Sims, California
32 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1886 and the latest in 1998. It stands in the Sacramento Canyon census division. It lies in ZIP code area 96017. It stands on Mears Creek. The Survey maps it on the Tombstone Mountain quadrangle.
Research this city
Then and now
1886 to 1998The same ground, surveyed 112 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
11 surveys from 32 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 Shasta quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1894 USGS Shasta quadrangle1:250000, 8 printings
- 1935 USGS Dunsmuir quadrangle1:125000, 4 printings
- 1948 USGS Weed quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1950 USGS Weed quadrangle1:250000
- 1954 USGS Dunsmuir quadrangle1:62500, 4 printings
- 1958 USGS Weed quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1963 USGS Weed quadrangle1:250000
- 1979 USGS Mount Shasta quadrangle1:100000, 3 printings
- 1986 USGS Tombstone Mtn quadrangle1:24000
- 1998 USGS Tombstone Mountain quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
111 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 111 fires within 5 miles of Sims between 1992 and 2020, burning about 657 acres in total. 28 started naturally. 4 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 |
|---|---|
| Equipment and vehicle use | 29 |
| Natural | 28 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 25 |
| Debris and open burning | 8 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 5 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 5 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 4 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 4 |
| Fireworks | 1 |
| Smoking | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 September 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Shasta-Trinity National Forest | CASTELLA |
| 8 September 1998 | Natural | under an acre | Shasta-Trinity National Forest | FLUME |
| 6 September 1994 | Railroad operations and maintenance | under an acre | Shasta-Trinity National Forest | not named |
| 5 September 2003 | Natural | 8.0 acres | Shasta-Trinity National Forest | BRIAR |
| 4 September 1993 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Shasta-Trinity National Forest | not named |
| 29 September 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Shasta-Trinity National Forest | FLUME |
| 29 September 1994 | Natural | under an acre | Shasta-Trinity National Forest | not named |
| 27 September 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Shasta-Trinity National Forest | GIBSON |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
10 of 34 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 34 workings within 5 miles of Sims: 10 past producers, 8 occurrences, 8 prospects, 6 producers. 6 still produce. What was taken out: Chromium, Asbestos, Gold, Stone, Crushed/Broken. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Castella | Gold, PGE | Unknown | ||
| Castella | Gold, Platinum | Producer | Stream Placer | |
| Forest Queen | Chromium, Iron | Past Producer | 1908 | |
| Occurrences | Copper | Prospect | ||
| Shotgun Creek Mine | Iron, Chromium | Prospect | 1893, 1894 | |
| Occurrences | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Occurrence | ||
| Occurrences | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Occurrence | ||
| Big Nugget | Gold | Past Producer | ||
| Unnamed Property | Gold | Producer | Placer | |
| Unnamed Property | Gold | Occurrence |
Storms near this place
28 since 2014Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Sims in 28 storm reports between 2014 and 2019: 28 heavy rain. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 2019 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There was 1.08 of rain, 24 hour total. |
| January 2017 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 3.09 of rain measured at Sims, along with a dusting of snow. |
| February 2017 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 2.60 of rain measured 4 WSW Castle Crag, 24 hour total. |
| February 2017 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 1.98 of rain measured over 24 hours. |
| February 2017 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 2.64 of rain measured over 24 hours in Sims. |
| February 2017 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 1.84 of rain measured over 24 hours. |
| December 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | A trained spotter in Sims reported heavy rain, with 1.83 over 24 hours. |
| January 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 1.66 inches of rain for a 24 hour total, measured at Castella. |
| January 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 1.50 inches of rain over 24 hours, with 3 inches of snow at Castella. |
| January 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There was 1.10 inches of rain that fell over 24 hours at Castella. |
| January 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | A spotter in Sims measured 1.55 inches of rain over 24 hours. |
| January 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There was a 24 hour total of 2.50 inches of rain. |
| February 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There was 1.36 inches of rain measured over 24 hours at Castella. |
| March 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | Spotter reported receiving 3.16 inches of rain in 24 hours. |
| March 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | The spotter just outside of Castella reported that 2.43 inches of rain fell at his location during a 38 hour period. |
| December 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 4.98 of rain measured over 24 hours. |
| October 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 2.87 inches measured, 24 hour total. There were 10.16 inches since October 1. |
| October 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 1.35 inches of rain, 24 hour total 24 hour total, 7.12 inches storm total. |
| October 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 2.53 inches of rainfall measured. |
| October 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 3.32 inches of rain measured, 24 hour total. |
| October 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 0.86 inches measured over 24 hours, there was a storm total of 7.05 inches. |
| October 2016 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 2.92 inches measured, 24 hour total. |
| July 2015 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There were 1.5 inches of rain which fell over 24 hours. |
| February 2015 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | Storm total about 5 inches February 5th through 6th. |
| November 2015 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There was 1.10 inches of rain measured, 24 hour total. |
| December 2015 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | The 24 rain total was 1.80 inches, with observer located in Castella. |
| December 2015 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There was 2.24 inches of rain over 24 hours, ending at 7 am. |
| December 2014 | Heavy Rain | Sims | - | There was a storm total of 9.21 inches of rain that fell through the event, 3.68 inches fell in the last 24 hours. |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fisher | 3.2 miles | 32 | |
| Conant | 3.2 miles | 32 | |
| Sweetbriar | 4.4 miles | 31 | |
| Castella | 5.0 miles | 31 | |
| Gibson | 5.0 miles | 32 | |
| Dirigo | 5.8 miles | 31 | |
| Pollard Flat | 6.2 miles | 29 | |
| Castle Crag | 7.1 miles | 31 |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1659671. 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.










