July 15, 1757 Earthquake: St. Mary, Scilly Islands, England, United Kingdom
An earthquake struck St. Mary, Scilly Islands, England, United Kingdom on July 15, 1757. It caused a tsunami.
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
- July 15, 1757
- Place
- St. Mary, Scilly Islands, England, United Kingdom
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 49.920° N, 6.320° W
- Country
- United Kingdom
The toll
The record gives no deaths, injuries or damage for this earthquake.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
6:15 pm local time. Reference #1879 cites a very strong earthquake that also caused an "agitation of the sea." The earthquake was "In the Scilly Islands and Cornwall. Most violent in the island of St. Mary." The Mallet and Mallet descriptor (Reference #1879) is referring to an original source, William Borlase (Reference #3947), who wrote of the experience in a letter.
Reference #1879 says: "The shocks lasted six seconds, in some places half a minute. They were apparently from S.W. to N.E."
More
Significant earthquakes of 1757The 1700sRecent 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 2026-09-24. NCEI earthquake 7889.