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New Madrid earthquake shakes the Mississippi Valley

A powerful earthquake near New Madrid (present-day Missouri) struck on December 16, 1811, producing intense shaking felt across much of the eastern United States.

New Madrid earthquake shakes the Mississippi Valley

The quake devastated frontier settlements, altered the Mississippi River locally, and became the most significant seismic event in early U.S. history, creating a major natural-crisis context for the Madison administration and frontier communities.

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