MONTANA — Today marks the 67th anniversary of the Hebgen Lake Earthquake, which measured approximately 7.2 on the Richter scale when it occurred in 1959 near midnight just outside of West Yellowstone, Montana.
The earthquake triggered a massive landslide in a canyon close to the Madison River. According to the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the slide traveled 100 mph and moved 80 million tons of rocks. Earthquake “Quake” Lake was formed as a result of the slide, and 28 people were killed.
The following day, the front page of the Bozeman Daily Chronicle was dedicated entirely to the earthquake, with headlines including: “Campers trapped between dam and mountain slide” and “Death toll mounts in face of major Montana disaster.” At the time, the quake was recorded as the second-largest of the 20th century in the lower 48 states.
“Impacts were felt across the region, including damage to Yellowstone roads, buildings, and triggered significant changes to the park’s hydrothermal systems — nearly 300 springs erupted as geysers, new thermal areas formed, and Old Faithful’s eruption scheduled changed,” Yellowstone Forever wrote on social media on Saturday.
According to a 2019 Caldera Chronicles column, many rock slides occurred in Yellowstone National Park (YNP), and the Old Faithful Inn suffered damage when a large rock chimney collapsed. Until the earthquake, the Sapphire Pool in Biscuit Basin had erupted about every 20 minutes to a height of 3 to 6 feet. After the quake, the pool erupted to 8 feet high constantly until Sept. 5. The pool soon became a major geyser, erupting every two hours to a height of 150 feet. That activity lasted until about 1968.
Eight years after the earthquake, the USFS opened the Earthquake Lake Visitor Center, which is located on Highway 287, directly across from the original slide.
