Hurricane Esther
Sep 10, 1961 to Sep 27, 1961Peak 161 mph919 mb
Hurricane Esther passed within 50 miles of 25 counties in 5 states. It was strongest near Nassau County, NY, as a Category 1 on September 21, 1961.
- Major hurricane
- Hurricane
- Tropical storm
- Post-tropical
Hurricane Esther · 1961
How it happened
Follow the storm’s path, strength and milestones.
The storm
- Peak strength
- Category 5
- 161 mph, 140 kt
- Lowest pressure
- 919 mb
- Over the whole track
- Counties within 50 miles
- 25
- MA, ME, NH, NY, RI
- Counties within 100 miles
- 46
- CT, MA, ME, NH, NY, RI, VT
- Landfalls recorded
- 3
- Anywhere on the track
Every county it passed
Closest approach to each county boundary, with the storm’s strength at that moment.
| Barnstable County | MA | 0.0 | Tropical storm |
| Sagadahoc County | ME | 0.0 | Tropical storm |
| Kennebec County | ME | 0.0 | Tropical storm |
| Cumberland County | ME | 0.0 | Tropical storm |
| Nantucket County | MA | 1.4 | Tropical storm |
| Lincoln County | ME | 2.0 | Tropical storm |
| Dukes County | MA | 8.6 | Tropical storm |
| Androscoggin County | ME | 11.5 | Tropical storm |
| Waldo County | ME | 12.8 | Tropical storm |
| Franklin County | ME | 13.3 | Tropical storm |
| Knox County | ME | 17.8 | Tropical storm |
| Plymouth County | MA | 19.0 | Tropical storm |
| York County | ME | 19.2 | Tropical storm |
| Essex County | MA | 26.0 | Tropical storm |
| Oxford County | ME | 26.7 | Tropical storm |
| Rockingham County | NH | 29.9 | Tropical storm |
| Bristol County | MA | 33.0 | Tropical storm |
| Norfolk County | MA | 33.8 | Tropical storm |
| Strafford County | NH | 41.9 | Tropical storm |
| Suffolk County | MA | 42.4 | Tropical storm |
| Hancock County | ME | 42.8 | Tropical storm |
| Newport County | RI | 44.7 | Tropical storm |
| Washington County | RI | 44.8 | Category 1 |
| Middlesex County | MA | 48.3 | Tropical storm |
| Suffolk County | NY | 48.6 | Category 1 |
| Carroll County | NH | 51.0 | Tropical storm |
| Bristol County | RI | 52.9 | Tropical storm |
| Providence County | RI | 57.9 | Tropical storm |
| Kent County | RI | 59.7 | Tropical storm |
| Belknap County | NH | 60.3 | Tropical storm |
| Hillsborough County | NH | 60.9 | Tropical storm |
| Coos County | NH | 63.2 | Tropical storm |
| New London County | CT | 63.4 | Category 1 |
| Merrimack County | NH | 64.5 | Tropical storm |
| Worcester County | MA | 68.6 | Tropical storm |
| Grafton County | NH | 73.3 | Tropical storm |
| Middlesex County | CT | 74.5 | Category 1 |
| Windham County | CT | 79.7 | Category 1 |
| New Haven County | CT | 80.0 | Category 1 |
| Essex County | VT | 90.6 | Tropical storm |
| Tolland County | CT | 93.4 | Category 1 |
| Cheshire County | NH | 94.7 | Tropical storm |
| Hartford County | CT | 95.0 | Category 1 |
| Nassau County | NY | 98.5 | Category 1 |
| Fairfield County | CT | 98.6 | Category 1 |
| Sullivan County | NH | 99.6 | Tropical storm |
Distances are measured from hourly positions interpolated between the National Hurricane Center’s six-hourly fixes to each county boundary. Strength is shown only where the storm was still tropical. Methodology.
National Hurricane Center HURDAT2. Storm totals cover the Atlantic and Northeast and Central Pacific basins.