December 2, 1882 Earthquake: Hebei Province, China
A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck Hebei Province, China on December 2, 1882. It killed 11 people.
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
- December 2, 1882
- Place
- Hebei Province, China
- Magnitude
- 5.8 (Ms)
- Intensity
- 8 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 38.100° N, 115.500° E
- Country
- China
The toll
- Deaths
- 11
- 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.
December 2, 1882, Shenxian, Hebei Province, 38.1 N, 115.5 E, magnitude 5.75, intensity VIII.
The majority of the houses toppled down in 18 villages
(Guojiazhuang etc.) northwest of the county seat, the rest were also damaged. The southeast city walls collapsed at two places and more than 31 battlements fell. Some offices, schools and civilian houses collapsed or were damaged. 11 people were killed.
Shulu: A number of houses in Shuangjing and Beipangying villages in the north of the county collapsed. A few houses in Nanpangying and other villages collapsed causing several injuries.
Anping: 20 rooms in the tile-roofed mud houses in 11
villages (Guojiadian, etc.) toppled down, some gables
cracked, also some roof beams and bricks fell.
Xianxian, Jiaohe, Dongguang, Ningjin, Jingxian, Nangong, Quyang, Dacheng, Darning, Qingxian, Wea'an, Wuqiang, Raoyang, Anguo, Dingxian, Shenze, Baoding, Xincheng, Dingxing, Wangdu. Wanxian, and Nanpi of Hebei Province, Lingxian of Shandong Province.
Another earthquake occurred on December 6, bringing
down more battlements, offices and civilian houses. Several microseisms occurred daily on December 5 and 9, and feeble recurring tremors could still be felt on December 30.
(above from reference #3939)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- 1057, Beijing, China
- March 7, 1966, Hebei Province, China
- June 28, 1626, Shanxi Province, China
- 777, Shulu, Ningjin, Hebei Province, China
- December 2, 1967, Shulu, Hebei Province, China
- March 26, 1966, Hebei Province, China
- August 14, 1068, Cangzhou, Hejian, Hebei Province, China
- March 22, 1966, Hebei Province, China
- March 6, 1966, Hebei Province, China
- September 18, 1704, Dongguang, Cangxian, Hebei Province, China
- March 27, 1967, Hejian, Dacheng, Hebei Province, China
- March 19, 1966, Hebei Province, China
- April 20, 1966, Hebei Province, China
- August 5, 2023, Pingyuan, Shangdong Province, China
- August 19, 1956, Shanxi Province, China
More
Significant earthquakes of 1882The 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 2318.