A sweeping US heat wave has prompted fresh advisories, but many states already hold their own all-time hottest temperature records—some set more than a century ago. From California’s 134°F record in 1913 to Oregon’s 119°F in 2021, the list of extremes shows ho
The first sign usually isn’t the thermometer—it’s what comes next.
This week. the National Weather Service warned that dangerous. potentially record-breaking heat would spread across the eastern two-thirds of the US. pushing heat advisories ahead of the Independence Day weekend. For many people, the shock won’t be the heat itself. It will be how quickly it feels like it matches the worst days already filed into each state’s record books.
Global warming has raised the backdrop. In January. the World Meteorological Organization reported that 2024 was the hottest year on record. and 2026 is shaping up to be a scorcher too. Europe’s heat wave has already been breaking records and is creating a rising death toll. In the US. Americans are feeling that pressure as high temperatures sweep across the country—and as the calendar turns to one of the season’s most exposed moments.
Even so. the numbers tell an arresting story by themselves: the highest temperature ever recorded in the US is 134 degrees Fahrenheit in California in 1913. And across the country. states set their all-time hottest temperature records decades ago—long before the most recent surge in global temperatures.
ALABAMA: 112 degrees Fahrenheit — Centreville — September 6. 1925 ALASKA: 100 degrees Fahrenheit — Fort Yukon — June 27. 1915 ARIZONA: 128 degrees Fahrenheit — Lake Havasu City — June 29. 1994 ARKANSAS: 120 degrees Fahrenheit — Ozark National Forest — August 10. 1936 CALIFORNIA: 134 degrees Fahrenheit — Furnace Creek (formerly Greenland Ranch) — July 10. 1913 COLORADO: 115 degrees Fahrenheit — John Martin Dam — July 10. 2019 CONNECTICUT: 106 degrees Fahrenheit
— Danbury — July 15. 1995 (Torrington also reached 106 degrees Fahrenheit on August 23. 1916) DELAWARE: 110 degrees Fahrenheit — Millsboro — July 21. 1930 FLORIDA: 109 degrees Fahrenheit — Monticello — June 29. 1931 GEORGIA: 112 degrees Fahrenheit — Greenville — August 20. 1983 (Louisville. Georgia. also reached 112 degrees Fahrenheit on July 24. 1952) HAWAII: 100 degrees Fahrenheit — Pahala — April 27. 1931 IDAHO: 118 degrees Fahrenheit — Orofino — July
28. 1934 ILLINOIS: 117 degrees Fahrenheit — East St. Louis — July 14. 1954 INDIANA: 116 degrees Fahrenheit — Collegeville — July 14. 1936 IOWA: 118 degrees Fahrenheit — Keokuk — July 20. 1934 KANSAS: 121 degrees Fahrenheit — Alton — July 24. 1936 (Fredonia. Kansas. also reached 121 degrees Fahrenheit on July 18. 1936) KENTUCKY: 114 degrees Fahrenheit — Greensburg — July 28. 1930 LOUISIANA: 114 degrees Fahrenheit — Plain Dealing — August 10.
1936 MAINE: 105 degrees Fahrenheit — North Bridgton — July 10. 1911 (North Bridgton also reached 105 degrees Fahrenheit on July 4. 1911) MARYLAND: 109 degrees Fahrenheit — Cumberland — July 10. 1936 (Cumberland. Maryland. reached 109 degrees Fahrenheit on August 7. 1918 and August 6. 1918; Keedysville reached 109 degrees Fahrenheit on August 6. 1918; Boettcherville reached 109 degrees Fahrenheit on July 3. 1898) MASSACHUSETTS: 107 degrees Fahrenheit — New Bedford — August 2.
