United States of America
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The United States of America (commonly referred to as the United States, the U.S., the USA, or America) is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its forty-eight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., the capital district, lie between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the south. The state of Alaska is in the northwest of the continent, with Canada to its east and Russia to the west across the Bering Strait. The state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific. The country also possesses several territories, or insular areas, in the Caribbean and Pacific. At 3.79 million square miles (9.83 million km²) and with about 306 million people, the United States is the third or fourth largest country by total area, and third largest by land area and by population. The U.S. economy is the largest national economy in the world, with an estimated 2008 gross domestic product (GDP) of US $14.3 trillion (23% of the world total based on nominal GDP and almost 21% at purchasing power parity). In 1507, German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a world map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere "America" after Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci. The former British colonies first used the country's modern name in the Declaration of Independence, which was the "unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America" adopted by the "Representatives of the united States of America" on July 4, 1776. The United States of America is located in the middle of the North American continent, with Canada to the north and the United Mexican States to the south. The United States ranges from the Atlantic Ocean on the nation's east coast to the Pacific Ocean bordering the west, and also includes the state of Hawaii, a series of islands located in the Pacific Ocean, the state of Alaska located in the northwestern part of the continent above the Yukon, and numerous other holdings and territories. The first known inhabitants of United States are believed to have arrived over a period of several thousand years beginning approximately 20,000 years ago by crossing the Bering land bridge into Alaska. The first solid evidence of these cultures settling in what would become the US begins as early as 15,000 years ago with the Clovis culture. Little is known of these early settlers compared to the Europeans who colonized the area after the first voyage of navigator Christopher Columbus in 1492 for Spain. Columbus' men were also the first documented Old Worlders to land in the territory of the United States when they arrived in Puerto Rico during their second voyage in 1493. The first European known to set foot in the continental U.S. was Juan Ponce de León, who arrived in Florida in 1513, though there is some evidence suggesting that he may have been preceded by John Cabot in 1497. Exploration by various European countries, Dutch, Spanish, English, French, Swedish, and Portuguese settlements were established. Columbus was the first European to set foot on what would one day become U.S. territory when he came to Puerto Rico in 1493. In the 15th century, Europeans brought horses, cattle, and hogs to the Americas. One theory suggests peoples of the Americas descended from people who probably migrated from Siberia across the Bering Strait, anywhere between 9,000 and 50,000 years ago. These peoples are often referred to as Native Americans, First Nations and by Christopher Columbus' historical mistake Indians, as he believed he had arrived in the East Indies. The early Paleoamericans soon spread throughout the Americas, diversifying into many hundreds of culturally distinct nations and tribes. The waves of migrating peoples with similar languages and perhaps physical characteristics as well, moved into various geographic areas of North, and then Central and South America, it is thought. Some suggest an early Atlantic migration route into the Americas and that stone tool technology of the Solutrean culture in prehistoric Europe may have later influenced the development of the Clovis tool making culture in the Americas. European colonization of the Americas forever changed the lives, bloodlines and cultures of the peoples of the American continent. Some believe that, among the various contributing factors, epidemic disease was the overwhelming cause of the population decline of the American natives. After first contacts with Europeans and Africans, some believe that the death of 90 to 95% of the native population of the New World was caused by Old World diseases. The thirteen Colonies united against the British Empire and entered a period of armed conflict known as the Revolutionary War or the American War of Independence between 1775 and 1783. This culminated in an American Declaration of Independence in 1776 and victory on the battlefield in October 1781. France played a key role in aiding the revolution providing the American patriots with money and munitions and organized a coalition against Britain, then sent a fleet and army that played a decisive role at the battle that effectively ended the war at Yorktown. This revolutionary era began in 1763 with Britain imposing taxes on the thirteen colonies for their defense of the colonies. After protests in Boston over these taxes, Britain sent troops. The Americas mobilized militia and fighting broke out in 1775. In 1776 representatives of the 13 colonies voted unanimously to adopt a Declaration of Independence by which they established the United States of America. The Americans formed an alliance with France in 1778 that evened out the military and naval strengths, two main British armies were captured at Saratoga in 1777 and Yorktown in 1781 leading to peace with the Treaty of Paris in 1783. John Locke's ideas on liberalism greatly influenced the political minds behind the revolution, his theory of the "social contract" implied the natural right of the people to overthrow their leaders, should those leaders betray the historic rights of Englishmen. The or a motivating force behind the revolution was the Americans embracing a political ideology called "republicanism". The Proclamation of 1763 restricted American movement across the Appalachian Mountains which helped ignite the revolution. The phrase "No taxation without representation" became popular in many American circles, due to Britain levying taxes. In 1765 the Stamp Act was the first direct tax ever levied by Parliament on the colonies. In 1773 the event known as the "Boston Tea Party" occured, in which men led by Samuel Adams dumped tea in the Boston harbor. The Battle of Lexington and Concord took place April 19, 1775 when the British sent a regiment to confiscate arms and arrest revolutionaries in Concord. It was the first fighting of the American Revolutionary War. The revolutionaries were called at the time 'Patriots', 'Whigs', 'Congress-men', or 'Americans'. On January 10, 1776 Thomas Paine published a political pamphlet entitled Common Sense arguing that the only solution to the problems with Britain was republicanism and independence from Great Britain. Many believe the American Revolution was a unique and radical event that produced deep changes which had a profound impact on world affairs, based on an increasing belief in the principles of republicanism, such as peoples' natural rights, and a system of laws chosen by the people.
List of British colonies in North America
The British Colonies in North America, 1763-1775Roanoke Colony, founded 1586, abandoned the next year. Second attempt in 1587 disappeared (also called the Lost Colony).
Virginia Company, chartered 1606 and became the Virginia Colony in 1624
London Company
Jamestown Settlement, founded 1607.
