Butler, Alabama

9 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1953 and the latest in 1984. It stands in the Butler census division. It lies in ZIP code area 36904. It stands on Spear Creek. The Survey maps it on the Butler quadrangle. 1,871 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 213 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Butler within Choctaw County

Population over time

2 figures

Butler fell from 1,894 to 1,871 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.

Year	People	Change
2010	1,894
2020	1,871	-23 (-1%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

5 surveys from 9 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

1953 USGS Meridian quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
1957 USGS Meridian quadrangle1:250000
1965 USGS Meridian quadrangle1:250000
1978 USGS Butler quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
1984 USGS Meridian quadrangle1:100000, 3 printings

Fires near this place

106 since 1994

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 106 fires within 5 miles of Butler between 1994 and 2019, burning about 758 acres in total. 1 started naturally. 4 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause	Fires
Debris and open burning	40
Missing data/not specified/undetermined	35
Recreation and ceremony	9
Equipment and vehicle use	8
Smoking	5
Arson/incendiarism	4
Misuse of fire by a minor	2
Power generation/transmission/distribution	1
Railroad operations and maintenance	1
Natural	1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

Date	Cause	Size	Reported by	Name on the report
5 September 1995	Debris and open burning	under an acre	Alabama Forestry Commission	not named
4 September 2002	Debris and open burning	1.0 acres	Alabama Forestry Commission	not named
29 September 2000	Debris and open burning	1.0 acres	Alabama Forestry Commission	not named
25 September 2019	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Alabama Forestry Commission	20190925-3
23 September 1999	Debris and open burning	under an acre	Alabama Forestry Commission	not named
21 September 2019	Equipment and vehicle use	1.5 acres	Alabama Forestry Commission	20190921-6
20 September 2010	Debris and open burning	35 acres	Alabama Forestry Commission	not named
18 September 2010	Debris and open burning	35 acres	Alabama Forestry Commission	not named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Choctaw County

Storms near this place

60 of 62 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Butler in 62 storm reports between 1995 and 2024: 28 thunderstorm wind, 21 hail, 7 flash flood, 3 lightning. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

