Oatman, Arizona
29 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1886 and the latest in 1982. It stands in the Bullhead City census division. It lies in ZIP code area 86433. The Survey maps it on the Oatman quadrangle. 102 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 2,710 feet above sea level.
On record in Oatman
Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.
On the National Register 2 records
Durlin Hotellisted 1983
Oatman Drug Company Buildinglisted 2006
Population over time
3 figuresOatman fell from 128 to 102 between 2000 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 128 | |
| 2010 | 135 | +7 (+5%) |
| 2020 | 102 | -33 (-24%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
11 surveys from 29 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 Camp Mohave quadrangle1:250000
- 1892 USGS Camp Mohave quadrangle1:250000, 8 printings
- 1942 USGS Camp Mohave quadrangle1:250000
- 1947 USGS Kingman quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1948 USGS Kingman quadrangle1:250000
- 1954 USGS Kingman quadrangle1:250000, 4 printings
- 1955 USGS Kingman quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS Kingman quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1960 USGS Kingman quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1967 USGS Oatman quadrangle1:24000, 4 printings
- 1982 USGS Davis Dam quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
31 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 31 fires within 5 miles of Oatman between 1992 and 2020, burning about 578 acres in total. 12 started naturally. 3 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 |
|---|---|
| Natural | 12 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 7 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 4 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 3 |
| Smoking | 2 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 September 1995 | Natural | 3.0 acres | Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management - State Office | not named |
| 6 August 1993 | Natural | 10 acres | Phoenix District Office | SITGRAVES |
| 5 August 2005 | Natural | under an acre | Phoenix District Office | RAMS |
| 27 August 1993 | Natural | 120 acres | Phoenix District Office | SPRINGS |
| 25 August 1998 | Natural | 1.0 acres | Phoenix District Office | MCHEFFY |
| 19 August 2004 | Natural | under an acre | Phoenix District Office | SHAFFER |
| 14 August 1998 | Natural | under an acre | Phoenix District Office | INDIAN |
| 13 August 1998 | Natural | 2.0 acres | Phoenix District Office | NUTT |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
10 of 213 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 213 workings within 5 miles of Oatman: 103 occurrences, 53 unknowns, 46 past producers, 4 prospects. 7 still produce. What was taken out: Gold, Gold, Silver, Silver, Gold, Silver. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alcyone Prospect | Gold, Iron | Occurrence | Gold, Hematite | |
| Arizona Gold Star Prospect | Manganese, Gold | Occurrence | Vein | |
| Best Bet Mine | Silver, Gold, Zinc, Lead, Copper | Occurrence | ||
| Big Jim Mine | Gold, Silver, Molybdenum, Lead, Copper, Asbestos | Past Producer | Chalcopyrite, Gold, Wulfenite | |
| Black Mountain Fire Agate | Quartz, Gemstone | Producer | COLLUVIAL | |
| Boundary Cone | Gold, Silver, Water, Free | Past Producer | ||
| Cool Springs Fire Agate | Gemstone, Quartz | Producer | VOLCANIC | |
| Gold Ore Extension | Gold, Silver, Copper | Past Producer | ||
| Gold Ore Mine | Gold, Sulfur-Pyrite | Occurrence | ||
| Little Jim | Uranium | Unknown |
Storms near this place
26 since 1999Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Oatman in 26 storm reports between 1999 and 2025: 22 flash flood, 4 thunderstorm wind. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Oatman | $100,000 | Thunderstorm winds snapped seven power poles on Route 66 near Oatman, knocking out power to the entire town for 18 hours. Later in the afternoon, a man was treated for heat-related injuries, and one dog died from the heat. |
| July 2012 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $100,000 | Route 66 was closed from mile marker 1 through mile marker 20 due to sections of the pavement being washed away. Other roads were also flooded in the Oatman area. |
| July 2022 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $10,000 | Flash flooding closed numerous roads in and south of Golden Valley. |
| July 2013 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $10,000 | The general store in Oatman was inundated by flash flooding. |
| August 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Oatman | $5,000 | Thunderstorm winds blew down power lines in Oatman. |
| August 2018 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $5,000 | Numerous roads were closed in Golden Valley, and Oatman Highway was closed from Tombstone Trail to Cool Springs. |
| July 2016 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $5,000 | Several roads were washed out and basketball size boulders dislodged in and around Oatman. |
| August 2014 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $5,000 | Water, rocks, and mud flowed over several roads in Oatman. Waterfalls formed in the Black Mountains. |
| September 2025 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $2,000 | Video clips from Oatman, AZ, showed fast-flowing water and mud over the Oatman Highway near mile marker 23. |
| September 2019 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $2,000 | Oatman-Topock Highway was flooded and closed from mile marker 0 to Boundary Cone Road. |
| July 2018 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $2,000 | Oatman Highway was closed from the Sacramento Wash, which was flooded for hours, to Silver Creek. |
| October 2015 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $2,000 | County Road 153 south of Oatman was closed due to flooding. |
| September 2025 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $1,000 | Oatman Highway was closed from Casa Grande Drive to Boundary Cone Road. |
| July 2022 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $1,000 | Oatman Hwy was closed. |
| August 2022 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $1,000 | Boundary Cone Road was closed. |
| November 2019 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $1,000 | Boundary Cone Road was closed from Ellery Street to Oatman Highway. |
| July 2018 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $1,000 | Oatman Highway was closed from Cool Springs to Silver Creek. |
| August 2017 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $1,000 | A spotter reported 1.9 inches of rain in 30 minutes, with water running all over. |
| September 2014 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $1,000 | Over six inches of water flowed down Main Street in Oatman. |
| August 2013 | Flash Flood | Oatman | $1,000 | Water, rocks, and mud flowed over Highway 66 near Oatman. |
| January 2010 | Flash Flood | Oatman | - | Oatman Highway was closed due to flooding, and did not reopen until the next morning. |
| August 2010 | Flash Flood | Oatman | - | One and a quarter inches of rain fell in less than an hour, resulting in flooded roadways. |
| July 2008 | Flash Flood | Oatman | - | Boundary Cone Road was closed west of Oatman Highway due to flooding. |
| September 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Oatman | - | Also nearly an inch of rain in 20 minutes. |
| October 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Oatman | - | Thunderstorm winds blew down trees and power lines, and blew tiles off roofs in Mohave Valley. |
| July 1999 | Flash Flood | Oatman | - | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mesquite Creek | 10.6 miles | 22 | |
| Mojave Ranch Estates | 12.4 miles | 22 | |
| Mohave Valley | 12.6 miles | 22 | |
| Hardyville (historical) | 12.7 miles | 35 | |
| Mojave City | 12.8 miles | 35 | |
| Bullhead City | 12.9 miles | 33 | |
| Riviera | 13.6 miles | 35 | |
| Drake | 13.9 miles | 28 |
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 Oatman | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q2008647 | 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 8901. 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.










