November 17, 1857 Tsunami: Kema, Sulawesi I, N. Moluccas Is, Indonesia
A tsunami caused by an earthquake began at Kema, Sulawesi I, N. Moluccas Is, Indonesia on November 17, 1857. Its effects were recorded at 2 places.
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
The tsunami
- Date
- November 17, 1857
- Source
- Kema, Sulawesi I, N. Moluccas Is, Indonesia
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- The earthquake
- Runups recorded
- 2
- Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
- 1.5
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Probable tsunami
- Source location
- 1.350° N, 125.200° E
The toll
- Damage
- Moderate (about $1 to $5 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.
1857, November 17, 4:00-4:30. There were shocks at Manado, Kema and on Ternate Island. Very high tidal waves appeared at the latter two points and carried away many huts and trees. The old men could not remember such large floods. (reference #414)
1857, October 17. Kema and Manado, Mlnahassa peninsula, north Sulawesi; Ternate: At 4:30 a.m .. a shock was felt in Kemu and Menado followed by a tsunami that washed away multiple huts and trees near Kema. Other shocks occurred at 6 and 9 a.m., and another tsunami accompanied the second shock at Kema. Shocks were still felt in Menudo in March and later. At Temate, on the other side of the Molucca Sea, a weak shock was also felt at around 4:30 a.m. and the following groundswell (tsunami?) reached a height lhat was unknown even to the oldest residents and caused devastations. likely source: Sangihe megathrust. (reference #11528)
Every runup
Nearest the source first. Heights are above sea level at the time; a tide gauge reads half the wave’s full height.
| Where | Country | Km from source | Water height, m | Inland, m | Measured by | First wave, UTC | Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kema, Sulawesi Island | Indonesia | 14 | Eyewitness observation of water height | ||||
| Ternate Island | Indonesia | 250 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1857The 1800sTsunamis of IndonesiaThe earthquakeThis 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 872.