BlockBefore

Nelson, Alabama

16 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1890 and the latest in 1984. It stands in the Columbiana census division. It lies in ZIP code area 35051. It lies near Columbiana Mountain. The Survey maps it on the Columbiana quadrangle. It stands 463 feet above sea level.

Nelson within Shelby County

Topographic sheets covering this place

10 surveys from 16 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.

Fires near this place

175 since 1994

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 175 fires within 5 miles of Nelson between 1994 and 2020, burning about 1,828 acres in total. 2 started naturally. 62 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 burning76
Arson/incendiarism62
Missing data/not specified/undetermined13
Recreation and ceremony13
Smoking3
Natural2
Misuse of fire by a minor2
Equipment and vehicle use2
Railroad operations and maintenance1
Power generation/transmission/distribution1

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

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
6 September 2019Missing data/not specified/undetermined6.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commission20190906-13
30 September 2001Arson/incendiarismunder an acreAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
27 September 2019Missing data/not specified/undetermined3.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commission20190927-16
24 September 2004Debris and open burningunder an acreAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
24 September 1999Arson/incendiarismunder an acreAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
15 September 2010Debris and open burning1.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
12 September 2019Missing data/not specified/undetermined60 acresAlabama Forestry Commission20190912-1
10 September 2011Natural15 acresAlabama Forestry CommissionHWY 25N, AL

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Shelby County

Mines and quarries near this place

9 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 9 workings within 5 miles of Nelson: 5 unknowns, 2 producers, 1 occurrence, 1 plant. 3 still produce. What was taken out: Iron, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Sulfur. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
(Facility) Tuscaloosa RefinerySulfurPlant
Couch PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Tuscaloosa QuarrySand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Columbiana MountainIronUnknown
Columbiana Red Ore ProspectIronOccurrenceHematite
UnnamedIronUnknown
UnnamedIronUnknown
UnnamedIronUnknown
UnnamedIronUnknown

Every working recorded in Shelby County

Storms near this place

9 since 2007

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Nelson in 9 storm reports between 2007 and 2022: 6 thunderstorm wind, 1 hail, 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
August 2007Thunderstorm WindNelson$10,000Six trees were blown down, and a metal porch roof was peeled back, near the intersection of County Road 55 and AL-25, between Columbiana and Wilsonville.
June 2009Thunderstorm WindNelson$2,000Several trees and power lines were blown down across CR-55, west of Wilsonville.
August 2008Thunderstorm WindNelson$1,000Several trees were blown down near the intersection of CR-55 and CR-56, northwest of Wilsonville.
March 2022Tornado (EF1)Nelson-National Weather Service meteorologists surveyed damage in eastern Shelby County and determined that it was consistent with an EF1 tornado, with maximum winds near 110 mph. The tornado touched down within the Chelsea Farms community where numerous softwood tress were snapped and uprooted. It quickly moved northeast crossing County Road 69 near the intersection of Twelve Oak Circle, hitting a power substation and destroying several hundred feet of pasture fencing. Farther downstream, the tornado reached its maximum intensity crossing County Roads 333 and 47, where several outbuildings were destroyed. There was also damage to numerous houses where roofing materials were lifted and sustained heavy damage. As the tornado continued northeast, it crossed County Road 49 where additional hard and softwood trees were snapped and uprooted and a barn lost a majority of its outer walls. The tornado began to lift along Pumpkin Swamp Road where additional hard and softwood trees were uprooted.
July 2021Flash FloodNelson-A cluster of slow moving thunderstorms containing heavy rain produced totals of 1 to 2 inches in a short period of time in eastern Shelby County resulting in flash flooding. Highway 25 west of Wilsonville was impassable with deep flowing water.
March 2017Thunderstorm WindNelson-Several trees uprooted and power lines downed.
February 2016Thunderstorm WindNelson-Several trees uprooted. One fell on a house and another on a barn. Power lines downed in same area. One tree snapped.
April 2016Thunderstorm WindNelson-Several trees uprooted across eastern Shelby County.
July 2009HailNelson-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Shelby 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.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Fourmile2.7 miles16
Columbiana2.9 miles16
Kingdom Crossroads4.0 miles16
Hillsdale5.0 miles16
Wilsonville5.3 miles25
Joinertown5.5 miles17
Carleton Point5.5 miles25
Valentine5.9 miles25

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 NelsonAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q19987283The 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 156773. 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.