The Year in Rain & Snow
1938
100%
ran at 100% of normal — wetter than usual — across 301 cities, the 58th wettest of 157 years on record.
Extremes
Biggest Rain Day of 1938
9.52in
Wilmington, NC · Sep 29
Snowiest Station of 1938
107.9in
Millinocket, ME · calendar-year snowfall
Records Set in 1938
Daily Rainfall Records Set
902
calendar-day rainfall records set in 1938 that still stand today
National Precipitation
100%
of the 1996–2025 average across 301 cities
Where the Year Ran Wet & Dry
Each city's 1938 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.
100%J
118%F
130%M
92%A
98%M
109%J
122%J
76%A
110%S
57%O
92%N
77%D
Wettest Stations & States
Wettest Stations of 1938
| 1 | Palmdale CA | 286% |
| 2 | Riverside CA | 228% |
| 3 | Los Angeles Downtown CA | 192% |
| 4 | Camarillo CA | 190% |
| 5 | Bakersfield CA | 180% |
| 6 | Madera CA | 173% |
| 7 | Hanford CA | 167% |
| 8 | Santa Maria CA | 161% |
| 9 | Eau Claire WI | 161% |
| 10 | Glasgow MT | 156% |
Driest Stations of 1938
| 1 | Del Rio TX | 48% |
| 2 | Gulfport MS | 55% |
| 3 | Key West FL | 56% |
| 4 | Mobile AL | 56% |
| 5 | Pensacola FL | 56% |
| 6 | Evansville IN | 60% |
| 7 | Seattle City WA | 61% |
| 8 | Greenville-Spartanburg SC | 62% |
| 9 | Baton Rouge LA | 63% |
| 10 | Miami FL | 65% |
By State
Wettest states of 1938
California156%Connecticut128%Wisconsin126%Montana122%Colorado121%New Hampshire120%
Driest states of 1938
Louisiana73%South Carolina73%Washington76%Florida80%Kentucky80%North Dakota82%
WettestSince · browse by state · precipitation & snowfall records · NOAA/RCC-ACIS ThreadEx gauge record · part of Weather Trader · supported by Substack Subscribers
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© 2026 Weather Trader · All rights reserved