The Year in Rain & Snow
1871
91%
ran at 91% of normal — drier than usual — across 27 cities, the 25th driest of 157 years on record.
Extremes
Biggest Rain Day of 1871
8.12in
Savannah, GA · Aug 19
Snowiest Station of 1871
85.7in
Rochester, NY · calendar-year snowfall
Records Set in 1871
Daily Rainfall Records Set
83
calendar-day rainfall records set in 1871 that still stand today
National Precipitation
91%
of the 1996–2025 average across 27 cities
Where the Year Ran Wet & Dry
Each city's 1871 precipitation as a percent of its 1996–2025 normal — brown where the year ran dry, green-to-blue where it ran wet.
Month by Month
Precipitation by month as a percent of normal — blue above the line is a wet month, amber below is dry.
85%J
104%F
111%M
81%A
83%M
100%J
95%J
116%A
54%S
86%O
135%N
74%D
Driest Stations & States
Driest Stations of 1871
| 1 | Cheyenne WY | 62% |
| 2 | Cleveland OH | 73% |
| 3 | Baltimore MD | 74% |
| 4 | Cincinnati OH | 75% |
| 5 | Pittsburgh PA | 77% |
| 6 | Buffalo NY | 79% |
| 7 | Madison WI | 80% |
| 8 | Lansing MI | 81% |
| 9 | Asheville NC | 84% |
| 10 | Key West FL | 87% |
Wettest Stations of 1871
| 1 | Savannah GA | 135% |
| 2 | Augusta GA | 115% |
| 3 | Omaha NE | 110% |
| 4 | Trenton NJ | 103% |
| 5 | Rochester NY | 102% |
| 6 | New York-Central Park NY | 102% |
| 7 | Reading PA | 99% |
| 8 | Chicago IL | 98% |
| 9 | Knoxville TN | 95% |
| 10 | Mobile AL | 93% |
By State
Wettest states of 1871
Georgia125%Nebraska110%Illinois98%New Jersey97%Tennessee95%New York94%
Driest states of 1871
Wyoming62%Maryland74%Ohio79%Michigan81%North Carolina86%Wisconsin86%
DriestSince · browse by state · precipitation & snowfall records · NOAA/RCC-ACIS ThreadEx gauge record · part of Weather Trader · supported by Substack Subscribers
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© 2026 Weather Trader · All rights reserved