If anyone has resided in California for any length of time, it is known for its extreme weather patterns. The winter of 1861-62, is one for the record books, which some in meteorological circles refer it to “The Ark”. There is a reason why, as California has not experienced anything like it since. It was reported that the Sacramento/San Joaquin Valleys were transferred into a vast lake. It should be noted that the floods of March 1907 did the same thing to the the Sacramento Valley.
As to the winter of 1861-62, locally we are thankful, for the A.L. Tunison diaries to provide a glimpse of what happened and also regionally.
By the end of November 1861 there was a foot of snow in the Honey Lake Valley. Then on December 8 and 9, heavy rains occurred. On December 18, 1861 Tunison receives news of flood damage elsewhere and writes, “Good flood in Sacramento Valley. Water 15 feet deep in Sacramento City. Boats run on Main Street in Marysville. Great many cattle lost. Slide on Sierra Nevada Mountain at Washoe covered up a quartz mill, injured two men, killed another. Two bridges gone on the Truckee River.”
The storms continued, some reports it stormed for 43 days. On December 27, when Tunison left Z.N. Spalding’s place near Johnstonville he had to wade in waist deep water for some distance to reach higher ground.
On January 5, 1862 Tunison reports 8 inches of snow on the ground. Then it started raining. On January 9, Tunison wrote, “Rained nearly all day. At night water raised so high that in run into our tent, consequently had to move camp and had to wade to our knees to pitch tent on an island.”
The rain and snow conditions continued. On January 18, Tunison wrote, “When I went to bed it was snowing, it was 14 inches deep. This morning it is raining. E.G. Bangham returned last evening. He said the weather has been very wet in the vicinity of Virginia City. Considerable damage done to the mills on the Carson River. From seven to ten lives lost by drowning. Truckee River is ten miles wide in places.” It was not until early April when the storms finally ceased.
The greatest flood in California, was followed by one of its most severe droughts. In 1863-64, four inches of snow fell in Susanville in November. That was the extent of precipitation for the entire winter.
Ran drops keep falling on my head….