November 7, 1789 Earthquake: Tongguan, Shaanxi Province, China
A magnitude 5 earthquake struck Tongguan, Shaanxi Province, China on November 7, 1789.
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
- November 7, 1789
- Place
- Tongguan, Shaanxi Province, China
- Magnitude
- 5 (Ms)
- Intensity
- 6 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 34.600° N, 110.300° E
- Country
- China
The toll
- Deaths
- Some (about 51 to 100)
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 million)
- Houses destroyed
- Few (about 1 to 50)
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.
November 7, 1789, Tongguan, Shannxi Province, 34.6 N, 110.3 E, magnitude 5, intensity VI. Civilian houses were destroyed and some persons were killed. (reference #3939)
Reference #1052 lists November 7, 1789, Shensi Province, 34.6 N, 110.3 E, magnitude 5, intensity VI.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- January 23, 1556, Shaanxi Province, China
- May 18, 1695, Linfen, Shanxi Province, China
- October 23, 1815, Shanxi Province, China
- August 10, 1487, Lintong, Xianyang, Shaanxi Province, China
- January 19, 1501, Chaoyi, Shaanxi Province, China
- May 15, 1568, Xian, Shaanxi Province, China
- August 25, 1291, Shaanxi Province, China
- December 13, 600, Shaanxi Province, China
- March 23, 1827, Shanxi Province, China
- April 30, 1000, Shaanxi Province, China
- January 1001, Tsin, Shaanxi Province, China
- September 12, 649, Linfen, Shaanxi Province, China
- October 16, 1505, Anyi, Gueheng, Shanxi Province, China
- June 30, 1642, Shanxi Province, China
- August 10, 1959, Shaanxi Province, China
More
Significant earthquakes of 1789The 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 1503.