[nb 1] Weather observations were limited for most of the storm's history, so much of its growth has been inferred from scant data analyzed by the Atlantic hurricane reanalysis project in 2008.

The precursor disturbance organized into a small tropical storm by August 12, shortly before crossing the Lesser Antilles into the Caribbean Sea.

Strong gusts and heavy rainfall spread farther inland across mainly rural sectors of southern Texas, damaging towns and their outlying agricultural districts alike.

[3] A possible precursor disturbance may have originated as early as August 8 near Africa, but observations were inconclusive in determining the formation of a tropical cyclone.

[4] The hurricane was first definitively detected as a tropical storm east of Barbados on August 12,[5] based on a 40 mph (64 km/h) wind measurement from a nearby ship.

[4] There were no other observations of similarly gusty winds or low air pressures over the next three days while the system traced out the southern periphery of the Azores High westward into the eastern Caribbean Sea.

[8] During the evening hours, the center of the hurricane made landfall near Baffin Bay, Texas, with maximum sustained winds of 130 mph (210 km/h) and a central pressure of 932 mbar (hPa; 27.52 inHg).

[11] A warning noting the likelihood of hurricane-force winds was issued for the Yucatán Channel near Cuba's Guanahacabibes Peninsula on August 16.

[13] The hurricane dealt a heavy blow to Jamaica when the storm passed south of the Crown colony on the night of August 15,[14] killing seventeen people and leaving thousands homeless.

Weather Bureau did not indicate a landfall,[8] reporting from The Daily Gleaner suggested that the storm's calm eye passed over Kingston and at least four of the island's southern parishes.

The eastern banana-growing belt was thoroughly ruined;[20] five thousand mature banana trees were toppled before the storm's closest approach to Bath, accounting for a near-total loss of the fruit there.

[23] Winds peaked at 80 mph (130 km/h) during the evening hours of August 15 in Bowden, cutting telegraph communications and damaging many buildings and banana trees.

[25][16]: 3 Communications between Kingston and other parishes were cut off for 48 hours after intense winds brought down telegraph and telephone lines,[14][26] making the dissemination of damage reports in Jamaica increasingly difficult.

[14] Rough surf generated by the strong winds sank or grounded vessels and lighters on the shores of Kingston Harbour,[27] with one wreck resulting in two fatalities.

[16] Substantial losses befell crops in Saint Catherine Parish, including severe damage to banana trees between Kingston and Spanish Town.

[14] In the hurricane's aftermath, the colonial government planned to assist growers in re-establishing damaged crops, and also allocated £21,000 to relief efforts.

[29][15]: 4  Owing to the widespread damage to banana crops, the reduced demand for rail service and subsequent cuts in revenue forced the Jamaica Railway Corporation to downsize.

[38] A hundred automobiles were used to escort women and children from vulnerable sections of Corpus Christi to the safer buildings of the business district on the afternoon of August 18, finding havens at banks, hotels, schools, and the city hall.

[39] The coastal steamer Pilot Boy sank in the entrance to the harbor at Port Aransas after being battered by the hurricane's rough seas, killing six of her crew.

[4] Although the surge was attenuated by the hurricane's quick motion, the waves were nonetheless destructive, destroying every pier in Corpus Christi Bay and many boats.

[41] The Category 4 hurricane moved ashore near Baffin Bay at 5:00 p.m. CST (22:00 UTC) on August 18,[4] roughly an hour earlier than forecast.

[10] All Western Union communication lines between San Antonio and Brownsville were severed by 1:30 p.m. CST (18:30 UTC) on August 18, preventing the transmission of early reports from the region and accounting for $50,000 in damage.

[42][43] At Corpus Christi, approximately 45 mi (72 km) northeast of the storm's point of landfall,[10] winds reached at least 90 mph (140 km/h) before the observing station's anemometer was knocked out of commission.

There were two foci of heavy rainfall: the first along the coast where a maximum of 6.0 in (150 mm) was reported in Harlingen, and a second borne of orographic lifting in the mountains of southwestern Texas.

[64] Some militia camps were also deluged by the heavy rainfall in the Brownsville area,[65] destroying thousands of dollars worth of government equipment after perishable munitions were exposed to the elements.

[68] Similar damage occurred farther upstream along the Rio Grande Valley in Laredo, where the hurricane tore down small buildings and communication poles.

[71] Sections of the San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway and International–Great Northern Railroad were put out of commission, the former left mangled and obstructed by debris.