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Southwest Lower Michigan Weather History
The Weather History for the Month of November
- 11/1/1950
- Warm weather starts the month with temperatures around 80 degrees across Lower Michigan. Lansing sets their record high for the month of November at 81 degrees.
- 11/1/1976
- Cold weather will rule this month across Lower Michigan. Grand Rapids sets a record low of 21 degrees to start the coldest November on record there.
- 11/2/1938
- A record high of 77 degrees is set at Grand Rapids as a three day spell of very warm weather begins the month.
- 11/3/1966
- A record early season snowstorm drops 6 to 12 inches of snow across southwest Lower Michigan.
- 11/3/1990
- Heavy fog resulted in a fatal aircraft accident near Shelby, Michigan. A private plane trying to land at the local airport in the fog stalled and crashed, killing the pilot.
- 11/4/2003
- Heavy rains of an inch or more across southwest Lower Michigan on this day set the tone for November, 2003. This turns out to be the wettest November on record at both Grand Rapids and Lansing.
- 11/5/1951
- The temperature plunges to six degrees at Grand Rapids, a record for early season cold.
- 11/5/1990
- Heavy rains inundate southern Lower Michigan. The 2.12 inches of rain at Muskegon makes this the wettest November day on record
- 11/6/1880
- An early season snowstorm strikes during one of the coldest Novembers on record in Lower Michigan. At Lansing, a foot of snow is measured on this day.
- 11/6/1951
- Snow and cold dominate the month of November across western Lower Michigan, especially the first week. The morning low of 12 degrees at Muskegon is the fifth consecutive daily record low temperature. Lake effect snow continues piling up at a record pace with more than two feet of snow falling at Grand Rapids in the first week of November.
- 11/6/1975
- Record warm weather prevails across Michigan with Grand Rapids and Lansing both reaching 77 degrees.
- 11/7/1877
- Record cold freezes Lower Michigan following a heavy snowfall on November 5th. At Lansing the temperature plunges to 4 degrees on the 5th and 6th, and 8 degrees on this day.
- 11/8/1921
- A record early season snowstorm buries Lower Michigan with over a foot of heavy, wet snow in some places. Lansing measures 18.9 inches for its greatest November snowfall on record.
- 11/8/1991
- A vast flow of arctic air dominates the Midwest during early November, 1991. Several inches of snow fall from the 2nd through the 6th followed by the passage of a cold dome of high pressure that sets record lows of 11 degrees at Lansing and 16 degrees at Grand Rapids on this date.
- 11/9/1913
- A massive storm that became known as The White Hurricane sank numerous ships on the Great Lakes and caused millions of dollars in damage across Michigan. This storm was one of the deadliest and most destructive natural disasters to hit the Great Lakes, killing more than 250 people while wrecking 19 ships and stranding 19 others. The financial loss in vessels alone was nearly five million dollars, or about 100 million dollars at current value. Lost cargo, such as coal, iron ore, and grain was estimated at over 68,000 tons.
- 11/10/1975
- A powerful storm brought high winds across Lower Michigan, toppling trees and power lines. A tornado was spun up by the storm, damaging mobile homes and a barn in Allegan County. The Edmund Fitzgerald sank in Lake Superior during the storm, with a crew of 29 men. There were no survivors. The ore carrier left Superior, Wisconsin on November 9 loaded with 26,116 tons of taconite pellets. The cargo was to be delivered to Detroit, but the ship ran into winds of at least 60 mph and high waves and foundered at about 730 pm north of Whitefish Point.
- 11/10/1998
- A November storm lashes the Great Lakes with wind gusts up to 90 mph. Over 167,000 homes were without power and cleanup efforts were extensive as many homes and businesses suffered roof and siding damage and thousands of trees were blown down. The high winds literally blew much of the water out of Saginaw Bay, with the water level dropping several feet and large sections of the Bay becoming dry land for a time. A waterspout on Lake Michigan briefly moved inland near Muskegon, but rapidly dissipated and caused no damage.
- 11/11/1911
- A tornado outbreak strikes the Midwest, killing more than a dozen people. Nine people are killed as a violent tornado hits Janesville, Wisconsin. Within an hour, survivors of the storm were digging out in near-blizzard conditions with zero degree temperatures. In Michigan, a tornado kills two people and injures 21 others as it destroys five factories and 21 homes in the northern part of Owosso in Shiawassee County. Another tornado hits southeast of Battle Creek in Calhoun County, leveling barns and taking the roofs off homes. A tornado near Kingsland in Eaton County kills cattle and horses.
- 11/11/1940
- The Armistice Day storm strikes with hurricane force winds, producing blizzard conditions across Minnesota and mountainous waves on Lake Michigan, where five vessels are lost, claiming 66 lives.
- 11/11/1995
- A strong cold front passage is followed by high winds and lake effect snow. From three to seven inches of snow fell across Ottawa and Kent Counties in a six hour period. The heavy snowfall combined with high winds caused widespread power outages due to tree limbs falling and lines breaking. In South Haven a garage roof was destroyed by a falling tree. Power outages affected more than 50,000 people.
- 11/12/1873
- Winter arrives early with 5 inches of snow at Lansing, followed by a string of record lows in the single digits, including a 1 degree reading on the morning of the 13th.
