May 9, 1789 Tsunami: Cananeia, Brazil

Reference #14104 [unofficial translation]:

There was nothing weird to be noted during that day, not even at the sun or the “elements”.

After the Sun had crossed his whole path during that super bright and calm day, and was setting at the west, as the moon was rising again, this time very “rubby”, suddenly an underground rumble with an earthquake happened, lasting about 2min, roaring like a scab dog. As people faced this weird news, some people froze, others ran up to their houses and others stopped claiming for God’s mercy.

And even no house collapsed, all of them felt that event, ones more than others, according to the residents. (Footnote: The Priest Simao de Vasconcelos, in his “Cronica” described that there was a storm in Cananeia, like “rain, lightning, wind, thunders and horrible earthquake, that looked like the whole universe was ending”).

Some reliable locals guaranteed that they felt that the Earth was “dissolving”, others said they could not stand still and felt quicksand. During this quake, they heard noises from the woods, caused by the tree's movements. The birds, that had already landed for their rest, flew away singing loud in alert. The cattle were shocked and some started mooing. The dogs became sad and howled like never before. The sea also showed signs of the impact, because at that moment, without any wind, the little and peaceful sea that surrounded the village, produced waves that were impressive for being able to crash at the shores despite the calm atmosphere. The fish also demonstrated how weird this “impulse” was, because they were observed to be agitated, jumping outside of the water. The twilight of that same night showed the air with an imperceptible smoke that quickly dissipated showing a calm night where the moon could fully shine

Note: the footnote with the Priest's account contradicts the main passage

Reference #14100 [unofficial translation]:

On the evening of May 9, 1789, “without a breath of wind, the small and peaceful sea that surrounds Cananeia became rough, and its waves crashed furiously against the beaches” (Santos, 1922) Residents heard a loud underground rumbling and felt the ground shake for about two minutes. […] The historian noted strong movements of the waters [or "strong disturbances of the waters] and their impact on the terrain: “the waves crashed furiously against the shore” around Cananeia. . This may mean that the sea advanced over a significant stretch of beach, beyond its normal limit, with ebb and flow movements, similar to a small tsunami. Cananeia has a peculiar geographical position, as it is located at the head of a narrow, relatively shallow inlet, far from the coast. There, the waters are likely to be calmer than those of the coastline. In the event of a nearby earthquake, its effects would be much more pronounced in the calm waters around the city than in other locations on the open coast. Apparently, that ancient marine disturbance was produced by a localized tsunami, and the tremor that caused it possibly occurred in the sea, not far from the city […] the epicenter of the historic tremor was close to Cananeia.

Note: author describes this as “tsunami-like waves”

Reference #14105 [unofficial translation]:

the sea also showed its distress because at that moment, without a breath of wind, the small and peaceful sea that runs around Cananea became rough, and its waves crashed furiously against the beaches, and the fish showed how strange these impulses of nature were to them, for they were seen jumping wildly out of the water.