Modjeska, California
47 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1901 and the latest in 1997. It stands in the Silverado census division. It lies in ZIP code area 92676. It lies near Santiago Canyon. The Survey maps it on the Lake Forest quadrangle.
Then and now
1901 to 1997The same ground, surveyed 96 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.


Compare 1901 against another survey:
On record in Modjeska
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 1 record
Joseph Pleasants Stone BuildingNational Historic Landmark · listed 1972
Topographic sheets covering this place
17 surveys from 47 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.
- 1901 USGS Southern California Sheet No. 1 quadrangle1:250000, 6 printings
- 1902 USGS Corona quadrangle1:125000, 7 printings
- 1904 USGS Southern California Sheet No. 1 quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1935 USGS El Toro quadrangle1:31680, 4 printings
- 1942 USGS Santiago Peak quadrangle1:62500, 3 printings
- 1947 USGS Santa Ana quadrangle1:250000
- 1949 USGS El Toro quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1949 USGS Santa Ana quadrangle1:250000
- 1950 USGS El Toro quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1956 USGS Santa Ana quadrangle1:250000
- 1959 USGS Santa Ana quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1960 USGS Santa Ana quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1965 USGS Santa Ana quadrangle1:250000
- 1968 USGS El Toro quadrangle1:24000, 9 printings
- 1974 USGS El Toro quadrangle1:24000
- 1983 USGS Santa Ana quadrangle1:100000
- 1997 USGS El Toro quadrangle1:24000
Fires near this place
91 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 91 fires within 5 miles of Modjeska between 1992 and 2020, burning about 55,930 acres in total. 1 started naturally. 14 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 | 30 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 19 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 14 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 11 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 6 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 4 |
| Smoking | 2 |
| Debris and open burning | 2 |
| Natural | 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 2006 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Cleveland National Forest | LIVEOAK |
| 3 September 2005 | Recreation and ceremony | under an acre | Cleveland National Forest | POOL |
| 26 September 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Cleveland National Forest | POTSIE |
| 25 September 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 14 acres | Orange County Fire Authority | SANTIAGO FIRE |
| 25 September 2004 | Equipment and vehicle use | 14 acres | Riverside Unit | STATE FIRE |
| 25 September 2004 | Equipment and vehicle use | 20 acres | Cleveland National Forest | MODJESKA |
| 23 September 2012 | Recreation and ceremony | under an acre | Cleveland National Forest | TRABUCO |
| 23 September 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 38 acres | Cleveland National Forest | LONG |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
10 of 24 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 24 workings within 5 miles of Modjeska: 11 past producers, 6 producers, 5 prospects, 2 occurrences. 6 still produce. What was taken out: Clay, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Lead, Silver, Zinc. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baker Ranch Extension | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Blue Light | Lead, Zinc, Silver, Copper, Gold | Past Producer | Pyrite, Sphalerite | |
| Blue Light Mine | Lead, Gold, Silver, Zinc | Past Producer | ||
| Hicks Canyon Prospect | Fire Clay (Refractory) | Occurrence | ||
| Ladd Canyon Deposits | Limestone, General | Prospect | ||
| Sentinal Oak | Gold, Silver, Lead, Zinc | Prospect | ||
| Silverado-Santa Rosa | Silver | Producer | ||
| Wilhunt Mines | Lead, Gold, Silver | Past Producer | ||
| Unnamed Prospect | Lead, Silver, Zinc | Prospect | ||
| Unnamed Prospect | Lead, Silver, Zinc | Prospect |
Storms near this place
5 since 2007Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Modjeska in 5 storm reports between 2007 and 2008: 5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2008 | Flash Flood | Modjeska | $500,000 | Heavy rain from a thunderstorm over the Santiago Burn Area triggered damaging debris flows in Modjeska Canyon. The lowest floor of a 2-story house was completely inundated with approximately 1000 cubic meters of debris flow material. Damage to this home was extensive. The yard of a nearby home was inundated with approximately 2500 cubic meters of debris flow material. |
| May 2008 | Flash Flood | Modjeska | $150,000 | Heavy rainfall from a thunderstorm over the Santiago Burn Area triggered flash flood and debris flows in Trabuco Canyon near O' Neill Regional Park. Live Oak Canyon Road was shut down after it was inundated with up to four feet of water. The mud and water rushed out of Trabuco Canyon and poured into Cook's Corner, a roadside biker bar at the intersection of Santiago Canyon and Live Oak Canyon roads. The bar was completely flooded and filled with mud. |
| January 2008 | Flash Flood | Modjeska | $40,000 | Heavy rain showers over Modjeska Canyon caused a debris flow at the Lost Canyon Ranch. The debris flow originated on a hillside about 500 feet in elevation above the ranch and destroyed several fences and horse stalls as it raced toward Santiago Creek. The owner estimates property damage at his ranch to be near $40K. |
| December 2008 | Flash Flood | Modjeska | $10,000 | Heavy rain in the Santiago Burn Area caused mud and debris flows in Modjeska Canyon. Many of the roads and yards that were buried in mud by this debris flow were impacted by similar debris flows last winter. The amount of mud and rock left in the wake of the debris flow was extensive but damage to roads and property was minor. |
| November 2007 | Flash Flood | Modjeska | - | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upper Aliso | 1.4 miles | 37 | |
| Portola Hills | 2.1 miles | 47 | |
| Foothill Ranch | 2.4 miles | 47 | |
| Silverado | 2.6 miles | 47 | |
| Rancho Trabuco | 3.5 miles | 37 | |
| Trabuco Canyon | 3.7 miles | 37 | |
| Carbondale (historical) | 4.1 miles | 40 | |
| Rancho Santa Margarita | 4.9 miles | 37 |
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 Q122546273 | 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 1656571. 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.
















