The 1872 Atlantic hurricane season was quiet, lasting from mid-summer through mid-autumn. There were five tropical cyclones, of which four attained hurricane status. However, due to scarce technology, only storms that affected land or ships were recorded, therefore, the actual total could be higher.

Tropical Storm One

Tropical Storm One formed in the central Gulf of Mexico on July 9. Tropical Storm One struck Louisiana

Louisiana

Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...

 and Mississippi

Mississippi

Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...

 before being last seen over Tennessee

Tennessee

Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...

 on July 13.

Hurricane Two

Hurricane Two formed near Cape Verde

Cape Verde

The Republic of Cape Verde is an island country, spanning an archipelago of 10 islands located in the central Atlantic Ocean, 570 kilometres off the coast of Western Africa...

 on August 20. Hurricane Two headed across the Atlantic but then curved north and passed near Bermuda

Bermuda

Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...

. Hurricane Two persisted until it was last seen near Newfoundland

Newfoundland and Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...

 on September 2.

Hurricane Three

On September 9, a tropical storm was observed east of the Lesser Antilles. Over the following two days, it moved slowly north-northwestward through the islands, before reaching hurricane status on September 12. It turned more toward the north, and passed east of Bermuda on September 15. It was last observed on September 19.

Hurricane Four

A tropical storm formed on September 30 to the southwest of the Cape Verde islands. It tracked northwestward for several days, reaching hurricane status on October 3. Two days later it curved to the northeast, and the hurricane was last observed on October 6 near the Azores.

Hurricane Five

In the southern Gulf of Mexico

Gulf of Mexico

The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...

, a tropical storm developed on October 22. It crossed Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

 as a 60 mph (97 km/h) tropical storm, and hit South Carolina

South Carolina

South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

 as a minimal hurricane. It caused 4-8 inches of rain in the Norfolk

Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....

area.