Hurricanes that hit Barnstable County, Massachusetts: hurricane history

22 storms have passed within 50 km of Barnstable County from 1869 to 2021, coloured by intensity on the map.

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Years1842 to 2026
Ocean basin

Choosing a minimum category hides storms with no wind speed in the record. To see which storms have passed near you, search a town or ZIP code, or tap the map.

Key
  • Tropical depression Winds below 34 knots (39 mph)
  • Tropical storm 34 to 63 knots (39 to 73 mph)
  • Category 1 64 to 82 knots (74 to 95 mph)
  • Category 2 83 to 95 knots (96 to 110 mph)
  • Category 3 96 to 112 knots (111 to 129 mph), major
  • Category 4 113 to 136 knots (130 to 156 mph), major
  • Category 5 137 knots (157 mph) or more, major
  • Unknown intensity No wind speed in the record
  • Post-tropical Storm has become post-tropical (dashed line)

How to read the lines. Each line is the track of one storm, drawn through its six-hourly positions and coloured by its intensity at each point (the Saffir-Simpson scale), so a line changes colour as the storm strengthens or weakens. Tap a line for its details, or tap anywhere else to see which storms have passed nearby. Weaker storms appear as you zoom in. Hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones are the same kind of storm with different names in different oceans.

Storms near Barnstable County

The record holds 22 tropical cyclones whose tracks passed within 50 km of Barnstable County, Massachusetts between 1869 and 2021. The busiest month is September, with 8 of them. The strongest, measured where each came closest to the place, reached category 3 strength.

  • 22storms within 50 km
  • 1major (category 3 to 5) near here
  • 8at category 1 strength or more

A storm counts once, however many times it came close. The category is the storm's strongest point within 50 km, which can be weaker than its peak elsewhere.

How strong were the storms near Barnstable County?

Category near hereStormsShare
Tropical depression00%
Tropical storm1464%
Category 1418%
Category 2314%
Category 315%
Category 400%
Category 500%
Unknown intensity00%

The agency behind most of the intensity figures here is the NOAA National Hurricane Center (HURDAT2, Atlantic).

Barnstable County storms over time

Storms by decade
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 5 in 1880s.1860s11870s21880s51890s11910s21920s21940s11950s21960s11970s11990s12000s22020s1

The 2020s only run to 2021, so that bar is for a shorter period. This place's record starts in 1869, and records before the satellite era (about the 1960s) are far less complete.

Show the numbers
PeriodCount
1860s1
1870s2
1880s5
1890s1
1910s2
1920s2
1940s1
1950s2
1960s1
1970s1
1990s1
2000s2
2020s1

Earlier decades hold fewer storms partly because they were harder to see. Before weather satellites (about the 1960s) many storms that stayed at sea went unrecorded, so compare decades with care.

Storms by month
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 8 in Sep.Jan0Feb0Mar0Apr0May0Jun0Jul4Aug6Sep8Oct4Nov0Dec0
Show the numbers
PeriodCount
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr0
May0
Jun0
Jul4
Aug6
Sep8
Oct4
Nov0
Dec0

Strongest storms near Barnstable County

  • Edna (1954)5 September 1954 to 14 September 1954, peak Category 3 (110 kt), 943 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of September 1869 (North Atlantic)26 September 1869 to 5 October 1869, peak Category 2 (90 kt)
  • Unnamed storm of September 1944 (North Atlantic)9 September 1944 to 16 September 1944, Category 2 (90 kt) near here, peak Category 5 (140 kt), 918 hPa
  • Bob (1991)16 August 1991 to 29 August 1991, Category 2 (85 kt) near here, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 950 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of August 1879 (North Atlantic)12 August 1879 to 20 August 1879, Category 1 (80 kt) near here, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 971 hPa

Most recent storms near Barnstable County

  • Elsa (2021)30 June 2021 to 10 July 2021, Tropical storm (50 kt) near here, peak Category 1 (75 kt), 991 hPa
  • Beryl (2006)18 July 2006 to 22 July 2006, peak Tropical storm (50 kt), 1,000 hPa
  • Hermine (2004)27 August 2004 to 31 August 2004, peak Tropical storm (50 kt), 1,002 hPa

Many of these storms killed people and destroyed homes. The figures are the official record's, and this page says nothing about their human cost.

A storm that came near several counties counts in each one, so county counts add up to more than the state's.

Notable storms near Barnstable County

  • Esther (1961)10 September 1961 to 27 September 1961, peak Category 5 (140 kt), 919 hPa
  • Edna (1954)5 September 1954 to 14 September 1954, peak Category 3 (110 kt), 943 hPa
  • Bob (1991)16 August 1991 to 29 August 1991, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 950 hPa

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