August 31, 1896 Earthquake: Senhoku, Ugo, Japan

Name: August 31, 1896 Earthquake: Senhoku, Ugo, Japan
Start: 1896-08-31
Location: Senhoku, Ugo, Japan

August 31, 1896 · 206 deaths · 5,911 houses destroyed

An earthquake struck Senhoku, Ugo, Japan on August 31, 1896. It killed 206 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: August 31, 1896
Place: Senhoku, Ugo, Japan
Tsunami: None recorded
Epicenter: 40.000° N, 141.000° E
Country: Japan

The toll

Deaths: 206
Damage: Extreme (about $25 million or more)
Houses destroyed: 5,911
Houses damaged: 5,911

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.

Reference #1068 lists earthquake on August 31, 1896, 40 N, 141 E, 206 deaths, 5,911 houses destroyed, at Senhoku, Ugo.

Reference #1097 lists earthquake on August 31, 1896, at Rikutyu and Ugo with 60 km of 1m subsidence and upheaval.

Reference #1055 lists earthquake on August 31, 1896, at Ugo, Rokugo, 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.

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

Significant earthquakes of 1896 The 1800s Recent earthquakes near here This 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 2492.