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Meteorological history
The eleventh known tropical cyclone of the 1878 season has unclear origins, though it probably existed as an area of disturbed weather in the southwestern Caribbean Sea by October 16. A cold front sweeping across the Gulf of Mexico drew the disturbance slowly northward, and observers in Havana, Cuba, first noted cirrus outflow from the organizing low-pressure area on October 17. The system is believed to have developed into a tropical storm around 00:00 UTC on October 18, roughly 125 mi southwest of the Jamaican coastline. As the frontal system to its west stalled, the tropical storm drifted northwestward while gradually intensifying, and it achieved hurricane intensity about two days after formation. Curving more toward the north, the cyclone made its first landfall in the modern-day Mayabeque Province of Cuba on the night of October 20–21. Based on the degree of observed wind damage, the hurricane is estimated to have struck the island at Category 2 intensity on the Saffir–Simpson scale, with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph (165 km/h). The hurricane weakened slightly while crossing Cuba and emerged into the Straits of Florida about midway between Havana and Matanzas.

On October 21, the hurricane accelerated north-northeastward in response to strengthening southerly flow associated with an extratropical cyclone over the Mississippi Valley. At the same time, a coastal frontal boundary developed in advance of the cyclone over the Southeastern U.S., serving as the focus for a swath of heavy precipitation. The hurricane's eye passed about 40 mi east of Florida's Gold Coast on the evening of October 21. A trough of low pressure extending south from the Great Lakes created a "path of least resistance" between two high-pressure areas—one retreating northeastward from North Carolina to the Canadian Maritimes, and another strengthening over the Western United States. This enabled the hurricane's forward motion to further increase. While quickly approaching North Carolina at 30 mph, the hurricane restrengthened to Category 2 status and matched its initial peak winds. At 04:00 UTC on October 23, the cyclone moved ashore between Wilmington and Cape Fear with an estimated central barometric pressure of 963 mb, extrapolated from the lowest observed pressure of 974.6 mbar as recorded by a ship in the northern Chesapeake Bay. The system had been classified as a major hurricane in older Atlantic hurricane chronologies, though more recent reanalysis efforts have revealed that it remained below the Category 3 threshold.

The cyclone proceeded inland over eastern North Carolina and into the Mid-Atlantic states, passing just east of Richmond, Virginia; around 12:00 UTC on October 23, it was centered near Washington, D.C., as a Category 1 hurricane. Its fast forward movement contributed to powerful winds even after time over land. After crossing eastern Pennsylvania and entering New York, the system interacted with a frontal system late on October 23 and became extratropical near Albany. It became embedded within the prevailing westerlies and curved eastward, following the triple point of the occluded dominant low-pressure area. Early on October 24, it exited eastern New England north of Boston, Massachusetts, into the northern Atlantic. The extratropical remnants of the hurricane continued southeastward over open water and were last observed on October 25, when a cargo ship four days out of New York encountered severe gales and was forced to return to port. The hurricane's passage is credited with ushering in a sufficiently cold air mass in its wake to end a deadly yellow fever epidemic along the Gulf Coast. Unlike many early tropical cyclones, whose tracks are only partially known, this storm's listing in the Atlantic hurricane database is believed to accurately represent its entire lifespan from genesis to dissipation. Its course has frequently been compared to that of Hurricane Hazel in 1954.

Caribbean
In its formative stages, the tropical storm dropped 1.40 in of rainfall in Kingston, Jamaica, on October 19; inclement weather, including rainshowers and northeasterly winds, were reported in Havana around the same time. Later, on October 21, hurricane conditions swept across Cuba from Cienfuegos to Havana, with heavy rains falling over most of the island. Three schooners sank at Havana and the storm wrought "considerable damage and loss of life". Buildings in particular were severely affected. However, reports from Cuba were scarce, so few details of the destruction were published.

