January 16, 1630 Earthquake: Sichuan Province, China
A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck Sichuan Province, China on January 16, 1630.
Map
Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Date
- January 16, 1630
- Place
- Sichuan Province, China
- Magnitude
- 6.3 (Ms)
- Intensity
- VIII, severe shaking, on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 32.600° N, 104.100° E
- Country
- China
- Region
- East Asia
The toll
- Deaths
- Some (about 51 to 100)
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 million)
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
January 16, 1630, E of Songpan, Sichuan Province, 32.6 N, 104.1 E, magnitude 6.25, intensity VIII.
Xiaoheying (more than 30km northwest of the county
town): City walls collapsed for about 400 m long. Landslides occurred. Several military men and residents were killed.
The earthquake also struck Chengdu, Chongqing,
Bishan, Cangxi, Gongxian, Ya'an, Guang'an, Songpan and Weiyuan.
Next day more than 30 shocks occurred. At Xiaoheying,
another 100 m long city walls collapsed.
Note: According to the Chengdu record "Landslides
occurred and city walls collapsed. Several
soldiers were killed." This might refer to the
conditions in Xiaoheying. Actually the shock
was only felt in Chengdu.
(above from reference #3939)
Sources NCEI cites
The publications NCEI lists for this record. The numbers match the “reference #” notes in its account above.
- #3939 Gu Gongxu, Zhou Wenfu, and Wang Renlong (eds.) (1989). Catalogue of Chinese Earthquakes (1831 B.C. - 1969 A.D.). Science Press, Beijing, China; English translation by Li Zengquan et al. provided through UNESCO, 872 pages.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- May 12, 2008, Sichuan Province, China
- July 1, 1879, Gansu Province, China
- August 25, 1933, Sichuan Province, China
- February 22, 186 BC, Gansu Province, China
- July 20, 1881, Gansu Province, China
- August 8, 2017, Aba, Sichuan Province, China
- October 8, 1941, Sichuan Province, China
- June 18, 1822, Gansu Province, China
- June 22, 1880, Wenxian, Gansu Province, China
- May 25, 2008, Sichuan Province, China
- August 5, 2008, Sichuan Province, China
- December 9, 2008, Sichuan Province, China
- July 24, 2008, Sichuan Province, China
- September 22, 1989, Xiaojin County, Sichuan Province, China
- November 9, 1960, Sichuan Province, China
More
Significant earthquakes of 1630The 1600sRecent earthquakes near hereThis day in weather history
Sources
Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-10-01. NCEI earthquake 7949.