The New Madrid Earthquakes - Historic Catastrophe in American History

2. What do you think the following represent?

3. New Madrid Earthquakes The New Madrid earthquakes were the biggest earthquakes in American history. They occurred in the central Mississippi Valley, but were felt as far away as New York City, Boston, Montreal, and Washington D.C. President James Madison and his wife Dolly felt them in the White House. Church bells rang in Boston. From December 16, 1811 through March of 1812 there were over 2,000 earthquakes in the central Midwest, and between 6,000-10,000 earthquakes in the Bootheel of Missouri where New Madrid is located near the junction of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers.In the known history of the world, no other earthquakes have lasted so long or produced so much evidence of damage as the New Madrid earthquakes. Three of the earthquakes are on the list of America’s top earthquakes: the first one on December 16, 1811, a magnitude of 8.1 on the Richter scale; the second on January 23, 1812, at 7.8; and the third on February 7, 1812, at as much as 8.8 magnitude.

7. The Great Midwest Earthquake of 1811By Elizabeth RuschSMITHSONIAN MAGAZINE December 2011 At 2:15 a.m. on December 16, 1811, residents of the frontier town of New Madrid, in what is now Missouri, were jolted from their beds by a violent earthquake. The ground heaved and pitched, hurling furniture, snapping trees and destroying barns and homesteads. The shaking rang church bells in Charleston, South Carolina, and toppled chimneys as far as Cincinnati, Ohio. “The screams of the affrighted inhabitants running to and fro, not knowing where to go, or what to do—the cries of the fowls and beasts of every species—the cracking of trees falling...formed a scene truly horrible,” wrote one resident. As people were starting to rebuild that winter, two more major quakes struck, on January 23 and February 7. Each New Madrid earthquake had a magnitude of 7.5 or greater, making them three of the most powerful in the continental United States and shaking an area ten times larger than that affected by the magnitude 7.8 San Francisco earthquake of 1906. The Midwest was sparsely populated, and deaths were few. But 8-year-old Godfrey Lesieur saw the ground “rolling in waves.” Michael Braunm observed the river suddenly rise up “like a great loaf of bread to the height of many feet.” Sections of riverbed below the Mississippi rose so high that part of the river ran backward. Thousands of fissures ripped open fields, and geysers burst from the earth, spewing sand, water, mud and coal high into the air.

8. Effects… The Mississippi River ran BACKWARDS! This is said to have created Realfoot Lake, drowned an Indian Village, turned the river against itself to flow backwards; devastated thousands of acres of virgin forest; and created two temporary waterfalls in the Mississippi. Boatmen on flatboats actually survived this experience and lived to tell the tale. The Mississippi River became a dangerous place during the earthquakes. Firmin La Roche was the commander of three flatboats taking goods from St. Louis to New Orleans. When the quakes began, he reported that “the trees on the shore were falling down and great masses of earth tumbled into the river. . . in a moment so great a wave came up the river that I never seen one like it at sea. It carried us back north, upstream, for more than a mile, and the water spread out upon the banks, covering maybe three or four miles inland. It was the current going backward.”

9. Effects… Getting Over Cracks More than 2,000 earthquakes in five months, people discovered that most of crevices opening up during an earthquake ran from north to south, and when the earth began moving, they would chop down trees in an east- west direction and hold on using the tree as a bridge. There were “missing people” who were most likely swallowed up by the earth. Some earthquake fissures were as long as five miles.Earthquake Lights Lights flashed from the ground, caused by quartz crystals being squeezed. The phenomena is called “seismoluminescence.” Earthquake Smog The skies turned dark during the earthquakes, so dark that lighted lamps didn’t help. The air smelled bad, and it was hard to breathe. It is speculated that it was smog containing dust particles caused by the eruption of warm water into cold air. Loud Thunder Sounds of distant thunder and loud explosions accompanied the earthquakes. Another resident of New Madrid said that after the first quake struck, “we sought a high open spot of ground, and remained there until morning, which it seemed to us would never come. When morning dawned, no sun shone on us to gladden our hearts. A dense vapor arose from the seams of the earth and hid it from view.” Descriptions of the noises made by the earth itself differed. Father Joseph, a priest in New Madrid, said the ground “was sometimes muffled and groaning; sometimes it cracked and crashed, not like thunder, but as though a great sheet of ice had broken.”

10. Effects… Animal Warnings People reported strange behavior by animals before the earthquakes. They were nervous and excited. Domestic animals became wild, and wild animals became tame. Snakes came out of the ground from hibernation. Flocks of ducks and geese landed near people. Eliza Bryan, a resident of New Madrid, said that early in the morning of December 16, 1811, “we were visited by a violent shock of an earthquake, accompanied by a very awful noise, resembling loud but distant thunder, but more hoarse and vibrating which was followed in a few minutes by the complete saturation of the atmosphere with sulphurous vapor. “The screams of the affrighted inhabitants running to and fro, not knowing where to go or what to do – the cries of the fowl and the beasts of every species, the cracking of trees falling and the roaring of the Mississippi River… formed a scene truly terrible.”