Bermuda, these islands, located in the North Atlantic, were first settled in 1609 by the London Virginia Company; Administration passed to The Somers Isles Company, formed by the same shareholders, in 1615. Also known officially as The Somers Isles, they remain a British overseas territory.
Citie of Henricopolis, founded in 1611 as an alternative to the swampy Jamestown site and was destroyed in the Indian massacre of 1622.
Plymouth Company
Popham Colony, founded 1607, abandoned 1608
Society of Merchant Venturers (Newfoundland)
Cuper's Cove, founded 1610, abandoned in the 1620s
Bristol's Hope, founded 1618, abandoned in the 1630s
London and Bristol Company (Newfoundland)
New Cambriol, founded 1617, abandoned before 1637.
Renews, founded 1615, (abandoned in 1619
Jamestown Settlement
St. John's, Newfoundland, chartered by Sir Humphrey Gilbert in 1583; seasonal settlements ca. 1520; informal year-round settlers before 1620.
Plymouth Council for New England
Plymouth Colony, founded 1620, merged with Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1691
Ferryland, Newfoundland granted to George Calvert, 1st Lord Baltimore in 1620, first settlers in August 1621
Province of Maine, granted 1622, dissolved 1677
South Falkland, Newfoundland, founded 1623 by Henry Cary, 1st Viscount Falkland
Province of New Hampshire, later New Hampshire settled in 1623, Dorchester Company Colony, (Dorchester Company planted an unsuccessful fishing colony on Cape Ann at modern Gloucester, Massachusetts in 1624)
Salem Colony, later Salem, Massachusetts, settled in 1628, merged with Massachusetts Bay Colony the next year
Massachusetts Bay Colony, later part of Massachusetts, founded 1629
New Scotland, in present Nova Scotia, 1629-1632
Connecticut Colony, later part of Connecticut founded 1633
Province of Maryland, later Maryland, founded in 1634
New Albion, chartered in 1634, failed by 1649-50. Not to be confused with Nova Albion on the Pacific coast
Saybrook Colony, founded 1635, merged with Connecticut in 1644
Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, first settled in 1636
New Haven Colony, founded 1638, merged with Connecticut in 1665
Gardiners Island, founded 1639, now part of East Hampton, New York
Province of New York, captured 1664
Province of New Jersey, captured in 1664
divided into West Jersey and East Jersey after 1674, each held by its own company of Proprietors.
Province of Pennsylvania, later Pennsylvania, founded 1681 as an English colony, although first settled by Dutch and Swedes
Delaware Colony, later Delaware, separated from Pennsylvania in 1704
Carolina Colony
North Carolina, first settled at Roanoke in 1586, became separate colony in 1710
Province of South Carolina, first permanent settlement in 1670, became separate colony in 1710.
Province of Georgia, later Georgia; first settled in about 1670, formal colony in 1732
Nova Scotia, site of abortive Scottish colony in 1629; British colony 1713, but this did not permanently include Cape Breton Island until 1758.
Quebec, which had been called Canada under French rule. Canada was by far the most settled portion of New France. Britain gained complete control of French Canada in 1759-1761, during the Seven Years' War; France ceded title with the Treaty of Paris in 1763.
East Florida and West Florida, acquired from Spain in 1763 in exchange for returning Cuba, taken from Spain in 1761; the Floridas were recovered by Spain in 1783.
Island of St. John, separated from Nova Scotia 1769, renamed Prince Edward Island in 1798
New Brunswick, separated from Nova Scotia in 1784
Ontario, separated from Quebec in 1791 as Upper Canada
Colony of Vancouver Island, Hudson's Bay Company Fort Victoria founded in 1843, royal charter for the Island as a colony in 1849, merged with the colony of h British Columbia in 1866.
Colony of the Queen Charlotte Islands, founded in 1853, merged with the Colony of Vancouver Island in 1863.
Colony of British Columbia, aka the Mainland Colony or the Gold Colony, founded in 1858 from the New Caledonia fur district and the remnant of the Columbia fur district north of the 49th Parallel (see below). The colony was expanded with the addition of the Stikine Territory (aka Stickeen Territory) and the Colony of the Queen Charlotte Islands in 1863.
United Colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia, formed in 1866 from a merger of the Vancouver Island and Mainland Colonies. The name British Columbia was chosen for the newly-merged colony despite the opposition from Vancouver Island colonists.
Spanish exploration and settlement began in 1493.
French colonization (1564-1803)
English/British Colonial America (1585-1776)
Formation of the United States of America (1776-1789)
Westward expansion by the U. S. (1789–1849)
Civil War era (1849–1865)
Reconstruction and the rise of industrialization (1865–1918)
Post-World War I and the Great Depression (1918–1940)
World War II (1940–1945) and battle against Germany, Japan
Cold War beginnings and the Civil Rights Movement (1945–1964)
Cold War (1964–1980)
End of the Cold War (1980–1991)
After the fall of the Soviet Union, the United States emerged as the world's sole remaining superpower and continued to involve itself in military action overseas, including the 1991 Gulf War (1991-Present)
New York came under attack in the September 11, 2001 attacks.
War or Engagement
American Colonists or U. S. citizens officially participated and the Major Combatants
July 4, 1675 -August 12, 1676 King Philip's War, New England Colonies vs. Wampanoag, Narragansett, and Nipmuck Indians
1689-1697 King William's War, The English Colonies vs. France
1702-1713 Queen Anne's War, The English Colonies vs. France
1744-1748 King George's War, The French Colonies vs. Great Britain
1756-1763 French and Indian War (Seven Years War), The French Colonies vs. Great Britain
1759-1761 Cherokee War, English Colonists vs. Cherokee Indians
1775-1783 American Revolution, English Colonists vs. Great Britain
1798-1800 Franco-American Naval War, United States vs. France
1801-1805; 1815 Barbary Wars, United States vs. Morocco, Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli
1812-1815 War of 1812, United States vs. Great Britain
1813-1814 Creek War, United States vs. Creek Indians
1836 War of Texas, Independence Texas vs. Mexico
1846-1848 Mexican War, United States vs. Mexico
1861-1865 Civil War, Union vs. Confederacy
1898 Spanish-American War, United States vs. Spain
1914-1918 World War I, Triple Alliance: Germany, Italy, and Austria-Hungary vs. Triple Entente: Britain, France, and Russia.
