May 23, 1795 Earthquake: Oaxaca, Mexico
An earthquake struck Oaxaca, Mexico on May 23, 1795.
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
- May 23, 1795
- Place
- Oaxaca, Mexico
- Intensity
- 9 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 17.000° N, 96.300° W
- Country
- Mexico
The toll
- Damage
- Severe (about $5 to $25 million)
- Houses damaged
- 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.
1795 May 23, Oaxaca (reference #1195), Mexico, Puebla (reference #1055)
1795 May 23. In Oaxaca, the earthquake damaged several houses and temples. In particular, it is reported that the convents of Sto. Domingo and Carmen Alto suffered notable damages. The temple of the Consolation fell to the ground in its greater part and the temples of the Defense, El Sagrario and Coronation that were being repaired also suffered great damage. In Chiautla de la Sal, Pue. it caused damage to the royal houses and two churches. Interpretation by the Institute of Geophysics: The damage in Chiautla de la Sal and the fact that it was felt in Puebla and Veracruz, suggest that it was an earthquake of intermediate depth in the northern part of the state of Oaxaca. (reference #13024)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- August 28, 1973, Veracruz, Mexico City
- September 30, 1999, Oaxaca, Mexico
- July 26, 1937, Esperanza, Veracruz, Central, Puebla, Mexico
- May 11, 1870, Oaxaca,zanaguia,san Francisco Ozolotepec, Mexico
- June 15, 1999, Puebla, Veracruz, Oaxaca, Morelos, Guerrero, Mexico
- August 2, 1968, Oaxaca, Guerrero, Mexico
- February 16, 2018, Oaxaca, Mexico
- June 23, 2020, Oaxaca, Mexico
- November 29, 1978, Oaxaca, Mexico
- October 5, 1801, Oaxaca, Mexico
- August 23, 1965, Mexico City, Oaxaca
- September 23, 2017, Oaxaca, Mexico
- June 17, 1928, Oaxaca, Mexico
- May 5, 1854, Veracruz,oaxaca, Mexico
- July 29, 2014, Oaxaca, Mexico
More
Significant earthquakes of 1795The 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 1529.