Warmest winter in the Twin Cities is now Dec. 1877-Feb. 1878

Revised records hit new Twin Cities' lows | StarTribune.com

That means the record now incorporates extremes recorded in the 1880s, "a period of extremely cold winters," said assistant Minnesota state climatologist Pete Boulay. "We were still coming off the Little Ice Age. There were some extremely cold outbreaks. We may never see those again."

That era also was a time when the Twin Cities area had far less of an "urban heat island" than it does now, Boulay noted.

...The data project also pulled in at least once instance of significant warmth from the old days: the "Year Without Winter," the months of December 1877 through February 1878, now officially the warmest winter on record in the Twin Cities. Without that winter on the list, the season just past would have been third-warmest, instead of fourth. Similarly, February 2012 would have been ninth-warmest, but under the new reckoning it's 12th.

"It's harder to make a top 10," Boulay said.

..."It gives you an idea what's in Mother Nature's bag of tricks," Boulay said. "It'll probably never get to 40 below again, but it's good to know it did happen."