March 15, 1867 Tsunami: Lake Maggiore, Italy
A tsunami caused by an earthquake began at Lake Maggiore, Italy on March 15, 1867 at 18:00 UTC. It killed 16 people, counting the earthquake or eruption that caused it.
Where the waves reached
The source of the tsunami. No runup with a place is recorded for it.
- 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
- March 15, 1867, 18:00 UTC
- Source
- Lake Maggiore, Italy
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Runups recorded
- 0
- Waters
- A lake or river, not the ocean
- How certain
- Questionable tsunami
- Source location
- 46.000° N, 8.700° E
The toll
- Deaths
- 16 with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 million)
- Houses destroyed
- 7 with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
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.
1867, March 15,18h. Northern Italy, Lake Maggiore. Several shocks were felt on the ships sailing on the lake. The water level rose near the coast for 60 cm. Shocks were felt along the coast from Arona to Sesto Calende. The village of Feriolo located on the Sempione road sank partially under the water of the lake. 7 houses together with cattle-sheds and hay-lofts collapsed into the water and buried 16 people; a moorage under construction for ships and part of a street submerged into the lake. (reference #2130)
Reference #13774 states: that earthquake occurred on Lake Maggiore at 6 o'clock in the evening. The steamboats felt several jolts on the lake. The water rose by 60 centimeters on the shore. The shocks were felt along the lake from Aronabis Sesto Calende and the village of Feriolo, on the road to the Simplon, partly sank into the lake. Seven houses including stables and barns collapsed into the water, burying 16 people. Part of the road and the landing stage for the steamboats under construction were also submerged in the lake. (unofficial translation)
1867, March 15. Validity 2. (ref #12345, accessed March 2024)
More
Every tsunami in 1867The 1800sTsunamis of ItalyThis 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 3447.