China, Alabama
8 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1953 and the latest in 1986. It stands in the Lyeffion census division. It lies in ZIP code area 36401. It stands on Little Brushy Creek. The Survey maps it on the China quadrangle.
Topographic sheets covering this place
4 surveys from 8 printed sheetsMatched 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 Andalusia quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1957 USGS Andalusia quadrangle1:250000
- 1971 USGS China quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1986 USGS Monroeville quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
111 since 1994Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 111 fires within 5 miles of China between 1994 and 2020, burning about 2,468 acres in total. 2 started naturally. 24 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 | 49 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 24 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 23 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 6 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 4 |
| Natural | 2 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 2 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 September 2004 | Debris and open burning | 1.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 24 September 1999 | Debris and open burning | 8.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 23 September 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2.5 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | 20190923-9 |
| 19 September 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 2.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 10 September 2002 | Debris and open burning | 2.2 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 7 August 2020 | Debris and open burning | 2.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | 20200807-2 |
| 27 August 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 5.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | SWR-20140827-001 |
| 27 August 1998 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 5.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
10 of 14 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 14 workings within 5 miles of China: 14 unknowns. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Iron. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
Storms near this place
3 since 2017Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names China in 3 storm reports between 2017 and 2024: 1 thunderstorm wind, 1 flash flood, 1 tornado. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| February 2022 | Flash Flood | China | $50,000 | Bookers Mill Road was washed out from flash flooding. Numerous dirt roads were also washed out. |
| January 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | China | $20,000 | A barn was destroyed along with shingle damage to a home near the intersection of Highway 83 and County Road 22. Severe trees were also blown down. |
| December 2024 | Tornado (EF1) | China | - | The tornado touched town just west of County Road 4, where several trees were snapped or uprooted, and a trailer was tossed. The tornado moved to the northeast, snapping more trees along its path. As the tornado moved across Bookers Mill Road, dozens of trees were snapped or uprooted. In this location, the metal roof of 3 log cabins was peeled back, and a chapel was shifted off of its foundation. The tornado continued on its northeasterly path, crossing County Road 30 and County Road 32, snapping or uprooting more trees. The tornado lifted just west of State Highway 83. ||Update 2/26/2025: Extended the start point of the tornado southwest solely within forested regions west of County Road 4 based on Sentinel satellite imagery depicting a narrow path of forest damage. This connects with the tornado track surveyed downstream by ground survey crews. |
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.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bookers Mill | 0.8 miles | 8 | |
| Lyeffion | 2.1 miles | 8 | |
| Cooks Crossroads | 3.8 miles | 8 | |
| Bowles | 4.1 miles | 8 | |
| Fairnelson | 4.2 miles | 8 | |
| Stokes | 4.6 miles | 7 | |
| Loree | 4.6 miles | 7 | |
| Owassa | 5.0 miles | 7 |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 116054. 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.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
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.



