THE CHARLESTON EARTHQUAKE OF 1886

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• August 30, 1886; 9:50 p.m.
• Over 300 aftershocks in 35 years after (1886-1921)
• Largest earthquake in southeast of the USA
• Lasted less than one minute
• Registered at a 7.3

60 people lost their lives
Property damage estimate: $5-6 million in the 1886 USD
About $125-150million in today's USD
Damage was reported all the way from southern Virginia, central Alabama, western West Virginia, central Ohio, and eastern Kentucky.

These are earthquake bolts. A crank was attached to pull the walls back together after the earthquake. These bolts mimic braces; a wire (crank) is attached to the brackets (bolts) and over a period of time, your teeth are pulled together (walls).

HOW WAS THE EARTHQUAKE SO DAMAGING IF IT WASN'T NEAR THE PLATES?

There was also damage done to a small town called Summerville.
It was about 25km NW of Charleston.
Only a population of about 2,000 people

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CITATIONS

• http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/states/events/1886_09_01.php
• http://www.seis.sc.edu/projects/SCSN/history/html/eqchas.html