The U. S. joined on the side of the Triple Entente in 1917.
1939-1945 World War II, Axis Powers: Germany, Italy, Japan vs. Major Allied Powers: United States, Great Britain, France, and Russia
1950-1953 Korean War, United States (as part of the United Nations) and South Korea vs. North Korea and Communist China
1960-1975 Vietnam War, United States and South Vietnam vs. North Vietnam
1961 Bay of Pigs Invasion, United States vs. Cuba
1983 Grenada, United States Intervention
1989 US Invasion of Panama, United States vs. Panama
1990-1991 Persian Gulf War,
United States and Coalition Forces vs. Iraq
1995-1996 Intervention in Bosnia and Herzegovinak, United States as part of NATO acted peacekeepers in former Yugoslavia
2003 Invasion of Iraq,
United States and Coalition Forces vs. Iraq
Worst Disasters in U. S. by fatalities.
1939-1945 62,000,000 World War II Fatalities worldwide including civilians (25,000,000 military). Approximately 405,000 Americans killed.
1914-1918 War 15,000,000-66,000,000 World War I Fatalities worldwide (higher figure includes Spanish Flu deaths). Approximately 116,000 Americans killed.
1950-1953 War 2,300,000-2,600,000
Korean War Approximately 36,000 Americans killed
1959-1975 War 1,900,000 Vietnam War Worldwide fatalities approximate, includes civilians. U.S. fatalities approximately 58,000.
1861-1865 War 618,000 American Civil War Approximately 620,000 American Deaths
2003-Present War 155,104 Iraq War Includes Iraqi Civilian fatalities (through June, 2006). Does not include "excess" Iraqi deaths (or estimated total deaths due to U.S. invasion as a whole). U.S. fatalities are at 4,104 (as of June 24, 2008)
1775-1783 War 77,300 American Revolutionary War Fatality estimate includes foreign troops and soldiers who died of disease
1846-1848 War 38,000 Mexican-American War Fatality figure may include wounded
1990-1991 War 25,400 Gulf War 378 American fatalities.
1812-1815 War 24,000 War of 1812 Fatality figure may include wounded
1900 Cyclone 6,000-12,000 Galveston Hurricane of 1900 Texas Fatalities estimated
1906 Earthquake and Fire (urban conflagration) 3,000-6,000 1906 San Francisco Earthquake California Conflagration followed quake; fatalities estimated
2001 Terrorism 2,992 September 11, 2001 attacks New York City, Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania, U.S. airspace
1928 Cyclone 2,500-4,078 $800,000,000
(2005) 1928 Okeechobee Hurricane Leeward Islands, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, and Florida Fatalities estimated
1763-1766 War 2,450 Pontiac's Rebellion
1960 Tsunami 2,290-6,000 $3,500,000,000
(2005) Great Chilean Earthquake Hawaii, Alaska Worldwide statistics; 61 killed in Hilo, Hawaii, $500,000 in U.S. property damage
1889 Accident - Dam burst 2,209 Johnstown Flood Pennsylvania Much rain, deforestation; dam broke
1893 Cyclone 2,000 1893 Cheniere Caminada Hurricane Louisiana Fatalities estimated
2005 Cyclone 1,836 $84,000,000,000
(2006) Hurricane Katrina Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama
1865 Accident - Shipwreck 1,700 Sultana (steamboat) Mississippi River near Memphis, Tennessee Steamboat sank due to boiler explosion; fatalities estimated
1980 Heat wave 1,700 1980 United States heat wave Central and southern states Official death toll, may have been higher
1912 Accident - Shipwreck 1,490-1,522 RMS Titanic Atlantic Ocean Bound for New York City
1871 Fire (rural) 1,200-2,500 Peshtigo Fire Peshtigo, Wisconsin Fatalities estimated; most deaths in single fire in U.S. history
1904 Accident - Shipwreck 1,021 General Slocum East River near New York City Steamship sank due to fire on board
1893 Cyclone 1,000-2,000 1893 Sea Islands Hurricane Georgia, South Carolina Fatalities estimated
1915 Accident - Shipwreck 845 S.S. Eastland Chicago, Illinois
1995 Heat wave 739 Chicago Heat Wave of 1995 Chicago, Illinois
1925 Tornado 695-727 $1,650,000,000
(2005) Tri-State Tornado Missouri, Illinois and Indiana (Kentucky, Tennessee) Lower number for single 3-state tornado; higher for 5-state outbreak
1903 Fire (building) 602 Iroquois Theater Fire Chicago, Illinois
1919 Cyclone 600 1919 Florida Keys Hurricane Florida, Texas
1928 Accident - Dam failure 600 St. Francis Dam Santa Clarita, California (Greater Los Angeles area)
1938 Cyclone 600 Great New England Hurricane
1977 Accident - Aircraft 583 Tenerife disaster Canary Islands, Spain Pan Am jet from New York involved
1947 Accident - Explosion 581 Texas City Disaster Texas City, Texas Ammonium nitrate onboard ship
