From a reader:

Jonah,
Sorta-kinda related to that hurricane map you linked to is this site which gives the number of hurricane direct hits by state over the past 104 years:
Direct Hits, 1900-2004
Florida 64
Texas 38
North Carolina 29
Louisiana 27
South Carolina 16
Alabama 12
Mississippi 9
New York 9
Connecticut 8
Massachusetts 6
Georgia 5
Maine 5
Rhode Island 5
Virginia 5
New Hampshire 2
Maryland 1
New Jersey 1
The first weird thing is how many hurricanes have hit northern and New England states. Who would have guessed that New York has had as many hurricane strikes as Mississippi? Or that New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire have together had more hurricane strikes (35) than North Carolina or Louisiana? Maine and Rhode Island have been hit as often as Georgia and Virginia. And yet New Jersey, with a longer coastline than New York, has only had one direct hit.
The other strange thing is the way South Carolina and, especially, Georgia have been somewhat spared. Together, they have only had 21 hurricane strikes since 1900, despite having a fairly long combined coastline. North Carolina, with a shorter coastline, has had eight more hurricanes during that time, and Florida has, of course, been pounded.
I’m sure there must be a logical reason for all of this, but it just seems strange.