United States
In advance of the hurricane, the United States Army Signal Corps issue its first cautionary signal for Key West, Florida, early on October 20. Signals were issued incrementally for most of the East Coast and parts of the Great Lakes as the system progressed north, and the final signals were posted for coastal Maine on October 23.

The storm brought hurricane conditions to at least six states, some of which are rarely affected by such strong systems; it still stands as the only tropical cyclone on record to produce hurricane-force winds in Pennsylvania, and one of only two in both Maryland and Delaware. Tropical storm-force winds extended over a much broader area to include the northern Appalachians and eastern Great Lakes region. Along the East Coast, the storm sank or totally wrecked about 30 steamships and schooners and damaged many more to some degree, while "countless" small craft were destroyed.

Florida
The Florida Keys began to experience the storm's outer fringes on October 19. Winds in Key West peaked at 54 mph from the northeast early on October 21, and the island received 4.83 in of rainfall in total. Gusty winds extended as far west as Punta Rassa on Florida's Gulf Coast. Because gales were observed so far west of the hurricane's center, it is likely that hurricane-force winds affected the Gold Coast as the eye passed just offshore. Although the effects in Florida were generally light, shipping interests suffered extensively; at least 12 vessels were driven aground along the state's eastern coast. In one case, the schooner Lizzie L. Smith grounded out south of Ponce de Leon Inlet, then known as Mosquito Inlet, and was deemed a total loss. To the north, the Spanish brig Salvador was dismasted by strong winds. The steamship Nueva Barcelona was damaged off St. Augustine.

Georgia and the Carolinas
As the storm passed offshore on the night of October 22–23, Savannah, Georgia, experienced light rainfall and winds just below gale-force. Squally conditions also affected Charleston, South Carolina, and a ship off the state's coast was abandoned. The Outer Banks of North Carolina bore the brunt of the hurricane's impact. Cape Lookout recorded maximum winds of 100 mph and 4.06 in of rain, and the pressure fell to 983.3 mb. To the west of the cyclone's center, in Wilmington, winds peaked at just 36 mph. Farther north, Kitty Hawk recorded winds as high as 88 mph before the anemometer was destroyed. The hurricane struck a sparsely populated section of North Carolina, so damage reports on land were scant, but ships along the coast suffered extensively. The iron-hulled passenger and cargo steamship City of Houston was abandoned off Frying Pan Shoals, with all 70 passengers and crewmembers safely rescued, and sank in about 90 ft of water. The wreck is now a popular scuba diving destination, one of the oldest regularly dived shipwreck sites in the state's waters. Another steamship, the General Barnes, foundered off Cape Hatteras after all occupants were rescued. The captain of the schooner Magnolia drowned when the ship wrecked in the Albemarle Sound, the first officer of the Mary A. Hood was washed overboard near Cape Hatteras, and two men were swept off the deck of the Wyoming. Several other ships ran aground in the gale.

Mid-Atlantic
The hurricane maintained much of its force over Virginia, generating winds up to 84 mph at Cape Henry, just to the north of Virginia Beach. Significant property damage took place around Norfolk, where churches were unroofed, houses under construction were demolished, outhouses were toppled, and numerous oyster boats were swamped. One sawmill was destroyed and another lost a significant stock of logs.

Along the coast, many United States Life-Saving Service stations were damaged or destroyed. Crew members at a life-saving station in False Cape reported being unable to stand against the powerful gusts. Parts of the Virginia Barrier Islands, including Cobb and Smith islands, were completely submerged by the storm surge which was the highest in 27 years. All livestock on the islands were swept out to sea.

Farther inland, Richmond experienced its worst storm in years as the winds toppled trees, fences, and telegraph wires.

Along the Potomac River, a passenger of the schooner Brewster drowned near Nanjemoy, Maryland. While en route from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Norfolk, Virginia, the steamship Everman lost a crew member overboard and suffered damaged cargo.

Conditions on the Chesapeake Bay were most extreme in the narrow stretch between Barren Island and the mouth of the Patuxent River in Maryland.