Tsunamis in 1755

November 5, 1755 Tsunami: River Tees, England, United Kingdom

November 5, 1755 · 0.9 m · Very doubtful tsunami

A tsunami of unknown cause began at River Tees, England, United Kingdom on November 5, 1755. The water rose as high as 0.9 meters. Its effects were recorded at 1 place.

Where the waves reached

The source (white) and every runup with a place, colored by the water height recorded there. A ring is a runup NCEI marks doubtful.

  • Under 1 m
  • 1 to 3 m
  • 3 to 10 m
  • 10 to 30 m
  • 30 m and more
  • Height not recorded

Tsunami warnings in force

The tsunami

Date
November 5, 1755
Source
River Tees, England, United Kingdom
Cause
Unknown
Maximum water height
0.9 m (3.0 ft)
Runups recorded
1
Waters
Ocean
How certain
Very doubtful tsunami
Source location
54.680° N, 1.210° W

The toll

The record gives no deaths, injuries or damage for this tsunami.

What the record says

NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.

Berninghausen (Reference #43) cites Mallet and Mallet (#1879): "At 11 p.m. of this day the sea rose a yard higher than had ever been known before at Saltholme near Hartlepool in Durham, and caused some mischief. No shock is mentioned as having been felt." This is the region near the mouth of the River Tees.

Every runup

Nearest the source first. Heights are above sea level at the time; a tide gauge reads half the wave’s full height.

WhereCountryKm from sourceWater height, mInland, mMeasured byFirst wave, UTCDeaths
Saltholme, EnglandUnited Kingdom00.9Eyewitness observation of water height

More

Every tsunami in 1755The 1700sTsunamis of United KingdomThis day in weather historyAlerts in force

Sources

Tsunami events and runups 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 tsunami event 457.