New York City earthquakes are unusual, but not unheard of

New York City's last major earthquake was in 2011, but the region has a history of seismic activity.

• New York City experienced an earthquake with an estimated magnitude of 4.8 on Friday.
• Eighteen quakes with 2.4-or-greater magnitude have occurred in or around NYC since 1737, records show.
• The last major earthquake felt in NYC was a 5.9-magnitude quake that hit Virginia in 2011.

On Friday, residents across New York City's five boroughs and the tri-state area experienced a rare earthquake.

With an estimated magnitude of 4.8, the quake's epicenter was located in Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

Other cities along the East Coast, including Philadelphia and Boston, also reported feeling the ground shake.

While unusual, earthquakes have been documented in New York City for centuries

New York City's history of seismic activity dates back to the 1700s.

Before Friday's quake, data from the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory at Columbia University showed that 18 earthquakes with a magnitude of 2.4 or higher have occurred in or around New York City since 1737.

In 1884, the tremors from a 5.2-magnitude quake in New York City were felt from Virginia to Maine, though no major structural damage was reported, according to news reports at the time.

More recently, a 2.4-magnitude quake shook Queens and Manhattan's Upper East Side in January 2001, while parts of Queens and the Upper West Side felt a 2.6 earthquake in October 2001.

The largest earthquakes in NYC history

The largest-ever earthquakes to rattle New York City both had a magnitude of 5.8.

The first — based in Massena, New York, a town near the Canadian border — struck the city in 1944.

Another 5.8 earthquake in 2011 that hit Louisa County, Virginia — near the capital Richmond — was also felt in New York City.

It was likely the most widely-felt earthquake in US history due to the population density of the East Coast, according to the USGS.