- 11/13/1986
- High temperatures are held in the upper teens to lower 20s as arctic air pours into Lower Michigan. The high of 19 degrees at Grand Rapids is a record for the date and the coldest high temperature for so early in the season.
- 11/14/1908
- Heavy snow falls across western Lower Michigan with a total of 16 inches at Muskegon, a record total for any November day.
- 11/15/1933
- Michigan is in the grip of a four day cold snap. The low of 10 degrees at Grand Rapids only rises to 18 degrees during the afternoon as lake effect snow showers swirl around and an icy northwest wind makes it feel even colder.
- 11/16/1959
- A vast area of arctic high pressure brings record cold to much of the continental United States. High temperatures only reach the teens across much of Lower Michigan followed by record lows in the single digits on the morning of the 17th.
- 11/17/1989
- Grand Rapids picks up seven inches of snow, bringing accumulations during a three day storm to over a foot.
- 11/18/1958
- Record high temperatures are set all across Lower Michigan as a southerly flow of air pushes afternoon high temperatures to around 70 degrees. At Muskegon, the temperature hits a record 71 degrees for the second day in a row.
- 11/19/1930
- Record late season warmth was across Lower Michigan with highs of 74 degrees at Grand Rapids and Lansing.
- 11/20/1869
- More than a foot of snow fell at Lansing, setting a record for the most ever recorded during the month of November.
- 11/20/2000
- An intense lake effect snow squall dropped almost a foot of snow on Grand Rapids, setting a record for the most snow in a November day there.
- 11/21/1880
- Bitterly cold conditions prevail across Lower Michigan. It's the coldest November day on record at Lansing with a high of only 12 degrees. The low of four below zero is the earliest subzero temperature on record there.
- 11/21/1913
- Record warmth prevails across Lower Michigan with high temperatures in the upper 60s and lower 70s. The 70 degree reading at Grand Rapids is a late season record.
- 11/22/1866
- Seven inches of snow piles up in Lansing as temperatures plunge to the single digits.
- 11/22/1963
- President John Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas, Texas. The weather in Lower Michigan is unusually warm with morning lows around 50 degrees and afternoon highs in the 60s. The month ends up being one of the warmest Novembers on record.
- 11/23/1931
- A record late warm spell peaks on this date with a high of 70 degrees at Grand Rapids setting a record for the warmest temperature so late in the season. It is the warmest November on record at Grand Rapids and Muskegon.
- 11/24/1950
- A massive storm moves through the northeast United States, producing blizzard conditions and record low pressure, and drawing extremely cold arctic air south across Michigan. The bitterly cold air results in high temperatures only around 10 degrees, with record lows down to nine below zero at Grand Rapids.
- 11/25/1950
- The temperature plunges to an incredible 14 below zero at Muskegon, for the coldest November temperature on record. Grand Rapids hits 10 below for their November record low.
- 11/25/2004
- A snowstorm drops between 3 and 10 inches of snow across southwest Lower Michigan. Grand Rapids has a daily record snowfall of 9.7 inches.
- 11/26/1896
- Record warm temperatures in the 60s occur across Lower Michigan. The warmth does not last long, though. A sharp cold front is followed by plunging temperatures for the end of the month. The high of 64 degrees at Lansing is followed by a low of 18 degrees on the next day, and a low of 8 degrees on November 30th.
- 11/26/1949
- Lansing falls to 5 below zero, the lowest November temperature on record there.
- 11/27/1930
- What a difference a week makes. After record highs in the 70s only a week before, temperatures plunge to record low levels with high temperatures only around 15 degrees during the day.
- 11/27/1989
- Severe weather strikes Lower Michigan with downburst winds and tornadoes. A tornado did a quarter million dollars of damage as it cut a six mile path south of Portland in Ionia County. Another tornado caused minor damage over a three mile long path south of Durand in Shiawassee County.
- 11/28/1955
- Bitterly cold arctic air is firmly entrenched across Lower Michigan. The high temperature at Lansing is only 15 degrees, after a morning low of 6. Meanwhile, a foot of lake effect snow piles up at Muskegon.
- 11/29/1929
- A month after the great stock market crash, it is the temperature that crashes in Lower Michigan. Record morning cold in the single digits is followed by afternoon highs only in the 10 to 15 degree range.
- 11/29/1960
- A strong cold front moves through dropping temperatures dramatically and setting off lake effect snow showers. The temperature stays in the 20s during the day at Muskegon, after a high of 61 degrees the day before. The freighter Francisco Morazan runs aground off South Manitou Island in northern Lake Michigan during a heavy lake effect snow squall. All aboard are rescued by the Coast Guard in near white-out conditions.
- 11/29/1998
- Balmy weather prevails during the final days of November, with lows in the 50s and highs in the 60s. Record highs today include the 65 degrees at Muskegon, Lansing and Grand Rapids.
- 11/30/1958
- November ends on a frigid note with lows in the single numbers and highs only in the lower 20s. From 6 to 10 inches of lake effect snow piles up near Lake Michigan.
- 11/30/1976
- One of the coldest Novembers on record ends with a blast of arctic air that drops low temperatures near zero and keeps highs only in the teens. Big Rapids falls to one degree below zero and Grand Haven measures three inches of lake effect snow.
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