BlockBefore

Terra Cotta, California

38 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1901 and the latest in 1997. It stands in the Elsinore Valley census division. It lies in ZIP code area 92530. It lies near Bishop Canyon. The Survey maps it on the Lake Elsinore quadrangle.

Terra Cotta within Riverside County

Then and now

1901 to 1997

The 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.

Topographic sheet of Terra Cotta, surveyed 1997
Topographic sheet of Terra Cotta, surveyed 1901

Compare 1901 against another survey:

Topographic sheets covering this place

15 surveys from 38 printed sheets

Matched 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.

Fires near this place

1,169 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 1,169 fires within 5 miles of Terra Cotta between 1992 and 2020, burning about 26,108 acres in total. 13 started naturally. 96 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/undetermined523
Equipment and vehicle use237
Misuse of fire by a minor117
Arson/incendiarism96
Recreation and ceremony68
Smoking49
Debris and open burning36
Power generation/transmission/distribution18
Natural13
Fireworks5
Firearms and explosives use4
Other causes3

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
9 September 2007Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCleveland National ForestVILLAGE
9 September 2004Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreRiverside UnitLOCAL
9 September 1998Misuse of fire by a minorunder an acreRiverside UnitSTATE-1415
9 September 1998Equipment and vehicle use10 acresCalifornia Desert DistrictESTELLE FIRE
8 September 2020Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreRiverside UnitEUCALYPTUS AV LELS
8 September 2012Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreRiverside UnitE LAKESHORE DR LELS
7 September 2016Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCalifornia Department of Forestry & Fire ProtectionRICE
7 September 2014Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreRiverside UnitTOWNSEND ST /W SUMNER AV

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Riverside County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 63 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 63 workings within 5 miles of Terra Cotta: 29 past producers, 14 prospects, 9 occurrences, 8 producers. 8 still produce. What was taken out: Clay, Gold, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Tin. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Alberhill Coal & Clay Co.Clay, CoalPast Producer
American Flag and Monarch MinesTin, Cobalt, NickelUnknown
Best Ranch DepositLimestone, GeneralPast ProducerSedimentary
Best Ranch DepositLimestone, DimensionPast Producer
Old Dominion MineLead, Zinc, SilverPast Producer
OrtegaLead, Zinc, Silver, Copper, GoldPast ProducerGalena, Pyrite, Silver, Sphalerite
Palisades GroupLead, Copper, Silver, GoldOccurrenceVein
Riverside Co. Gravel PitStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Robinhood No. 4ManganeseProspect
Shining Star GroupArsenic, Gold, IronOccurrence

Every working recorded in Riverside County

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 PlaceDistance Sheets
North Elsinore2.1 miles38
Alberhill2.1 miles37
Lake Elsinore3.5 miles38
Lakeland Village4.7 miles38
Camelot Hills4.9 miles40
Santa Rosa Ranch Estates5.4 miles40
Canyon Lake5.5 miles38
Gavilan Hills5.6 miles40

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 Terra CottaAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q7703072The 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 1661558. 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.