1942 Fire (building) 492 Cocoanut Grove fire Nightclub
1918 Fire (rural) 453 $7,300,000 1918 Cloquet Fire Minnesota
1935 Cyclone 423 Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 Florida
1860 Accident - Shipwreck 400 Lady Elgin (steamship) Chicago, Illinois
1888 Blizzard 400 Great Blizzard of 1888 Northeast Fatalities estimated
1894 Fire (rural) 400 Great Hinckley Fire Hinckley, Minnesota and vicinity
1937 Flood 385 $500,000,000 Ohio River flood of 1937 Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois
1907 Accident - Coal mine 362 Monongah Mining disaster Monongah, West Virginia
1950 Blizzard 353 $66,700,000
(1950) Great Appalachian Storm of November 1950 Eastern states
1944 Accident - Explosion 320 Port Chicago disaster Port Chicago, California (San Francisco Bay Area) WWII ammunition ignited
1974 Tornado 315 Super Outbreak Ontario, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia and New York 148 tornadoes
1865 Accident - Explosion 300 Mobile magazine explosion Mobile, Alabama Civil War ammunition
1937 Accident - Explosion 296-319 $13,000,000
(2003) New London School explosion New London, Texas Gas leak
1881 Fire (rural) 282 $2,347,000 Thumb Fire Michigan
1898 War 274 The Maine Havana, Cuba
1979 Accident - Aircraft 273 American Airlines Flight 191 Chicago, Illinois
1965 Tornado 271 Palm Sunday Tornado Outbreak Iowa, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana 78 tornadoes
1999 Heat wave 271 Midwest and Northeast
1988 Terrorism 270 Pan Am Flight 103 Lockerbie, Scotland
2001 Accident - Aircraft 265 American Airlines Flight 587 Queens, New York
1913 Accident - Coal mine 263 Dawson, New Mexico
1909 Accident - Coal mine 259 Cherry Mine Disaster Cherry, Illinois
1937 Accident - Coal mine 257 Grundy, Virginia
1969 Cyclone 256 Hurricane Camille Mississippi, Alabama and Virginia
1896 Tornado 255-400 $2,900,000,000
(1997) St. Louis-East St. Louis Tornado Missouri
1913 Blizzard 250 Great Lakes Storm of 1913 Fatalities estimated
1913 Storm 250 $5,000,000
(1913) Great Lakes Storm of 1913 Great Lakes area Financial impact for lost vessels and cargo only
1927 Flood 246 $400,000,000 Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee
1972 Flood 238 $160,000,000
(1972)
$664,000,000
(2002) Rapid City Flood Rapid City, South Dakota Average rainfall over area of 60 mi² measured at 10-15 inches (380 mm), over 6 hours in middle of night June 9-10, 1972.
1996 Accident - Aircraft 230 TWA Flight 800 Atlantic Ocean near Long Island, New York
1871 Fire (urban conflagration) 200-300 Great Chicago fire Chicago, Illinois Fatalities estimated; 125 bodies recovered
1900 Accident - Coal mine 200 Scofield mine disaster Scofield, Utah
1995 Accident - Shipwreck 192 The Portland Gloucester, Massachusetts
1995 Terrorism 168 Oklahoma City bombing Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
1977 Fire (building) 165 Beverly Hills Supper Club fire Southgate, Kentucky near Cincinnati, OH
1946 Tsunami and Earthquake 165 Aleutian Island earthquake Alaska and Hawaii
1911 Fire (building) 148 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire New York City
1976 Flood 145 Big Thompson Canyon Flood of 1976 Colorado
1985 Accident - Aircraft 135 Delta Air Lines Flight 191 Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, Texas
1960 Accident - Aircraft 134 1960 New York air disaster New York City
1944 Accident - Explosion 130 $7,000,000-
$15,000,000 Cleveland East Ohio Gas Explosion Cleveland, Ohio
1972 Accident - Dam burst 125 Buffalo Creek Flood Logan County, West Virginia
2004 Cyclone 124 $19,000,000,000
(2005) Hurricane Ivan Texas, Florida, East Coast
2005 Cyclone 120 $10,000,000,000
(2005) Hurricane Rita Louisiana
1938 Flood 115 Los Angeles Flood of 1938 Los Angeles, California
1964 Tsunami and Earthquake 115 $1,800,000,000
(2006) Good Friday Earthquake Alaska, Hawaii, Oregon, California, British Columbia
1981 Accident - collapse 114 Hyatt Regency walkway collapse Kansas City, Missouri
1947 Accident - Coal mine 111 Centralia mine disaster Centralia, Illinois
1989 Accident - Aircraft 111 United Airlines Flight 232 Sioux City, Iowa
1996 Accident - Aircraft 110 ValuJet Flight 592 Florida Everglades
1918 Accident - Railroad 101 Great train wreck of 1918 Nashville, Tennessee
2003 Fire (building) 100 The Station nightclub fire West Warwick, Rhode Island 4th-deadliest nightclub fire in U.S. history, killing 100 people and injuring more than 200.
