June 7, 1789 Earthquake: Tonghai, Huaning, Yunnan Province, China
A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck Tonghai, Huaning, Yunnan Province, China on June 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
- June 7, 1789
- Place
- Tonghai, Huaning, Yunnan Province, China
- Magnitude
- 6.5 (Ms)
- Intensity
- 9 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 24.200° N, 102.800° E
- Country
- China
The toll
- Deaths
- Many (about 101 to 1,000)
- Injuries
- Many (about 101 to 1,000)
- Damage
- Severe (about $5 to $25 million)
- Houses destroyed
- Many (101 to 1,000)
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.
June 7, 1789, between Tonghai and Huaning, Yunnan Province, 24.2 N, 102.8 E, magnitude 6.5, intensity IX.
Huaning: The city walls totally collapsed. Guansheng
Temple collapsed. Houses were destroyed,
killing innumerous people and domestic animals.
Landslides occurred and rivers stopped flowing.
Yidu Village and 16 hectares of fields were
submerged in the lake. After the shock, water gushed
out suddenly from Xinlong Pool, where there was .
no water before the earthquake.
Tonghai: All battlements and gate towers on city
walls toppled down. Wenming Archway cracked.
Schools and temples collapsed. A lot of official
buildings and civilian houses were damaged.
More than 300 people were killed.
Jiangchuan: All gate towers and battlements on city walls collapsed. The city walls toppled down about
70 m long in the southwest and about 35 m long in
the northwest. Official buildings, as well as the
north and the south granaries collapsed.
Chengjiang: Gate towers on city walls and governmental offices were damaged or collapsed.
Hexi: The county buildings were destroyed.
Lunan and Yiliang: Houses were damaged, people
and domestic animals were injured.
The shock also struck Kunming, Jinning, Shiplng,
Jianshui and Yuxi.
Earthquakes continued till June 24, 1789.
(above from reference #3939)
Reference #1052 lists June 7, 1789, Yunnan Province, 24.2 N, 102.8 E, magnitude 6.5, intensity IX.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- January 4, 1970, Hanoi, Yunnan Province, Vietnam, China
- January 4, 1500, Yiliang, Yunnan Province, China
- 1499, Yi Liang, Yunnan Province, China
- September 6, 1833, Yunnan Province, China
- September 9, 1680, Yunnan Province, China
- February 26, 1713, S of Xundian, Yunnan Province, China
- August 27, 1799, Yunnan Province, China
- December 16, 1887, Yunnan Province, China
- November 30, 1606, Jianshui, Yunnan Province, China
- December 30, 1763, Yunnan Province, China
- December 21, 1913, Yunnan Province, China
- November 24, 1814, Siping, Yunnan Province, China
- January 8, 1725, Songming, Yiliang, Yunnan Province, China
- January 27, 1755, Yunnan Province, China
- April 6, 1940, Yunnan 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 1501.