Earthquake at Kanab, Southern Utah
Published October 6, 2026 at 5:41 AM
Contributed by
Millennial Star Research
A significant earthquake struck Kanab on December 5, 1887. The tremor, moving from southeast to northwest, lasted approximately ten seconds, causing dishes to fall from shelves, clocks to stop, chimneys to lose bricks, people to be thrown down, and massive amounts of rock to fall from the cliffs, creating dust clouds. People were frightened, but only minor damage to buildings occurred.
Fuller account of this event (the complete account as preserved in The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, Vol. 50, No. 2, January 9, 1888):
A correspondent of the Deseret News, writing from Kanab, Kane County, Utah, under date of Dec. 5, says: 'We had a very severe earthquake here this morning at 10:30. It lasted about ten seconds, and seemed to travel from the south-east to the north-west. It caused the dishes to rattle on the shelves, stopped the clocks, threw down some bricks from the chimneys, and threw some people down. A large amount of rock fell from the cliffs, and the dust was so thick that it looked like a heavy fog. It was a very frightening experience, but no serious damage was done.'
In Their Own Words
“On Dec. 5, 1887, Kanab, Southern Utah, was the scene of a lively shock of earthquake. The motion seemed to be from southeast to northwest. The shock lasted perhaps ten seconds, and in several houses dishes were shaken from the cupboard shelves, clocks stopped, and bricks fell from the tops of chimneys. Persons walking in houses or on streets were, in some cases, thrown down. Tons of rock fell from the cliffs, raising a dust along the mountain chain. Many people were considerably frightened. No serious damage occurred, only a few cracks in houses. Later in the day rumbling sounds were heard, but no other shocks were noticed. — Millennial Star 50:2”
Sources & References
The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star (Manchester, later Liverpool, England, May 1840–1970), 9 January 1888 (Vol. 50, No. 2). https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1888-01-09_50_2 (account extracted verbatim from the issue's Internet Archive OCR text; research confidence: high) Complete account: The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, Vol. 50, No. 2, January 9, 1888 https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1888-01-09_50_2
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