1910 Avalanche 96 Wellington avalanche Wellington, Washington
1918 Accident - Railroad 93 Malbone Street Wreck Brooklyn, New York
1876 Accident - Railroad 92 Ashtabula River Railroad Disaster Ashtabula, Ohio
1990 Fire (building) 87 Happy Land Fire New York City
1910 Fire (rural) 86 Great Fire of 1910 Washington, Idaho, Montana
1918 Accident - Railroad 86 Hammond Circus Train Wreck Hammond, Indiana
1887 Accident - Railroad 81-85 Great Chatsworth Train Wreck Chatsworth, Illinois
1963 Accident - Aircraft 81 Pan Am Flight 214 Elkton, Maryland Lightning strike
1993 Blizzard 79-300 $6,600,000,00 1993 North American storm complex East Coast of North and Central America
1993 The Waco Siege (Terrorist) 86 deaths Branch Dividian Complex, Waco, TX
1936 Flood 69 $3,000,000,000
(2006) Pittsburgh Flood 1936 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area
1989 Earthquake 69 $6,000,000,000
(1989) Loma Prieta Earthquake San Francisco Bay Area, California
1971 Earthquake 65 $500,000,000 Sylmar earthquake Greater Los Angeles, California area
1856 Accident - Railroad 59-67 The Great Train Wreck of 1856 Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
2008 Tornado 59 2008 Super Tuesday tornado outbreak Tennessee, Arkansas, Kentucky, Alabama, and Illinois
1980 Volcano 57 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens Washington State
1994 Earthquake 57 $23,000,000,000 Northridge Earthquake Greater Los Angeles area
1896 Accident - Railroad 50 1896 Atlantic City rail crash New Jersey
1993 Flood 50 $15,000,000,000 Great Flood of 1993 Midwest
2009 Accident - Aircraft 50 Colgan Air Flight 3407 Clarence Center, New York
2004 Cyclone 49 $9,000,000,000 Hurricane Frances Florida
2006 Accident - Aircraft 49 Comair Flight 5191 Lexington, Kentucky
1999 Tornado 48 $1,500,000,000
(2005) 1999 Oklahoma tornado outbreak Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, Tennessee 66 tornadoes
1993 Accident - Railroad 47 Big Bayou Canot train disaster Alabama
1927 Terrorism 45 Bath School Disaster Michigan
1977 Accident - Dam failure 39 Kelly Barnes Dam
1937 Accident - Aircraft 36 Hindenburg disaster Manchester, New Jersey Hydrogen-filled zeppelin
1969 Accident - Aircraft 35 Hawthorne Nevada Airlines Flight 708 Lone Pine, California
1967 Accident - Aircraft 34 Mohawk Airlines Flight 40 Blossburg, Pennsylvania
2007 Terrorism 33 Virginia Tech massacre Blacksburg, VA
1973 Fire 32 Upstairs Lounge New Orleans, LA
1998 Blizzard 30 North American ice storm of 1998 Canada and Northeast
1990 Tornado 29 $160,000,000 1990 Plainfield tornado Plainfield, Illinois Crest Hill, Illinois
1951 Flood 28 $7,000,000,000
(2005) Great Flood of 1951 Kansas and Missouri
1988 Accident - Automobile 27 Carrollton bus disaster Carrollton, Kentucky
1970 Tornado 26 $1,411,900,000
(2008) Lubbock Tornado Lubbock, Texas F5 tornado killed 26 and wounded approximately 500
2008 Train collision 26 2008 Chatsworth train collision Chatsworth, California
1991 Fire (building) 25 Deadliest train crash in Amtrak history Hamlet chicken processing plant fire Hamlet, North Carolina Workers trapped behind locked doors
1991 Fire (rural) 25 $1,500,000,000 1991 Oakland firestorm Oakland, California and vicinity
2005 Tornado 25 $92,000,000 Evansville Tornado of November 2005 Missouri, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio 7 tornadoes
1977 Blizzard 23 $56,250,000
(1977) Great Lakes Blizzard of 1977 New York and Ontario (esp. Buffalo, New York)
1989 Accident - Explosion 23 $1,415,000,000
(1990) Phillips Disaster Pasadena, Texas 314 people injured
1992 Cyclone 23 $25,000,000,000 Hurricane Andrew Florida and Louisiana
1919 Accident - Explosion 21 $6,600,000,000
(2005) Boston molasses disaster Boston, Massachusetts Damages are out-of-court settlements only; repairs took 133 man-months
1872 Fire (urban conflagration) 20 $73,500,000
(1872) Great Boston Fire of 1872 Boston, Massachusetts
1944 Accident - Aircraft 19 Long Creek Air Disaster South Portland, Maine
1966 Terrorism 15 University of Texas Massacre Austin, TX
1999 Terrorism 15 Columbine High School massacre Jefferson County, CO
2007 Fire 12 dead (expected to rise) California wildfires of October 2007 California Large fires burnt out of control across southern California, fueled by unusually strong Santa Ana Winds; worst around San Diego; caused evacuation of over one million people. Most fires accidental; some suspected arson.
1976 Accident - Dam failure 11 $400,000,000 Teton Dam Idaho
2004 Cyclone 10 $15,000,000,000 Hurricane Charley Florida
2007 Accident - Bridge Collapse 13 dead, 111+ injured $5,000,000 I-35W Mississippi River bridge Collapse Minneapolis, Minnesota Collapsed on August 1 at 6:05 PM during rush hour while resurfacing in progress.
1996 Flood 8 $500,000,000 Willamette Valley Flood of 1996 Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California
1901 Fire (urban conflagration) 7 Great Fire of 1901 Jacksonville, Florida
1986 Explosion Space Shuttle 7 Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster Kennedy Space Center, Florida The first in-flight deaths in the U.S. Space Program
2003 Explosion Space Shuttle 7 Space Shuttle Columbia Disaster Texas
May 8,1995 Flood 6 $1,360,000,000 May 8th 1995 Louisiana Flood New Orleans, Louisiana area
2007 Accident - Explosion 4 T2 Laboratories Jacksonville, Florida 14 injuries
2007 Accident - Coal mine 3 dead, 6 missing, 6 injured Crandall Canyon Mine Collapse Huntington, Utah Original collapse on August 6 at 2:48 AM MDT, 6 miners missing. On August 16 at 6:30 PM MDT, 9 rescue workers caught in second collapse while trying to get to trapped miners. Three rescue workers pronounced dead; other 6 injured.
1999 Accident - Explosion 2 Phillips explosion of 1999 Pasadena, Texas 4 injuries
1754-1763 War French and Indian War
1776 Fire (urban conflagration) Great Fire of New York (1776) Manhattan, New York City
1816 Volcano Year Without a Summer Volcanic dust caused crop failures and starvation
1835 Fire (urban conflagration) $20,000,000
(1835) Great Fire of New York
1888 Cold wave 1888 Northwest Cold Wave Northwest
1914 Fire (urban conflagration) $290,000,000
(2005) Great Salem Fire of 1914
1931-1939 Drought Dust Bowl Great Plains Compounded by unsustainable agricultural techniques
1989 Cyclone $7,000,000,000
(1989) Hurricane Hugo Damage figure for U.S. only
2000 Accident - Explosion 1 Phillips explosion of 2000 Pasadena, Texas 71 injuries
1997 Flood 0 $2,000,000,000 1997 Red River Flood North Dakota, Minnesota, Southern Manitoba
1939-1945 War 62,000,000 World War II Fatalities worldwide including civilians (25,000,000 military). Approximately 405,000 Americans killed.
