Braving the Elements

The forces of nature struck with a vengeance in 1937, bringing high winds, blinding snow, plummeting temperatures and a loud thunderclap to Times Square on March 9, 1937. New Yorkers caught outside pulled up their collars, put down their heads and leaned into the snow squalls at the southwest corner of 43rd Street and Broadway.

It turned out to be a freak storm. One hour after this photo was taken, there was brilliant sunshine in Times Square. During the storm, temperatures dropped six degrees in 40 minutes, from 38 to 32 degrees. The Times reported that the thunderclap “came in the middle of one of the most blinding of the series of snow flurries … Only a few similar cases are on record.”