This Winter in Chicago is shaping up to be colder and snowier than in recent years, thanks to the La Niña weather phenomenon, which has coincided with some of the city’s worst blizzards.
What might the upcoming season bring? Let’s look back at some of Chicago’s worst snow storms to give us an idea!
The Blizzard of 1967 – Chicago’s Biggest Snowstorm on Record
Chicago experienced its largest snowstorm on record from January 26-27, 1967.
Snow began falling at 5:30 a.m. on January 26, according to the National Weather Service (NWS), and by 10:10 a.m. the next day, 23 inches had blanketed the city.
During the storm, wind gusts reached up to 53 mph at Midway Airport, and a thunderstorm was even recorded at Northerly Island on the lakefront.
Just two days before the massive blizzard, on January 24, Chicago set a historic warm temperature of 65 degrees—a record that still stands today.
The Election Blizzard of 1979
Chicagoans couldn’t catch a break during the winter of 1978-1979. In November and December of ‘78 alone, more than three feet of snow had already fallen in parts of Chicago.
By the time a New Year’s Eve storm dropped 8 to 11 inches across the city, according to the Chicago Tribune, residents had grown weary of Old Man Winter.
But conditions were about to get much, much worse.
From January 12-14, 1979, as city dwellers were still recovering from the New Year’s storm, a massive blizzard enveloped the region.
Over two days, 20.3 inches of snow piled up, closing O’Hare and Midway airports. The storm crippled transportation, leaving buses and cars stranded mid-road and causing roofs to collapse.
The blizzard was a significant factor in the 1979 mayoral election, according to the Tribune, due to Mayor Michael Bilandic’s botched handling of snow removal in its aftermath.
In February of that year, Bilandic was ousted by Jane Byrne, who made history as Chicago’s first female mayor.
The North American Blizzard of 1999
Just before the millennium drew to a close, Chicago was hit with another historic blizzard.
Beginning on January 2, 1999, 21.6 inches of snow fell across the city over two days, according to ABC7.
Just days after the storm, temperatures dropped below zero, leaving the city frozen under a thick layer of snow and ice.
“Snowmageddon” – The Groundhog Day Blizzard of 2011
Jumping forward to 2011, Chicago saw perhaps the most infamous winter storm of the 21st century to date.
The Groundhog Day Blizzard, also known as “Snowmageddon,” started slowly, with light snow from the evening of January 31 into the morning of February 1.
By the afternoon, the storm intensified, bringing 50-60 mph winds that reduced visibility to near zero and left dozens of cars stranded on DuSable Lake Shore Drive, forcing drivers to abandon their vehicles.
By the time it ended, the storm had buried Chicago in 21.2 inches of snow, going down in history as the city’s third-largest winter storm ever.
The Super Bowl Blizzard of 2015
The winter of 2014-2015 had been relatively quiet in Chicago, with only 15.5 inches of snow recorded through much of January, according to the NWS.
But just when Chicagoans thought they were out of the woods, Mother Nature dealt a crushing blow.
Over a three-day period from January 31 – February 2, 2015, the Chicago area was hit with more snow than it had seen all season.
A whopping 19.3 inches accumulated over Super Bowl weekend, making it the fifth-largest snowstorm in Chicago’s history.