1875 Tsunami: Bismarck Sea, Papua New Guinea
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 7 earthquake began at Bismarck Sea, Papua New Guinea in 1875. 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
Travel times
How long the first wave took to reach each part of the ocean, one line for each hour up to 24, estimated from the source and the depth of the sea.
The travel times are computed in your browser, which needs JavaScript.
- 1 to 4 hours
- 5 to 6 hours
- 7 to 14 hours
- 15 hours and more
Computed in your browser the way NOAA’s own travel time maps are: the wave travels at the square root of gravity times the depth, over NOAA’s ETOPO1 depths averaged to a 10 arc-minute grid. Checked against NOAA NCEI’s maps for 21 tsunamis over the first 24 hours, these lines fall within 10 minutes of NCEI’s at half the points compared and within 52 minutes at 9 in 10. They give when the first wave could arrive, not how high it is; bays, harbors and island chains finer than the grid can see it later. Not for use in a warning: see tsunami.gov.
The tsunami
- Date
- 1875
- Source
- Bismarck Sea, Papua New Guinea
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 7
- Runups recorded
- 2
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Questionable tsunami
- Source location
- 6.000° S, 147.000° E
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.
1875. Maclay Coast, Hermit Island, New Guinea, 6 S, 147 E, magnitude 7-8, tsunami magnitude 2. A case of great sickness and mortality on the Island Lub or Hermit island), in 1875, after the inundation of some low islands of the group by a tidal wave has been communicated by me in a letter about the Island Lub, to the, Imp. Russ. Geogr. Soc. (Investiya of the Imp. Russ. Geogr. Soc., Vol. XV.) I have heard about a similar case which happened on the Island Mafia (or St. David's Island), some twenty or thirty years ago. (reference #99 and 12433)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maclay Coast | Papua New Guinea | 32 | Eyewitness observation of water height | ||||
| Hermit Islands | Papua New Guinea | 539 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1875The 1800sTsunamis of Papua New GuineaThe earthquakeAlerts 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 1059.