January 10, 1949: Snow In Southern California

January 10, 1949: The Blizzard of '49... in Southern California! As far as anyone knows, this is the 1st time snow has ever fallen on Los Angeles, and the 1st time on San Diego since 1850.

Actually, there is a scientific definition of "blizzard," and this storm did not meet it. A "blizzard" is a severe snowstorm characterized by strong sustained winds and low visibility, lasting for a prolonged period of time, typically at least three or four hours. In other words, the amount of snowfall has nothing to do with it. Yet any major snowfall tends to get called a "blizzard," whether it meets the definition or not. And any snowfall in Southern California would feel like a "blizzard" to people living there who never lived anywhere else, and weren't used to it.

And, on January 10, 1949, a snowstorm hit Los Angeles and the surrounding areas. It was caused by a weather pattern that brought cold air from Canada and Alaska down to Southern California, where it met with a low-pressure system moving in from the Pacific Ocean.

The result was a snowstorm that dropped up to 4 inches of snow in some areas, and even more in some of the surrounding mountains. The snow caused widespread disruption and excitement, with schools closing, highways becoming blocked, and people flocking to parks and hillsides to play in the snow.

Many residents, especially those who had never experienced snow before, were thrilled by the novelty of the event, while others were less happy about the disruption to their daily lives.

The newspapers of the time reported extensively on the snowstorm, with headlines such as "Snowstorm Paralyzes Southland," "Southland Shivers Under Blanket of Snow," and "Record Snowfall Delights and Inconveniences Angelenos."

It was not unprecedented. It snowed in parts of Los Angeles in 1913, 1921, 1922, 1926 and 1944. But not since 1882, when the Los Angeles Herald was moved to print the headline, "How's That for Semi-Tropical?" had never been as widespread, or as deep, as it was in 1949.

Trace amounts of snow would fall on L.A. again in 1957 and 1962. I wonder what Dodger owner Walter O'Malley, used to the weather in New York, thought about that. At any rate, it hasn't happened since.

UPDATE: In 2025, when discussing Los Angeles weather and its effects that caused the devastating wildfires of the start of that year, Bill Pazeet, a climatologist at the NASA Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena, also addressed the city's long snow drought. He blamed it on the urban heat island effect -- paved surfaces are hotter than the natural ground -- and climate change.

Winter temperatures, particularly average daily lows, have risen dramatically over the past 75 years. While he said it's not impossible for it to snow again in Los Angeles, he thinks, based on prediction models, "by 2050, no way."

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January 10, 1949 was a Monday. Future heavyweight boxing champion George Foreman was born.

Baseball and football were out of season. And no NHL games were scheduled. There was 1 game in the Basketball Association of America, the league that would become the NBA the next season: The Washington Capitols beat the Boston Celtics, 94-83 at the Boston Garden. The Caps would reach the BAA Finals, losing to the Minneapolis Lakers. Their coach would later coach the Celtics. His name was Arnold Jacob Auerbach, nicknamed Red even though his red hair was now mostly gone.