The January 1886 blizzard in North America was caused by a strong extratropical cyclone which initially dropped southeast across Texas before strengthening while it moved through the South and East, near the Eastern Seaboard through New England.

The system brought high winds and snowfall near and west of its path, resulting in blizzard conditions across portions of the Plains and East.

[1] A cold wave was ongoing across the northern Plains when this low developed, with temperatures close to −50 °F (−46 °C) near the central Canada–US border.

[3] The lowest pressure measured on land was 28.69 inches of mercury (972 hPa) at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Providence, Rhode Island, and Blue Hill Observatory in Massachusetts; the cyclone was considered one of the most extreme to pass through New England at the time.

[4] The low pressure area moved at an average forward motion of 34 miles per hour (55 km/h) through the United States.

The gale in New York City blew away the anemometer cups at the local weather observing site, and led to numerous maritime mishaps.

[5] Provincetown, Massachusetts, experienced its worst gale in a decade,[3] with winds peaking at an estimated 68 miles per hour (109 km/h).

[3] As the initial low pressure system formed, a cold front swept through the Plains, stirring up snow which had fallen from a previous blizzard.

Although a minimal amount of new snow fell, blizzard conditions resumed in Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska late on January 6 due to increasing winds.

Telegraph wires were downed over a large area, with the rails of the Santa Fe, Burlington, Union, and Kansas Pacific railroads recovered with snow, resuspending travel.

[7] Other locations across the Midwest received blizzard condition's along the inverted trough to the north and northwest of the main low pressure area.

[14] As the system moved through New England, snowfall appeared concentrated along the cyclone's path, with areas of over 15 inches (38 cm) measured across southeast Connecticut and northeast Massachusetts.