hurricane landfalls for the Atlantic Basin including the Gulf Coast and the Caribbean.