11. Write your own journal entry as a person living during the 1811-1812 earthquake. What would you see? Feel? Hear? Etc… Use supporting evidence from the primary sources, articles, or photos. Must be at least 2 paragraphs…

12. The New Madrid Earthquake Primary Sources In this photo, taken for the 1914 book The New Madrid Earthquake, you can see trenches and ridges formed by the New Madrid Earthquake Eliza Bryan, a resident of New Madrid, said that early in the morning of December 16, 1811, “we were visited by a violent shock of an earthquake, accompanied by a very awful noise, resembling loud but distant thunder, but more hoarse and vibrating which was followed in a few minutes by the complete saturation of the atmosphere with sulphurous vapor. “The screams of the affrighted inhabitants running to and fro, not knowing where to go or what to do – the cries of the fowl and the beasts of every species, the cracking of trees falling and the roaring of the Mississippi River… formed a scene truly terrible.” Descriptions of the noises made by the earth itself differed. Father Joseph, a priest in New Madrid, said the ground “was sometimes muffled and groaning; sometimes it cracked and crashed, not like thunder, but as though a great sheet of ice had broken.” The Mississippi River became a dangerous place during the earthquakes. Firmin La Roche was the commander of three flatboats taking goods from St. Louis to New Orleans. When the quakes began, he reported that “the trees on the shore were falling down and great masses of earth tumbled into the river. . . in a moment so great a wave came up the river that I never seen one like it at sea. It carried us back north, upstream, for more than a mile, and the water spread out upon the banks, covering maybe three or four miles inland. It was the current going backward.” Another resident of New Madrid said that after the first quake struck, “we sought a high open spot of ground, and remained there until morning, which it seemed to us would never come. When morning dawned, no sun shone on us to gladden our hearts. A dense vapor arose from the seams of the earth and hid it from view.”

13. the Presidents #5 James Monroe Ash Lawn-Highland…. Located in Virginia and is the property of William and Mary College. (Did you know that Monroe crossed the Delaware with Washington!)

14. Nickname: The Era of Good Feelings President His Presidency #5 James Monroe Years in Office: 1817-1825 Political Party: (Democratic) Republican Vide President: Daniel D. Tompkins

15. From 1815 to 1825, The US enjoyed an era of peace, pride, and progress known as the… Era of good Feelings

16. Monroe’s Presidency was full of FOREIGN and DOMESTIC policies. Adams-Onis Treaty Convention of 1818 The Monroe doctrine Missouri compromise

17. Adams-Onis Treaty 1819 Description: The U.S. was having conflict with Spain over American settlers near the U.S./Florida border. President Monroe sent troops to secure the border and a conflict began with the Seminoles over settlements, runaway slaves, and eventually capturing Seminole raiders. U.S. troops captured Spanish military posts and then overthrew the Spanish governor of Florida. Lasting Effect: Spain and United States signed Adams-Onís Treaty in 1819 and settled all border disputes. United States received East Florida, gave up claim to Texas, and agreed to pay U.S. citizens’ claims against Spain.

18. Convention of 1818 The Convention of 1818 was a meeting held in October 1818 to negotiate a treaty between the Monroe administration and the British. The aim of the Convention of 1818 was to settle outstanding boundary issues and disputes between the US and British North America following the War of 1812. The Treaty of 1818  set the 49th parallel as the border with Canada from Rupert's Land west to the Rocky Mountains and established a joint occupation of Oregon by the British and the US for the next ten years. The Convention of 1818 marked the beginning of improved diplomatic relations between the US and Great Britain. * Labeled as Red River Basin in textbook

19. Missouri compromise 1820 The Missouri Compromise was an effort by Congress to defuse the sectional and political rivalries triggered by the request of Missouri to become a slave. At the time, the United States contained twenty-two states, evenly divided between slave and free.

20. Missouri compromise 1820 The compromise: Missouri = slave state Maine = free state *Slavery would be prohibited in any new territories or states formed north of Missouri’s southern border (36 30N latitude) It was only a temporary solution because as settlers moved west, more states would be added. If the problem of slavery remained unsolved, the balance of powers in Congress would continue to divide the nation. Its 1820 and there is tension about SLAVERY!

21. The Monroe doctrine The Monroe Doctrine was signed by President Monroe on December 7, 1823 • The US would stay out of European affairs. • Europe was to stay out of the Western Hemisphere (the America’s) • The US would oppose any European attempt to colonize in the Americas.