November 18, 1865 Earthquake: Tonga Islands
A magnitude 8 earthquake struck Tonga Islands on November 18, 1865. 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
- November 18, 1865
- Place
- Tonga Islands
- Magnitude
- 8 (Ms)
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 19.500° S, 173.500° W
- Country
- Tonga
The toll
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 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.
November 18, 1865 (05:40 local time). On the 18th at 04:20 the English ship "John Wesley" ran aground near the small island (a coral reef) of Tau, but after several earthquake tremors was refloated completely. The ocean raged with such force that waves enveloped the deck.
At 05:40 there was a strong earthquake and the waves became even more dangerous. Twenty minutes later a terrible crack was heard on the ship and it immediately filled with water and sank in a depth of 1 m (3 feet), but the crew and all the passengers were saved.
The earthquake affected a huge area. It was severe on the islands of Haapai and rather severe on the island of Lifuka and Vavau, where furniture was displaced and the pendulums of clocks were stopped. On the open sea at 24 S and 173.5 W, similar vibrations were experienced on the American ship "Siren" on the 18th at approximately 06:00 accompanied by a muffled rumble.
(above from reference #415)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- February 9, 1902, Tonga Islands
- June 26, 1913, Tonga Islands
- May 18, 1928, Lifuka Island, Tonga Islands
- May 3, 2006, Tonga Islands
- March 30, 2025, Tonga Trench
- August 6, 1949, Tonga Islands
- November 11, 2022, Tonga Islands
- April 30, 1919, Tonga Islands
- January 4, 1903, Tonga Islands
- September 8, 1948, Tonga Islands
More
Significant earthquakes of 1865The 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 6153.