Empire, California
14 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1920 and the latest in 1981. It stands in the Laytonville-Leggett census division. It lies in ZIP code area 95585. It stands on Elk Creek. The Survey maps it on the Tan Oak Park quadrangle. It stands 1,339 feet above sea level. The federal gazetteer marks this settlement historical: it is no longer a populated place, though the surveys that recorded it still are.
Then and now
1920 to 1981The same ground, surveyed 61 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.


Topographic sheets covering this place
6 surveys from 14 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.
- 1920 USGS Cummings quadrangle1:62500
- 1952 USGS Leggett quadrangle1:62500, 3 printings
- 1957 USGS Ukiah quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1960 USGS Ukiah quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1969 USGS Tan Oak Park quadrangle1:24000, 3 printings
- 1981 USGS Covelo quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
81 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 81 fires within 5 miles of Empire (historical) between 1992 and 2018, burning about 16,558 acres in total. 7 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 |
|---|---|
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 34 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 25 |
| Debris and open burning | 8 |
| Natural | 7 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 3 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 2 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 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 1996 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 4.0 acres | Mendocino Unit | MAD CREEK #2 |
| 8 September 1996 | Recreation and ceremony | 2.0 acres | Mendocino Unit | MAD CREEK #1 |
| 4 September 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Mendocino Unit | TAN OAK PARK LEGG |
| 4 September 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2.0 acres | Northern California District | DANN |
| 4 September 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Northern California District | LIGHTNING 92 |
| 21 September 1996 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 5.0 acres | Mendocino Unit | BLUE |
| 19 September 2014 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1.0 acres | Mendocino Unit | IRON 3 |
| 15 September 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Northern California District | CUMMINGS |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
6 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 6 workings within 5 miles of Empire (historical): 3 occurrences, 2 prospects, 1 unknown. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Manganese, Chromium, Clay. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sugar Pine | Chromium | Unknown | ||
| Unnamed Location | Clay | Occurrence | ||
| Shell Rock | Manganese | Occurrence | ||
| Shell Rock Deposits | Manganese | Prospect | 1918 | |
| Spy Rock Guthrie | Manganese | Occurrence | ||
| Spy Rock Prospect | Manganese | Prospect | 1916 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tan Oak Park | 0.5 miles | 14 | |
| Twin Rocks | 1.5 miles | 14 | |
| Cummings | 2.1 miles | 14 | |
| Bowman Place | 3.0 miles | 14 | |
| South Leggett | 6.2 miles | 14 | |
| Underwood Park | 6.9 miles | 14 | |
| Leggett | 6.9 miles | 14 | |
| Bell Springs | 8.7 miles | 15 |
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.
| Wikidata item Q5373996 | 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 1666471. 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.