1914-1918 War 15,000,000-
66,000,000 World War I Fatalities worldwide (higher figure includes Spanish Flu deaths). Approximately 116,000 Americans killed.
1950-1953 War 2,300,000-
2,600,000 Korean War Approximately 36,000 Americans killed
1959-1975 War 1,900,000 Vietnam War Worldwide fatalities approximate, includes civilians. U.S. fatalities approximately 58,000.
1861-1865 War 618,000 American Civil War Approximately 620,000 American Deaths
2003-Present War 155,104 Iraq War Includes Iraqi Civilian fatalities (through June, 2006). Does not include "excess" Iraqi deaths (or estimated total deaths due to U.S. invasion as a whole). U.S. fatalities are at 4,104 (as of June 24, 2008)
1775-1783 War 77,300 American Revolutionary War Fatality estimate includes foreign troops and soldiers who died of disease
1846-1848 War 38,000 Mexican-American War Fatality figure may include wounded
1990-1991 War 25,400 Gulf War 378 American fatalities.
1812-1815 War 24,000 War of 1812 Fatality figure may include wounded
1900 Cyclone 6,000-12,000 Galveston Hurricane of 1900 Texas Fatalities estimated
1906 Earthquake and Fire (urban conflagration) 3,000-6,000 1906 San Francisco Earthquake California Conflagration followed quake; fatalities estimated
2001 Terrorism 2,992 September 11, 2001 attacks New York City, Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania, U.S. airspace
1928 Cyclone 2,500-4,078 $800,000,000
(2005) 1928 Okeechobee Hurricane Leeward Islands, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, and Florida Fatalities estimated
1763-1766 War 2,450 Pontiac's Rebellion
1960 Tsunami 2,290-6,000 $3,500,000,000
(2005) Great Chilean Earthquake Hawaii, Alaska Worldwide statistics; 61 killed in Hilo, Hawaii, $500,000 in U.S. property damage
1889 Accident - Dam burst 2,209 Johnstown Flood Pennsylvania Much rain, deforestation; dam broke
1893 Cyclone 2,000 1893 Cheniere Caminada Hurricane Louisiana Fatalities estimated
2005 Cyclone 1,836 $84,000,000,000
(2006) Hurricane Katrina Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama
1865 Accident - Shipwreck 1,700 Sultana (steamboat) Mississippi River near Memphis, Tennessee Steamboat sank due to boiler explosion; fatalities estimated
1980 Heat wave 1,700 1980 United States heat wave Central and southern states Official death toll, may have been higher
1912 Accident - Shipwreck 1,490-1,522 RMS Titanic Atlantic Ocean Bound for New York City
1871 Fire (rural) 1,200-2,500 Peshtigo Fire Peshtigo, Wisconsin Fatalities estimated; most deaths in single fire in U.S. history
1904 Accident - Shipwreck 1,021 General Slocum East River near New York City Steamship sank due to fire on board
1893 Cyclone 1,000-2,000 1893 Sea Islands Hurricane Georgia, South Carolina Fatalities estimated
1915 Accident - Shipwreck 845 S.S. Eastland Chicago, Illinois
1995 Heat wave 739 Chicago Heat Wave of 1995 Chicago, Illinois
1925 Tornado 695-727 $1,650,000,000
(2005) Tri-State Tornado Missouri, Illinois and Indiana (Kentucky, Tennessee) Lower number for single 3-state tornado; higher for 5-state outbreak
1903 Fire (building) 602 Iroquois Theater Fire Chicago, Illinois
1919 Cyclone 600 1919 Florida Keys Hurricane Florida, Texas
1928 Accident - Dam failure 600 St. Francis Dam Santa Clarita, California (Greater Los Angeles area)
1938 Cyclone 600 Great New England Hurricane
1977 Accident - Aircraft 583 Tenerife disaster Canary Islands, Spain Pan Am jet from New York involved
1947 Accident - Explosion 581 Texas City Disaster Texas City, Texas Ammonium nitrate onboard ship
1942 Fire (building) 492 Cocoanut Grove fire Nightclub
1918 Fire (rural) 453 $7,300,000 1918 Cloquet Fire Minnesota
1935 Cyclone 423 Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 Florida
1860 Accident - Shipwreck 400 Lady Elgin (steamship) Chicago, Illinois
1888 Blizzard 400 Great Blizzard of 1888 Northeast Fatalities estimated
1894 Fire (rural) 400 Great Hinckley Fire Hinckley, Minnesota and vicinity
1937 Flood 385 $500,000,000 Ohio River flood of 1937 Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois
1907 Accident - Coal mine 362 Monongah Mining disaster Monongah, West Virginia
1950 Blizzard 353 $66,700,000
(1950) Great Appalachian Storm of November 1950 Eastern states
1944 Accident - Explosion 320 Port Chicago disaster Port Chicago, California (San Francisco Bay Area) WWII ammunition ignited
1974 Tornado 315 Super Outbreak Ontario, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia and New York 148 tornadoes
1865 Accident - Explosion 300 Mobile magazine explosion Mobile, Alabama Civil War ammunition
1937 Accident - Explosion 296-319 $13,000,000
(2003) New London School explosion New London, Texas Gas leak
1881 Fire (rural) 282 $2,347,000 Thumb Fire Michigan
1898 War 274 The Maine Havana, Cuba
1979 Accident - Aircraft 273 American Airlines Flight 191 Chicago, Illinois
1965 Tornado 271 Palm Sunday Tornado Outbreak Iowa, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana 78 tornadoes
1999 Heat wave 271 Midwest and Northeast
1988 Terrorism 270 Pan Am Flight 103 Lockerbie, Scotland
2001 Accident - Aircraft 265 American Airlines Flight 587 Queens, New York
1913 Accident - Coal mine 263 Dawson, New Mexico
1909 Accident - Coal mine 259 Cherry Mine Disaster Cherry, Illinois
1937 Accident - Coal mine 257 Grundy, Virginia
1969 Cyclone 256 Hurricane Camille Mississippi, Alabama and Virginia
1896 Tornado 255-400 $2,900,000,000
(1997) St. Louis-East St. Louis Tornado Missouri
1913 Blizzard 250 Great Lakes Storm of 1913 Fatalities estimated
1913 Storm 250 $5,000,000
(1913) Great Lakes Storm of 1913 Great Lakes area Financial impact for lost vessels and cargo only
1927 Flood 246 $400,000,000 Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee
1972 Flood 238 $160,000,000
(1972)
$664,000,000
(2002) Rapid City Flood Rapid City, South Dakota Average rainfall over area of 60 mi² measured at 10-15 inches (380 mm), over 6 hours in middle of night June 9-10, 1972.
