How Many Earthquakes Have Been Recorded In North Dakota?

Speaking from experience as a person who grew up in Southern Illinois, I can say it's truly a terrifying feeling.

You hear the rumble, then you start to feel the quake under your feet. It takes a minute for your brain to process what is happening, but after a minute, you realize it's an earthquake.

North Dakotans are pretty lucky; we haven't experienced too many earthquakes over the years. As a matter of fact, according to a report done by the North Dakota Department of Mineral Resources, we live in one of the least seismologically active areas in the United States.

While earthquakes aren't something we worry about day-to-day, they have happened.

(Also Read: [PICTURES] Remembering the 1957 Fargo F5 - Tornado Terror In North Dakota) 

North Dakota Earthquake Record

According to the National Geologic Survey, North Dakota sits on two fault lines: the Thompson Boundary Fault, and Tabbernor Fault/Fold Zone. According to the report, we've recorded earthquakes all the way back to 1915.

August 8th, 1915 - near Williston (3.7 estimated)

April 29th, 1927 - near Hebron (3.2 estimated)

October 26th, 1926 - near Williston (3.7 estimated)

May 13th, 1947 - near Selfridge (3.7 estimated)

July 8th, 1968 - near Huff (4.4 magnitude)

March 9th, 1982 - near Grenora (3.3 magnitude)

November 11th, 1998 - near Grenora (3.5 magnitude)

November 15th, 2008 - near Goodrich (2.6 magnitude)

January 3rd, 2009 - near Grenora (1.5 magnitude)

August 30th, 2009 - SW Ft. Berthold (1.9 magnitude)

March 21st, 2010 - near Buford (2.5 magnitude)

June 14th, 2010 - near Boxelder Creek (1.4 magnitude)

September 28th, 2012 - near Williston (3.3 magnitude)

Thankfully, those are the only recorded earthquakes I could find in North Dakota. Remember: they could happen at any time, and by looking at this data, it seems certain North Dakota cities get hit more than others.

Now that we've gone over earthquakes, let's look at our state's history with tornadoes.