BlockOak Grove, Alabama
20 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1899 and the latest in 1984. It stands in the North Johns census division. It lies in ZIP code area 35006. The Survey maps it on the Oak Grove quadrangle.
Topographic sheets covering this place
10 surveys from 20 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.
- 1899 USGS Brookwood quadrangle1:125000, 4 printings
- 1927 USGS Adger quadrangle1:48000
- 1932 USGS Yolande quadrangle1:62500
- 1935 USGS Yolande quadrangle1:62500, 3 printings
- 1953 USGS Birmingham quadrangle1:250000, 4 printings
- 1956 USGS Birmingham quadrangle1:250000
- 1957 USGS Birmingham quadrangle1:250000
- 1975 USGS Yolande NW quadrangle1:24000
- 1980 USGS Oak Grove quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1984 USGS Tuscaloosa quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
187 since 1994Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 187 fires within 5 miles of Oak Grove between 1994 and 2020, burning about 6,329 acres in total. 2 started naturally. 76 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 |
|---|---|
| Arson/incendiarism | 76 |
| Debris and open burning | 66 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 32 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 3 |
| Smoking | 2 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 2 |
| Natural | 2 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 1 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 1 |
| Fireworks | 1 |
| Other causes | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 September 1999 | Natural | 8.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 7 September 1999 | Natural | 10 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 7 September 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 6 September 1997 | Arson/incendiarism | 1.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 6 September 1995 | Debris and open burning | 23 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 4 September 2002 | Arson/incendiarism | 1.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 4 September 1995 | Debris and open burning | 10 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 3 September 1995 | Debris and open burning | 3.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Storms near this place
20 since 1998Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Oak Grove in 20 storm reports between 1998 and 2026: 9 hail, 6 thunderstorm wind, 5 tornado. The reports record 33 deaths and 259 injuries. 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 1998 | Tornado (F5) | Oak Grove | 32 killed, 258 hurt, $200,000,000 | no account filed |
| January 2012 | Tornado (EF2) | Oak Grove | 1 killed, 1 hurt | This tornado initially touched down in northeast Tuscaloosa County, and traveled to the northeast, crossing into Jefferson County northeast of Groundhog Rd. As the tornado tracked toward, across, and then parallel to Lock 17 Rd, numerous trees were snapped or uprooted. The tornado continued northeastward crossing Camp Oliver Road and took a turn to the north at Blue Sky Rd. Tree damage continued as the tornado tracked parallel to Toadvine Rd and winds increased to a maximum of 130 MPH. Approximately 50 homes were damaged or destroyed along Toadvine Rd, including a manufactured home that was destroyed resulting in one fatality. Several more homes were damaged along Taylors Ferry Rd. The tornado lifted along Toadvine Road just southwest of Short Creek. Merchantable timber losses estimated by the Alabama Forestry Commission for this track are approximately $75K. |
| March 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Oak Grove | $300,000 | A thunderstorm associated with a bow echo produced wind estimated at 80 to 100 miles an hour as it raced through western Jefferson County. The Oak Grove High School sustained significant damage. The school was in the process of being rebuilt after the devastating F5 tornado in 1998. Fifty thousand square feet of the roof was either twisted and buckled or completely torn off. A three hundred and fifty pound metal air vent was thrown more than 200 yards. A few trees in the area were also blown down. |
| April 2000 | Tornado (F2) | Oak Grove | $75,000 | no account filed |
| May 2003 | Hail | Oak Grove | $25,000 | Dime to golf ball size hail was reported across western Jefferson County. |
| April 2000 | Tornado (F0) | Oak Grove | $20,000 | A weak tornado briefly touched down between Oak Grove and Sylvan Springs and mainly affected a rural area. Several trees were snapped off or blown down along the three mile path. A few homes received minor roof damage. The most concentrated damage was on Handley Road just off CR 46. Beginning: 33 29.227/87 06.767 Ending: 33 30.739/87 05.296 |
| October 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Oak Grove | $2,000 | Trees blocking Lock 17 Road. |
| June 2001 | Hail | Oak Grove | $2,000 | Quarter to golf ball size hail was reported between Sylvan Springs and Birmingport. The hail fell mainly across rural western Jefferson County. |
| June 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Oak Grove | $500 | A few trees were blown down along Paul Allman Rd. |
| March 2026 | Tornado (EF0) | Oak Grove | - | The National Weather Service surveyed damage in western Jefferson County and determined that an EF-0 tornado occurred, embedded within a larger area of straight-line wind damage. The tornado began south of Lock 17 Rd near Betty Hill Rd, where several softwood trees were uprooted, knocking down power lines. An area of weak rotation was noted on radar associated with this damage and the feature continued to the section of Groundhog Rd in the area of Woods Creek. Here, extensive softwood tree damage was observed, with numerous trees uprooted and smaller trees snapped. Much of the treefall was found to be laying easterly to east-northeasterly, with overall storm motion to the southeast. Minor softwood tree damage associated with the same radar feature was observed along Mud Creek Rd north of the Groundhog Rd intersection, with a couple uprooted trees and several limbs down. |
| December 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Oak Grove | - | A few trees were downed in western and northern Jefferson County, including near Oak Grove, Graysville, and Kimberly. |
| May 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | Oak Grove | - | Several trees uprooted along Toadvine Road and Camp Oliver Road. |
| April 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Oak Grove | - | Several trees uprooted along Lock 17 Road. |
| March 2012 | Hail | Oak Grove | - | Quarter size hail is covering the ground in Oak Grove. |
| March 2012 | Hail | Oak Grove | - | Hail has increased in size to half dollar in Oak Grove. |
| March 2008 | Hail | Oak Grove | - | Quarter size hail was reported on Lock 17 Road. |
| May 2012 | Hail | Oak Grove | - | no account filed |
| October 2010 | Hail | Oak Grove | - | no account filed |
| February 2007 | Hail | Oak Grove | - | no account filed |
| March 2007 | Hail | Oak Grove | - | no account filed |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ezra | 0.8 miles | 20 | |
| Vines Mill | 2.7 miles | 20 | |
| Toadvine | 3.1 miles | 20 | |
| Mud Creek | 3.6 miles | 20 | |
| Rock Creek | 4.2 miles | 20 | |
| Gilmore | 4.3 miles | 21 | |
| Hopkins | 4.5 miles | 20 | |
| Little Shoal | 6.0 miles | 21 |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 124060. 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.