Sylvania, Alabama
22 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1886 and the latest in 1981. It stands in the Rainsville-Sylvania census division. It lies in ZIP code area 35988. It lies near Frog Valley (historical). The Survey maps it on the Sylvania quadrangle. 1,790 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,388 feet above sea level.
Population over time
2 figuresSylvania fell from 1,837 to 1,790 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 | 1,837 | |
| 2020 | 1,790 | -47 (-3%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
11 surveys from 22 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.
- 1886 USGS Stevenson quadrangle1:125000
- 1892 USGS Stevenson quadrangle1:125000
- 1895 USGS Stevenson quadrangle1:125000, 6 printings
- 1936 USGS Sylvania quadrangle1:24000
- 1947 USGS Sylvania quadrangle1:24000, 3 printings
- 1950 USGS Sylvania quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1955 USGS Rome quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS Rome quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1961 USGS Rome quadrangle1:250000
- 1963 USGS Rome quadrangle1:250000
- 1981 USGS Chickamauga quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
104 since 1995Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 104 fires within 5 miles of Sylvania between 1995 and 2020, burning about 638 acres in total. None started naturally. 19 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 | 41 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 33 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 19 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 5 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 2 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 2 |
| Smoking | 1 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 September 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | 6.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 8 September 1999 | Equipment and vehicle use | 12 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 8 September 1998 | Debris and open burning | 50 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 7 September 2016 | Debris and open burning | 1.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | 20160907-4 |
| 6 September 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 11 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | 20160906-16 |
| 3 September 2016 | Debris and open burning | 2.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | 20160903-1 |
| 29 September 2014 | Arson/incendiarism | 10 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | NOR-20140929-001 |
| 28 September 2016 | Debris and open burning | 15 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | 20160928-26 |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Storms near this place
46 since 1995Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Sylvania in 46 storm reports between 1995 and 2025: 31 thunderstorm wind, 10 hail, 2 lightning, 2 flash flood. 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 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $50,000 | Several homes and out buildings received roof damage. |
| March 1995 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $32,000 | A mobile home was destroyed with another mobile home lifted from its foundation at Sylvania. A large tree was reported down across Highway 176 near Lookout Mountain. |
| April 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $15,000 | Thunderstorm winds knocked several trees down in the Sylvania area. Power was out for several hours through the next morning across Sand Mountain. |
| June 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $10,000 | Trees were knocked down onto a trailer at 10184 Blue Pond Blvd. W. Trees also downed at 11886 and 12387 Blue Pond Blvd. Time estimated by radar. |
| June 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $10,000 | A tree was knocked down on a home off of CR 407 near Sylvania. Time estimated by radar. |
| June 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $10,000 | Several trees were knocked down in the Sylvania area along Carrisa Road, 2nd Street, and 3rd Street. Time estimated by radar. |
| April 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $10,000 | Thunderstorm winds heavily damaged a roof to a home. |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $8,000 | Trees were blown down on highway 75. |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $8,000 | Trees were blown down on CR 108. |
| April 2002 | Lightning | Sylvania | $5,000 | no account filed |
| June 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $3,000 | A tree was knocked down with power lines at 215 2nd Street. Time estimated by radar. |
| June 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $3,000 | A tree was knocked down onto power lines and the roadway on Carissa Road near Blue Pond West. Time estimated by radar. |
| August 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $3,000 | no account filed |
| June 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $2,000 | A tree was knocked down and on fire on Michael Road. Time estimated by radar. |
| August 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $2,000 | Trees were blown down in Sylvania. |
| August 2002 | Lightning | Sylvania | $2,000 | no account filed |
| June 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $1,000 | A tree was knocked down on CR 194 near the Public Lake. Time estimated by radar. |
| June 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $1,000 | A tree was knocked down on CR 27 near 7th Street. Time estimated by radar. |
| June 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $1,000 | A tree was knocked down on West Avenue. Time estimated by radar. |
| June 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $1,000 | Severe thunderstorm winds knocked down trees, damaged a fence, and tore shingles off the roof of the Sylvania High School. |
| June 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $1,000 | Severe thunderstorm winds downed a medium sized tree in Sylvania, blocking a road. |
| August 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $1,000 | A few trees were knocked down and blocked the road near Sylvania. |
| May 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $500 | A tree was reported down along CR 47. |
| August 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $500 | A tree was knocked down at 281 Industrial Lane in Sylvania. |
| December 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $500 | A tree was knocked down on CR 194 near DeKalb County Public Lake. |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $500 | A tree was knocked down. |
| June 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | $200 | Power lines were knocked down at 758 Oak Grove Road. |
| July 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | - | Six hundred customers were reported without power in the Sylvania and Geraldine communities due to downed trees and powerlines. |
| January 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | - | A building was damaged at Buttram Crossroads near Sylvania. |
| April 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | - | Multiple trees were knocked down. |
| January 2017 | Flash Flood | Sylvania | - | Two feet of flowing water reported on County Road 112 between AL Hwy 75 and County Road 27. The location is a low water crossing. The Road Department is en route to place barricades around the flowing water. |
| June 2014 | Hail | Sylvania | - | Nickel size hail was reported. |
| June 2014 | Hail | Sylvania | - | Quarter size hail was reported. |
| January 2013 | Flash Flood | Sylvania | - | Flash flooding was occurring with several inches of water reported over County Roads 27, 112, 116. |
| April 2012 | Hail | Sylvania | - | Quarter sized hail was reported. |
| November 2011 | Heavy Rain | Sylvania | - | Rainfall of 3.76 inches was reported. |
| May 2011 | Hail | Sylvania | - | Golfball size hail was reported. |
| May 2008 | Hail | Sylvania | - | Nickel sized hail was reported at the intersection of Alabama highway 75 and county road 27 near Sylvania. |
| June 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | - | Thunderstorm winds blew down trees in the Sylvania area. |
| June 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | - | Two trees and powerlines were blown down near Sylvania. |
| April 2006 | Hail | Sylvania | - | Quarter size hail was reported. |
| May 2005 | Hail | Sylvania | - | Penny size hail was reported. |
| July 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sylvania | - | A few power lines were blown down due to thunderstorm winds. |
| August 2002 | Hail | Sylvania | - | Dime size hail was observed for the second time in less than an hour in and around Sylvania. |
| April 2002 | Hail | Sylvania | - | no account filed |
| August 2002 | Hail | Sylvania | - | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mahan (historical) | 0.8 miles | 22 | |
| Mahan Crossroads | 2.1 miles | 22 | |
| Brooks Crossroads | 2.8 miles | 22 | |
| Musgrove (historical) | 3.5 miles | 22 | |
| Elliott Crossroads | 4.2 miles | 22 | |
| Powells Crossroads | 4.5 miles | 21 | |
| High Point | 4.5 miles | 22 | |
| Stamp | 4.9 miles | 22 |
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 Sylvania | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q65723 | 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 150546. 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.