When	Event	Place named	Harm	What the report says
April 2011	Tornado (EF1)	Butler	$40,000	A large tree was blown over onto a manufactured home with 3 persons trapped inside for several minutes approximately 4 miles north-northwest of the community of Ararat. Several trees were blown over or snapped along the tornado path.
June 2004	Lightning	Butler	$40,000	Lightning struck a home causing a fire. The house burned down before the fire department could get there.
August 2001	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$25,000	High winds from thunderstorms blew down numerous trees along SR 10 between Lisman and Butler. A couple of the trees landed on vehicles.
May 2009	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$20,000	Winds estimated at 70 mph downed numerous trees and power lines around Butler.
April 2001	Lightning	Butler	$20,000	Lightning struck an abandoned house and caught it on fire. The fire destroyed part of the house before firefighters could extinguish the blaze. No one was injured.
November 2001	Tornado (F0)	Butler	$15,000	A small and weak tornado move through the area just southwest of Butler. Trees and power lines were reported down in the area. In addition, golfball sized hail was also observed in Jachin.
June 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$15,000	Thunderstorm wind gusts to 60 MPH downed trees and power lines in the community.
June 2016	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$10,000	Winds estimated near 70 mph downed many trees and power lines in the city of Butler.
August 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$10,000	High winds from a thunderstorm blew down several trees and power lines east of Butler.
March 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$10,000	Trees and power lines were blown down by high winds from a thunderstorm near Butler.
July 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$10,000	Trees and power lines were reported down just south of the community.
July 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$7,000	Several trees and power lines were blown down along SR 17 between Toxey and Butler.
February 2016	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$5,000	Winds estimated at 60 mph downed trees and power lines in the Lake Lavada Subdivision.
February 2016	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$5,000	Winds estimated at 60 mph downed trees and power lines along Bailey Road.
July 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$5,000	Winds estimated at 60 mph downed trees and power lines down along Riderwood Drive.
August 2004	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$5,000	Thunderstorm winds blew down trees and power lines in and around Butler.
May 2003	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$5,000	High thunderstorm winds blew down several trees east of Butler.
August 2002	Hail	Butler	$5,000	Nickel size hail was reported from a thunderstorm near Butler. Winds from the storm also blew down a few trees.
June 2001	Lightning	Butler	$5,000	Lightning struck a house, resulting in a small fire that was quickly put out, but did cause some damage.
July 2001	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$5,000	Several trees were blown down by thunderstorm winds near Butler.
January 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$5,000	Trees and power lines were blown down just west of Butler.
May 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$5,000	Trees and power lines were blown down near Butler.
December 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$5,000	Trees were blown down just south of Butler by high thunderstorm winds.
June 2016	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$4,000	Winds estimated near 60 mph downed large trees near Highway 10 and Highway 17.
June 2001	Flash Flood	Butler	$4,000	Street flooding was reported at several locations north of Butler due to very heavy rainfall. Several secondary roads in the northern part of the county were temporarily closed due to excessive standing and ponding of water.
March 2005	Hail	Butler	$3,000	Golfball size hail fell in and around Butler. The large hail damaged some residences roofs and some vehicles.
July 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$3,000	Trees and power lines were blown down near Butler.
October 2015	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$3,000	no account filed
June 1999	Hail	Butler	$2,000	A hailstorm occurred for several minutes, approximately 5 miles SSE of Butler near the community of Griffin Mills . Hail to size of golfballs covered the ground and broke out windows in some vehicles.
December 1995	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$2,000	Several trees and power lines were blown down in the Butler area.
July 1996	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$2,000	no account filed
May 1997	Flash Flood	Butler	$1,000	Several roads in the Butler community were closed overnight due to high water. Also, several secondary roads in the southern sections of the county had to be closed overnight due to high water. WSR-88D estimated that 6 to 8 inches of rain fell in central and southern sections of the county during the afternoon into the early morning hours. Most of the rain fell during the evening hours.
April 1997	Hail	Butler	$750	Golfball to dime size hail fell around the Butler area. Several people reported damage to their windshields as a result of the hail.
April 1995	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	$500	Several trees and limbs were blown down in and around the Butler area.
May 2024	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	-	High winds downed numerous trees and caused some structural damage in and around Choctaw County.
March 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	-	High winds downed multiple tree across the county with several power outages.
March 2023	Flash Flood	Butler	-	Heavy rain caused street flooding.
March 2022	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	-	High winds downed trees and power lines in Butler.
May 2021	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	-	High winds downed multiple trees and power lines across Choctaw County.
July 2018	Flash Flood	Butler	-	Very heavy rain resulted in flash flooding in the Green Acres subdivision. Water was quickly flowing over some of the roads, making them impassable.
December 2012	Tornado (EF2)	West Butler	-	The tornado touched down along Pineview Road near\|the Riderwood community...or approximately 8 miles west southwest\|of Butler. The worst damage occurred in this area as three\|manufactured homes were completely destroyed...with the debris being\|blown several hundred yards away. Several other structures sustained\|minor to moderate damage...including one mobile home and one single\|family residence. A couple of barns/outbuildings were also almost\|completely destroyed. The tornado then moved northeast crossing\|Dollywood Road and County Road 24...where extensive tree damage\|occurred in the heavily forested area. From there...the tornado\|continued northeast crossing Riderwood Drive where numerous trees\|were snapped or uprooted. The damage path was at its widest along\|Riderwood Drive...approximately one half mile. The damage path then\|narrowed and the tornado lifted before reaching Alabama Highway 10.
March 2011	Flash Flood	Butler	-	Heavy rain caused widespread flooding with numerous roads closed due to water covering the road.
April 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Butler	-	Numerous trees were blown down by severe thunderstorm winds near 60 mph between 612 PM CST and 810 PM CST. Widespread trees were also reported down across the county at this time. Time estimated from radar imagery as the three strongest thunderstorm cells moved out of the county. Events reported by Choctaw County Sheriff's Department.
February 2010	Flash Flood	Butler	-	Rainfall amounts in excess of 4 inches caused widespread street flooding in Butler.
June 2010	Flash Flood	Butler	-	Stationary thunderstorms produced heavy rain that flooded roadways and storm drains in and around Butler.
April 2000	Hail	Butler	-	An Alabama State Trooper reported dime size hail East of the community.
March 2000	Hail	Butler	-	Thunderstorm produced hail up to the size of quarters in Butler.
June 1999	Hail	Butler	-	Nickel size hail was reported just south of Butler by WPRN Radio.
June 1999	Hail	Butler	-	Dime size hail fell about 5 miles SSE of Butler. The slow south southeast movement of the storm also deposited about 3.5 inches of rain within an hours time.
May 1999	Hail	Butler	-	Nickel size hail was reported just south of Butler.
May 1998	Hail	Butler	-	Quarter size hail fell in the community.
May 1998	Hail	Butler	-	Dime size hail was reported in Butler.
March 1998	Hail	Butler	-	Dime size hail was reported along State Highway 17, just north of Butler.
May 1997	Hail	Butler	-	Dime size hail was reported around Butler.
April 1997	Hail	Butler	-	Dime size hail was reported five miles south of Butler.
November 1997	Hail	Butler	-	Golfball size hail was reported near Butler.
April 1995	Hail	Butler	-	Golf ball-size hail was reported six miles northwest of Butler.
February 2009	Hail	Butler	-	no account filed
March 2003	Hail	Butler	-	no account filed
April 2003	Hail	Butler	-	no account filed

Every storm recorded in Choctaw County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Place	Distance	Sheets
Green Acres	0.4 miles	9
Mount Sterling	3.1 miles	9
Morgan Chapel	3.3 miles	9
Little Walker	4.8 miles	9
Red Springs	4.9 miles	8
West Butler	6.2 miles	8
Riderwood	6.2 miles	8
Lisman	6.3 miles	8

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikipedia article on Butler	An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q75183	The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 157905. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.