The Day The Sky Fell
It was October 19, 1936 and a typical enough Monday morning in Old Perlican.
Mrs. Cramm had plenty of work to do. At the top of her list was laundry. Already it was threatening to rain but the wind was brisk enough, she reasoned, that if she hurried she might get the washing hung on the line, dried and back in the house before any showers started.
She set about her work and by mid-afternoon the laundry was dry. Just as she grabbed the clothes basket a bright flash of light stopped her in her tracks.
Above her head a flaming object, maybe 10ft long, she guessed, broke through the clouds. It streaked toward the bay and crashed into the ocean sending a column of water high into the air.
She had never seen anything like it and it was terrifying.
Meteors Fall in Newfoundland
Daily News, October 20, 1936
People in southern and eastern Newfoundland had similar experiences on the afternoon of October 19, 1936. Bright meteors streaked through afternoon sky, seeming to rain down on the landscape. They were seen in Port Blandford, Rencontre East, Avondale, Old Perlican, St. Jacques and many points in between. For many, it was frightening — some wondered whether planes were crashing or if, maybe, the world was coming to an end.
And you can’t blame them for not thinking ‘meteor.’ The event was much bigger and didn’t look much like a typical meteor shower — for one thing, the fireballs were visible in broad daylight — they were spotted between 2:45 and 3:30pm. On top of that, people actually seemed to witness impacts — as with the column of water sighted in Old Perlican.
It was a big deal.
Big enough that it even made the international news, which reported that a meteor struck and set fire to a boat in Placentia Bay.
What Was It?
The Daily News suggested the event was a rare ‘super-meteor’ — a large meteor that survived in the Earth’s atmosphere longer than a typical ‘shooting star.’ They speculated the meteor exploded above the island sending large chunks of rock along the coast.
There probably weren’t as many meteors/pieces as the reports suggest — the same meteor would have been visible over a large area.
Pull The Sky Down//With Violet
Listen to the podcast episode “Pull Down The Sky” to hear more about the 1936 Newfoundland meteor shower and a great chat with the alt-pop band “With Violet.”
Could It Happen Again?
Of course, it could.
There are reports of bright meteors fairly frequent but a sighting like the one described in 1936 — bright enough to been seen in broad daylight is pretty rare.
That said, the Orionid meteor shower, which happens every year in mid-October, will have have its best visibility in the pre-dawn hours of October 21st.
If you get up early who knows what you’ll see.
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Meteors Fall in this Country, Daily News, Oct 20, 1936
Meteoric Showers, The Guardian, October 24, 1936
Meteors and Meteorites, Daily News, Oct 21, 1936
Meteor Impacts, Student Project, Oberlin College
The harrowing tale of a 12 year-old boy from Portugal Cove, Newfoundland and his encounter with a giant squid.