March 12, 1909 Earthquake: Choshi, Japan
A magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck Choshi, Japan on March 12, 1909 at 23:19 UTC. 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
- March 12, 1909
- Time
- 23:19 UTC
- Place
- Choshi, Japan
- Magnitude
- 6.7 (Ms)
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 34.500° N, 141.500° E
- Country
- Japan
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.
March 12, 1909, 23:14 UTC, 32 N, 140 E, shallow depth, magnitude 7.1 MS. (reference #88)
March 13, 1909, 08:19 [local time], 34.5 N, 141.5 E, shallow depth, magnitude 6.7 MS. Some damage near Choshi by earthquake. Choshi tide gauge recorded tsunami. (reference #150)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- September 1, 1923, Tokyo, Yokohama, Japan
- December 30, 1703, Off SW Boso Peninsula, Japan
- November 4, 1677, Off SE. Boso Peninsula, Japan
- July 29, 1649, Tokyo, Japan
- September 12, 1495, Kamakura, Japan
- June 20, 1894, Tokyo, Japan
- December 17, 1987, Chiba Perfecture, Tokyo, Honshu, Japan
- September 24, 1980, Tokyo, Yokohama, Japan
- November 25, 1953, Kashima, Japan
- March 13, 1909, Yokohama, Japan
- January 19, 2005, East Coast Honshu, Japan
- September 18, 1984, Honshu Island, Japan
- August 18, 1927, Kashima, Japan
- December 4, 1732, Kujukuri Beach, Japan
- June 1, 1923, Kashima, Japan
More
Significant earthquakes of 1909The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1909Recent 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 6253.