1996 Accident - Aircraft 230 TWA Flight 800 Atlantic Ocean near Long Island, New York
1871 Fire (urban conflagration) 200-300 Great Chicago fire Chicago, Illinois Fatalities estimated; 125 bodies recovered
1900 Accident - Coal mine 200 Scofield mine disaster Scofield, Utah
1995 Accident - Shipwreck 192 The Portland Gloucester, Massachusetts
1995 Terrorism 168 Oklahoma City bombing Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
1977 Fire (building) 165 Beverly Hills Supper Club fire Southgate, Kentucky near Cincinnati, OH
1946 Tsunami and Earthquake 165 Aleutian Island earthquake Alaska and Hawaii
1911 Fire (building) 148 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire New York City
1976 Flood 145 Big Thompson Canyon Flood of 1976 Colorado
1985 Accident - Aircraft 135 Delta Air Lines Flight 191 Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, Texas
1960 Accident - Aircraft 134 1960 New York air disaster New York City
1944 Accident - Explosion 130 $7,000,000-
$15,000,000 Cleveland East Ohio Gas Explosion Cleveland, Ohio
1972 Accident - Dam burst 125 Buffalo Creek Flood Logan County, West Virginia
2004 Cyclone 124 $19,000,000,000
(2005) Hurricane Ivan Texas, Florida, East Coast
2005 Cyclone 120 $10,000,000,000
(2005) Hurricane Rita Louisiana
1938 Flood 115 Los Angeles Flood of 1938 Los Angeles, California
1964 Tsunami and Earthquake 115 $1,800,000,000
(2006) Good Friday Earthquake Alaska, Hawaii, Oregon, California, British Columbia
1981 Accident - collapse 114 Hyatt Regency walkway collapse Kansas City, Missouri
1947 Accident - Coal mine 111 Centralia mine disaster Centralia, Illinois
1989 Accident - Aircraft 111 United Airlines Flight 232 Sioux City, Iowa
1996 Accident - Aircraft 110 ValuJet Flight 592 Florida Everglades
1918 Accident - Railroad 101 Great train wreck of 1918 Nashville, Tennessee
2003 Fire (building) 100 The Station nightclub fire West Warwick, Rhode Island 4th-deadliest nightclub fire in U.S. history, killing 100 people and injuring more than 200.
1910 Avalanche 96 Wellington avalanche Wellington, Washington
1918 Accident - Railroad 93 Malbone Street Wreck Brooklyn, New York
1876 Accident - Railroad 92 Ashtabula River Railroad Disaster Ashtabula, Ohio
1990 Fire (building) 87 Happy Land Fire New York City
1910 Fire (rural) 86 Great Fire of 1910 Washington, Idaho, Montana
1918 Accident - Railroad 86 Hammond Circus Train Wreck Hammond, Indiana
1887 Accident - Railroad 81-85 Great Chatsworth Train Wreck Chatsworth, Illinois
1963 Accident - Aircraft 81 Pan Am Flight 214 Elkton, Maryland Lightning strike
1993 Blizzard 79-300 $6,600,000,00 1993 North American storm complex East Coast of North and Central America
1993 The Waco Siege (Terrorist) 86 deaths Branch Dividian Complex, Waco, TX
1936 Flood 69 $3,000,000,000
(2006) Pittsburgh Flood 1936 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area
1989 Earthquake 69 $6,000,000,000
(1989) Loma Prieta Earthquake San Francisco Bay Area, California
1971 Earthquake 65 $500,000,000 Sylmar earthquake Greater Los Angeles, California area
1856 Accident - Railroad 59-67 The Great Train Wreck of 1856 Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
2008 Tornado 59 2008 Super Tuesday tornado outbreak Tennessee, Arkansas, Kentucky, Alabama, and Illinois
1980 Volcano 57 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens Washington State
1994 Earthquake 57 $23,000,000,000 Northridge Earthquake Greater Los Angeles area
1896 Accident - Railroad 50 1896 Atlantic City rail crash New Jersey
1993 Flood 50 $15,000,000,000 Great Flood of 1993 Midwest
2009 Accident - Aircraft 50 Colgan Air Flight 3407 Clarence Center, New York
2004 Cyclone 49 $9,000,000,000 Hurricane Frances Florida
2006 Accident - Aircraft 49 Comair Flight 5191 Lexington, Kentucky
1999 Tornado 48 $1,500,000,000
(2005) 1999 Oklahoma tornado outbreak Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, Tennessee 66 tornadoes
1993 Accident - Railroad 47 Big Bayou Canot train disaster Alabama
1927 Terrorism 45 Bath School Disaster Michigan
1977 Accident - Dam failure 39 Kelly Barnes Dam
1937 Accident - Aircraft 36 Hindenburg disaster Manchester, New Jersey Hydrogen-filled zeppelin
1969 Accident - Aircraft 35 Hawthorne Nevada Airlines Flight 708 Lone Pine, California
1967 Accident - Aircraft 34 Mohawk Airlines Flight 40 Blossburg, Pennsylvania
2007 Terrorism 33 Virginia Tech massacre Blacksburg, VA
1973 Fire 32 Upstairs Lounge New Orleans, LA
1998 Blizzard 30 North American ice storm of 1998 Canada and Northeast
