New York--The January Snow Blockade--A Snow Plow on the Long Island Railroad Endeavoring to Clear the Track. Snowfall amounts included: New York City: 13.0"; White Plains, NY: 14.0"; Philadelphia: 9.5"; and, Washington, DC: 12.0"
News account:
The snow fell till long past daybreak [on January 2], but the wind continued all day long to whirl and whisk it about, so that it was carried in fleecy clouds along the streets and was swept in glistening particles over the heads of the pedestrians who floundered through the banks in the streets. In the side streets, where there was little traffic, the snow lay in clean, white sheets.
Throughout New Jersey the storm was the severest known since 1859. Snow fell to the depth of a foot on a level. In many places along the Newark meadows it drifted heavily, and under the Orange Mountains, at Montrose, South Orange, Orange Valley, and Montclair, the drifts blockaded the roads to the depth of five or six feet, covering up fences and collecting in huge mounds against the sides of houses (Source: “Monday Night's Storm,” The New York Times, January 3, 1877).
Source of image: New York Public Library's Digital Collections
