The daily cooling rate of station was calculated based on daily minimum temperature data of 54 meteorological stations in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River from 1958 to 2015. A quantitative analysis of the evolutionary characteristics and spatial changes of cold wave occurrence and development was conducted in the region. The results showed that in the past 58 years, the frequency of cold wave presented an insignificant decrease trend with an average of 1.2 times/station (P>0.05). During cold wave processing, the spatial distribution of average difference of the minimum temperature was higher in the south and lower in the north; and the extreme of average difference of the minimum temperature gradually decreased from the regional center to the surroundings. The first cold wave occurred on August 1 (Jiujiang), and the last on May 4 (Shouxian and Lu'an). The spatial distribution of the time difference was significant. The frequent cold waves occurred in winter, followed by spring and autumn.