1990 Tornado 29 $160,000,000 1990 Plainfield tornado Plainfield, Illinois Crest Hill, Illinois
1951 Flood 28 $7,000,000,000
(2005) Great Flood of 1951 Kansas and Missouri
1988 Accident - Automobile 27 Carrollton bus disaster Carrollton, Kentucky
1970 Tornado 26 $1,411,900,000
(2008) Lubbock Tornado Lubbock, Texas F5 tornado killed 26 and wounded approximately 500
2008 Train collision 26 2008 Chatsworth train collision Chatsworth, California
1991 Fire (building) 25 Deadliest train crash in Amtrak history Hamlet chicken processing plant fire Hamlet, North Carolina Workers trapped behind locked doors
1991 Fire (rural) 25 $1,500,000,000 1991 Oakland firestorm Oakland, California and vicinity
2005 Tornado 25 $92,000,000 Evansville Tornado of November 2005 Missouri, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio 7 tornadoes
1977 Blizzard 23 $56,250,000
(1977) Great Lakes Blizzard of 1977 New York and Ontario (esp. Buffalo, New York)
1989 Accident - Explosion 23 $1,415,000,000
(1990) Phillips Disaster Pasadena, Texas 314 people injured
1992 Cyclone 23 $25,000,000,000 Hurricane Andrew Florida and Louisiana
1919 Accident - Explosion 21 $6,600,000,000
(2005) Boston molasses disaster Boston, Massachusetts Damages are out-of-court settlements only; repairs took 133 man-months
1872 Fire (urban conflagration) 20 $73,500,000
(1872) Great Boston Fire of 1872 Boston, Massachusetts
1944 Accident - Aircraft 19 Long Creek Air Disaster South Portland, Maine
1966 Terrorism 15 University of Texas Massacre Austin, TX
1999 Terrorism 15 Columbine High School massacre Jefferson County, CO
2007 Fire 12 dead (expected to rise) California wildfires of October 2007 California Large fires burnt out of control across southern California, fueled by unusually strong Santa Ana Winds; worst around San Diego; caused evacuation of over one million people. Most fires accidental; some suspected arson.
1976 Accident - Dam failure 11 $400,000,000 Teton Dam Idaho
2004 Cyclone 10 $15,000,000,000 Hurricane Charley Florida
2007 Accident - Bridge Collapse 13 dead, 111+ injured $5,000,000 I-35W Mississippi River bridge Collapse Minneapolis, Minnesota Collapsed on August 1 at 6:05 PM during rush hour while resurfacing in progress.
1996 Flood 8 $500,000,000 Willamette Valley Flood of 1996 Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California
1901 Fire (urban conflagration) 7 Great Fire of 1901 Jacksonville, Florida
1986 Explosion Space Shuttle 7 Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster Kennedy Space Center, Florida The first in-flight deaths in the U.S. Space Program
2003 Explosion Space Shuttle 7 Space Shuttle Columbia Disaster Texas
May 8,1995 Flood 6 $1,360,000,000 May 8th 1995 Louisiana Flood New Orleans, Louisiana area
2007 Accident - Explosion 4 T2 Laboratories Jacksonville, Florida 14 injuries
2007 Accident - Coal mine 3 dead, 6 missing, 6 injured Crandall Canyon Mine Collapse Huntington, Utah Original collapse on August 6 at 2:48 AM MDT, 6 miners missing. On August 16 at 6:30 PM MDT, 9 rescue workers caught in second collapse while trying to get to trapped miners. Three rescue workers pronounced dead; other 6 injured.
1999 Accident - Explosion 2 Phillips explosion of 1999 Pasadena, Texas 4 injuries
1754-1763 War French and Indian War
1776 Fire (urban conflagration) Great Fire of New York (1776) Manhattan, New York City
1816 Volcano Year Without a Summer Volcanic dust caused crop failures and starvation
1835 Fire (urban conflagration) $20,000,000
(1835) Great Fire of New York
1888 Cold wave 1888 Northwest Cold Wave Northwest
1914 Fire (urban conflagration) $290,000,000
(2005) Great Salem Fire of 1914
1931-1939 Drought Dust Bowl Great Plains Compounded by unsustainable agricultural techniques
1989 Cyclone $7,000,000,000
(1989) Hurricane Hugo Damage figure for U.S. only
2000 Accident - Explosion 1 Phillips explosion of 2000 Pasadena, Texas 71 injuries
1997 Flood 0 $2,000,000,000 1997 Red River Flood North Dakota, Minnesota, Southern Manitoba
11 of the Worst Disasters:
1906 - San Francisco Earthquake Fire
1910 - The Big Burn (of Idaho and Montana)
1918 - Spanish Flu Pandemic
1925 - Tri-State (Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana) Tornado
1938 - The New England Hurricane
1964 - The Great Alaskan Earthquake
1974 - Super Tornado Outbreak (13 states in USA)
1980 - Mount St. Helen Eruption
1993 - Storm of the Century (eastern US)
2005 - Hurricane Katrina (with largest damage in New Orleans, Louisiana)
2008-Floods in Iowa, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
2009-Floods of Red River in North Dakota