In 1845 all was quiet along the Eastern seaboard of the United States; no hurricanes or tropical storms were recorded. But the residents along the coast knew it was an aberration; Mother Nature keeps a ledger and things need to balance out over time.
When 1846 finally arrived, the quietude of the previous year disturbed the shore inhabitants causing them to turn a weather-eye for the next nor’easter.
The storm in all its fury arrived on Saturday, February 14th pounding the East Coast from the Carolinas to Maine. But special punishment appeared to be reserved for New Jersey.
Nine vessels would be thrown upon the shore and scores of deaths were recorded.
The “Minturn Storm” not only claimed the brig John Minturn but eight other vessels: The Register, Pioneer, Mary Ellen, Arkansas, Antares, New Jersey, Alabama, and Lotty.
Undiminished Violence details the days leading up to the storm as well as the destruction it caused along the entire east coast of the United States.
Undiminished Violence; The John Minturn storm of 1846, part of the New Jersey Shipwreck Series is available on Amazon: