1946 the 1946 vancouver island earthquake strikes vancouver islan 06 23
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1946 80 years ago Selected Events June 23 3 sources

Canada's largest recorded onshore earthquake struck Vancouver Island, British Columbia.

On June 23, in the year 1946, Canada's largest recorded onshore earthquake struck Vancouver Island, British Columbia. This event is recorded as a Selected Events event in the history of June 23, one of 406 recorded events on this date across all of history.

The 1946 Vancouver Island earthquake struck Vancouver Island on the coast of British Columbia, Canada, on June 23 at 10:15 a.m. with a magnitude estimated at 7.0 Ms and 7.5 Mw. The main shock epicenter occurred in the Forbidden Plateau area northwest of Courtenay. While most of the large earthquakes in the Vancouver area occur at tectonic plate boundaries, the 1946 Vancouver Island earthquake was a crustal event. Shaking was felt from Portland, Oregon, to Prince Rupert, British Columbia. This is one of the most damaging earthquakes in the history of British Columbia, but damage was restricted because there were no heavily populated areas near the epicentre, where severe shaking occurred.

Key Facts

  • This event took place on June 23, 1946 (AD era).
  • It is categorised as a Selected Events event in recorded history.
  • Referenced in 3 Wikipedia articles.
  • Wikipedia source last updated on 21 January 2026.

On This Date in History 406

Type Year Date Event
Notable Deaths 2025 Jun 23 Rebekah Del Rio, American singer-songwriter (born 1967)
Notable Deaths 2025 Jun 23 John Clark, Scottish Footballer and Lisbon Lion (born 1941)
Notable Deaths 2021 Jun 23 John McAfee, British-American computer programmer and businessman, founded McAfee (born 1945)
Historical Events 2018 Jun 23 Twelve boys and an assistant coach from a soccer team in Thailand are trapped in a flooding cave, leading to an 18-day r
Historical Events 2017 Jun 23 A series of terrorist attacks take place in Pakistan, resulting in 96 deaths and wounding 200 others
Historical Events 2016 Jun 23 The United Kingdom votes in a referendum to leave the European Union, by 52% to 48%
Notable Deaths 2016 Jun 23 Ralph Stanley, American singer and banjo player (born 1927)
Selected Events 2016 Jun 23 Citizens of the United Kingdom voted in favour of leaving the European Union
Notable Deaths 2015 Jun 23 Miguel Facussé Barjum, Honduran businessman (born 1924)
Notable Deaths 2015 Jun 23 Nirmala Joshi, Indian nun, lawyer, and social worker (born 1934)
Notable Deaths 2015 Jun 23 Dick Van Patten, American actor (born 1928)
Historical Events 2014 Jun 23 The last of Syria's declared chemical weapons are shipped out for destruction
Notable Deaths 2014 Jun 23 Nancy Garden, American author (born 1938)
Notable Deaths 2014 Jun 23 Euros Lewis, Welsh cricketer (born 1942)
Notable Deaths 2014 Jun 23 Paula Kent Meehan, American businesswoman, co-founded Redken (born 1931)
Historical Events 2013 Jun 23 Nik Wallenda becomes the first man to successfully walk across the Grand Canyon on a tight rope
Historical Events 2013 Jun 23 Militants storm a high-altitude mountaineering base camp near Nanga Parbat in Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan, killing ten cl
Notable Deaths 2013 Jun 23 Bobby Bland, American singer-songwriter (born 1930)
Notable Deaths 2013 Jun 23 Gary David Goldberg, American screenwriter and producer (born 1944)
Notable Deaths 2013 Jun 23 Frank Kelso, American admiral and politician, United States Secretary of the Navy (born 1933)
Notable Deaths 2013 Jun 23 Kurt Leichtweiss, German mathematician and academic (born 1927)
Notable Deaths 2013 Jun 23 Richard Matheson, American author and screenwriter (born 1926)
Notable Deaths 2013 Jun 23 Darryl Read, English singer-songwriter, drummer, and actor (born 1951)
Notable Deaths 2013 Jun 23 Sharon Stouder, American swimmer (born 1948)
Historical Events 2012 Jun 23 Ashton Eaton breaks the decathlon world record at the United States Olympic Trials
Notable Deaths 2012 Jun 23 James Durbin, English economist and statistician (born 1923)
Notable Deaths 2012 Jun 23 Brigitte Engerer, French pianist and educator (born 1952)
Notable Deaths 2012 Jun 23 Alan McDonald, Northern Ireland footballer and manager (born 1963)
Notable Deaths 2012 Jun 23 Frank Chee Willeto, American soldier and politician, 4th Vice President of the Navajo Nation (born 1925)
Notable Deaths 2012 Jun 23 Walter J
Notable Deaths 2011 Jun 23 Peter Falk, American actor (born 1927)
Notable Deaths 2011 Jun 23 Dennis Marshall, Costa Rican footballer (born 1985)
Notable Deaths 2011 Jun 23 Fred Steiner, American composer and conductor (born 1923)
Notable Deaths 2010 Jun 23 John Burton, Australian public servant and diplomat (born 1915)
Notable Deaths 2009 Jun 23 Raymond Berthiaume, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer (born 1931)
Notable Deaths 2009 Jun 23 Ed McMahon, American game show host and announcer (born 1923)
Notable Deaths 2009 Jun 23 Jerri Nielsen, American physician and explorer (born 1952)
Notable Births 2008 Jun 23 Lilliana Ketchman, American dancer and YouTuber
Notable Deaths 2008 Jun 23 Claudio Capone, Italian-Scottish actor (born 1952)
Notable Deaths 2008 Jun 23 Arthur Chung, Guyanese surveyor and politician, 1st President of Guyana (born 1918)
Notable Deaths 2008 Jun 23 Marian Glinka, Polish actor and bodybuilder (born 1943)
Notable Births 2007 Jun 23 Elliana Walmsley, American dancer
Notable Deaths 2007 Jun 23 Rod Beck, American baseball player (born 1968)
Notable Deaths 2006 Jun 23 Aaron Spelling, American actor, producer, and screenwriter, founded Spelling Television (born 1923)
Notable Deaths 2006 Jun 23 Harriet, Western Santa Cruz tortoise (born c
Historical Events 2005 Jun 23 American social news and discussion site Reddit is founded in Medford, Massachusetts by Steve Huffman and Alexis Ohanian
Notable Deaths 2005 Jun 23 Shana Alexander, American journalist and author (born 1926)
Notable Deaths 2005 Jun 23 Manolis Anagnostakis, Greek poet and critic (born 1925)
Notable Deaths 2002 Jun 23 Pedro Alcázar, Panamanian boxer (born 1975)
Historical Events 2001 Jun 23 The 8

This article draws on content from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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