On March 2, 1937 at 8:48 AM Central Stantard Time (14:48 G.M.T.) an earthquake occurred in western Ohio near the town of Anna, Ohio. This earthquake was felt in Michigan, Kentucky, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Canada. The earthquake had an assigned intensity of MM V. Damage from the earthquake was mainly to chimneys and plaster walls.
A second earthquake occurred on March 8 at 11:45 PM C.S.T. (March 9, at 05:44 G.M.T.). The earthquake occurred at the same location as the March 2 event. This second shock was the stronger of the 2, with intensity assignments of MM VII - VIII.
Anna, Ohio, the town closest to the epicenter, again sustained the most damage. Some repaired chimneys from the March 2 earthquake were again knocked down. Damage in general was greater from this earthquake. Walls and foundations were cracked. Some buildings experienced further damage. Cemeteries near the town had a number of tombstones rotated off their bases.
This shock was felt over a larger area. In addition to parts of Ohio, it was also felt in Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and southern Canada. The shock affected the flows of water, oil and gas wells near the area of the epicenter.
Below are some of the photos of damage in and around Anna, Ohio.
A Macrosiesmic Study of the Ohio Earthquakes of March, 1937, A.J. Westland, S.J. and Ross R. Heinrich
- Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, Vol. 30, no.3, fig. 3, pp 251 - 260. July, 1940.
Earthquake History of the United States, U.S. Department of Commerce Publication 41-1