May 31, 1848 Earthquake: Oaxaca,guerrero, Mexico
An earthquake struck Oaxaca,guerrero, Mexico on May 31, 1848.
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 31, 1848
- Place
- Oaxaca,guerrero, Mexico
- Intensity
- 6 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 17.000° N, 96.300° W
- Country
- Mexico
The toll
- Damage
- Moderate (about $1 to $5 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.
1848, May 31. Mexico, Guadalajara in (Jalisco), Guerrero, Oaxaca, Mexico, Puebla. Intensity II which corresponds to buildings may be unroofed or shattered and some may fall, the ground may be badly cracked in places and small landslips occur. (reference #1055)
1848, May 31. Destructive Oaxaca, Guerrero. (reference #1195)
1848, May 31. Some damage in Coyuca de Catalan, Gro. The quote referring to the fall of the towers of the church of Guadalajara seems to be clearly an error in these secondary sources. Interpretation Performed by the Instituto de Geofisica: Probable subduction earthquake in Guerrero. (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 1848The 1800sRecent 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 1894.