Meteorological History
A hurricane was first detected on September 9, northeast of the Lesser Antilles. It likely developed from a tropical wave several days before. It moved west-northwestward, and steadily intensified to a 140 mph (230 km/h) major hurricane on the 12th, northeast of the Bahamas. Around this time, the Miami Hurricane Warning Office designated this storm "The Great Atlantic Hurricane" to emphasize its intensity and size, which appears to be the first time a name was designated by the office which evolved into the National Hurricane Center. The hurricane turned northward and hit the Outer Banks later that day.
Moving rapidly to the northeast, the hurricane maintained its strength first giving a strong and destructive glancing blow to the Jersey Shore before making landfall on Long Island on September 15, hitting as a Category 3 hurricane. Shortly thereafter it crossed the Rhode Island coastline, and after emerging into the Massachusetts Bay it hit Maine, just before becoming extratropical. The non-tropical system continued northeastward, and merged with a larger extratropical low on the 16th, south of Greenland.
Read more about this topic: 1944 Great Atlantic Hurricane
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