1975 (Chester. Massachusetts. also reached 107 degrees Fahrenheit on August 2. 1975) MICHIGAN: 112 degrees Fahrenheit — Mio — July 13. 1936 (Stanwood. Michigan. also reached 112 degrees Fahrenheit on July 13. 1936) MINNESOTA: 115 degrees Fahrenheit — Beardsley — July 29. 1917 MISSISSIPPI: 115 degrees Fahrenheit — Holly Springs — July 29. 1930 MISSOURI: 118 degrees Fahrenheit — Union — July 14. 1954 (Warsaw. Missouri. also hit 118 degrees Fahrenheit on July 14. 1954)
MONTANA: 117 degrees Fahrenheit — Medicine Lake — July 5. 1937 (Glendive also reached 117 degrees Fahrenheit on July 20. 1893) NEBRASKA: 118 degrees Fahrenheit — Minden — July 24. 1936 (Hartington also reached 118 degrees Fahrenheit on July 17. 1936; Geneva reached 118 degrees Fahrenheit on July 15. 1934) NEVADA: 125 degrees Fahrenheit — Laughlin — June 29. 1994 NEW HAMPSHIRE: 106 degrees Fahrenheit — Nashua — July 4. 1911 NEW JERSEY: 110 degrees
Fahrenheit — Runyon (near Sayreville) — July 10. 1936 NEW MEXICO: 122 degrees Fahrenheit — Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (near Loving) — June 27. 1994 NEW YORK: 108 degrees Fahrenheit — Troy — July 22. 1926 NORTH CAROLINA: 110 degrees Fahrenheit — Fayetteville — August 21. 1983 NORTH DAKOTA: 121 degrees Fahrenheit — Steele — July 6. 1936 (Bismarck’s record location listed as Steele) OHIO: 113 degrees Fahrenheit — Gallipolis — July 21. 1934 OKLAHOMA:
120 degrees Fahrenheit — Altus — August 12. 1936 (Altus first hit the record on July 19. 1936; Poteau also reached 120 degrees Fahrenheit on August 10. 1936; Alva reached 120 degrees Fahrenheit on July 18. 1936) OREGON: 119 degrees Fahrenheit — Pelton Dam — June 29. 2021 (Moody Farms Agrimet. Oregon. also reached 120 degrees Fahrenheit on June 29. 2021; Pendleton. Oregon. reached 120 degrees Fahrenheit on August 10. 1898) PENNSYLVANIA: 111 degrees Fahrenheit
— Phoenixville — July 10. 1936 (Phoenixville also hit 111 degrees Fahrenheit on July 9. 1936) RHODE ISLAND: 104 degrees Fahrenheit — Providence — August 2. 1975 SOUTH CAROLINA: 113 degrees Fahrenheit — Columbia — June 29. 2012 (Columbia. South Carolina) SOUTH DAKOTA: 120 degrees Fahrenheit — Fort Pierre — July 15. 2006 (Gann Valley. South Dakota. also hit 120 degrees Fahrenheit on July 5. 1936) TENNESSEE: 113 degrees Fahrenheit — Perryville — August 9.
1930 (Perryville. Tennessee. also hit 113 degrees Fahrenheit on July 29. 1930) TEXAS: 120 degrees Fahrenheit — Monahans — June 28. 1994 (Seymour also hit 120 degrees Fahrenheit on August 12. 1936) UTAH: 117 degrees Fahrenheit — St. George — July 10, 2021 (St. George also hit 117 degrees Fahrenheit on July 5. 1985) VERMONT: 107 degrees Fahrenheit — Vernon — July 7. 1912 VIRGINIA: 110 degrees Fahrenheit — Balcony Falls — July 15. 1954
(Columbia. Virginia. also hit 110 degrees Fahrenheit on July 7. 1900 and July 5. 1900) WASHINGTON: 118 degrees Fahrenheit — Hanford — June 29. 2021 WEST VIRGINIA: 112 degrees Fahrenheit — Martinsburg — July 10. 1936 (Moorefield also hit 112 degrees Fahrenheit on August 4. 1930) WISCONSIN: 114 degrees Fahrenheit — Wisconsin Dells — July 13. 1936 WYOMING: 115 degrees Fahrenheit — Diversion Dam — July 15. 1988 (Basin. Wyoming. also hit 115 degrees Fahrenheit
on August 8. 1983).
The sequence is stark: the warning this week comes as 2024 has already been documented as the warmest year on record. and 2026 threatens another round. Yet the hottest days in each state are not abstract—they’re anchored to precise places and dates. from California’s 1913 134 degrees Fahrenheit to Oregon’s heat record-breaking 2021 numbers.
In January. the World Meteorological Organization said 2024 was the hottest year on record. and in 2021. Oregon. Utah. and Washington broke heat records. With the National Weather Service focused on the eastern two-thirds of the US ahead of Independence Day. the question for families and businesses isn’t whether extremes exist—it’s how close this week’s temperatures may come to the worst benchmarks already etched into history.
US heat wave all-time hottest temperature records National Weather Service World Meteorological Organization 2024 hottest year on record state temperature records economic impact of heat