The Year in Rain & Snow
1880
102%
ran at 102% of normal — wetter than usual — across 71 cities, the 37th wettest of 157 years on record.
Extremes
Biggest Rain Day of 1880
7.82in
Brownsville, TX · Aug 12
Snowiest Station of 1880
100.9in
Rochester, NY · calendar-year snowfall
Records Set in 1880
Daily Rainfall Records Set
173
calendar-day rainfall records set in 1880 that still stand today
National Precipitation
102%
of the 1996–2025 average across 71 cities
Where the Year Ran Wet & Dry
Each city's 1880 precipitation as a percent of its 1996–2025 normal — brown where the year ran dry, green-to-blue where it ran wet.
Month by Month
Precipitation by month as a percent of normal — blue above the line is a wet month, amber below is dry.
104%J
95%F
100%M
124%A
80%M
88%J
108%J
124%A
84%S
93%O
114%N
99%D
Wettest Stations & States
Wettest Stations of 1880
| 1 | Sacramento CA | 180% |
| 2 | El Paso TX | 180% |
| 3 | Brownsville TX | 139% |
| 4 | Detroit MI | 138% |
| 5 | Charlotte NC | 138% |
| 6 | Los Angeles Downtown CA | 132% |
| 7 | Nashville TN | 132% |
| 8 | Shreveport LA | 130% |
| 9 | Lansing MI | 128% |
| 10 | Madison WI | 127% |
Driest Stations of 1880
| 1 | Cheyenne WY | 56% |
| 2 | Yuma AZ | 63% |
| 3 | Reading PA | 67% |
| 4 | Denver CO | 68% |
| 5 | Concord NH | 70% |
| 6 | Salt Lake City UT | 72% |
| 7 | New York-Central Park NY | 73% |
| 8 | Philadelphia PA | 75% |
| 9 | Mount Ida AR | 76% |
| 10 | Winnemucca NV | 77% |
By State
Wettest states of 1880
Texas144%California142%Michigan133%Louisiana130%West Virginia119%Tennessee117%
Driest states of 1880
Wyoming56%Arizona63%Colorado68%New Hampshire70%Utah72%Nevada77%
WettestSince · browse by state · precipitation & snowfall records · NOAA/RCC-ACIS ThreadEx gauge record · part of Weather Trader · supported by Substack Subscribers
© 2026 Weather Trader · All rights reserved
© 2026 Weather Trader · All rights reserved