Thorn, California
29 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1901 and the latest in 1982. It stands in the Victorville-Hesperia census division. It lies in ZIP code area 92395. The Survey maps it on the Hesperia quadrangle.
Then and now
1901 to 1982The same ground, surveyed 81 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:
Topographic sheets covering this place
12 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.
- 1901 USGS Southern California Sheet No. 1 quadrangle1:250000, 6 printings
- 1902 USGS Hesperia quadrangle1:62500, 6 printings
- 1904 USGS Southern California Sheet No. 1 quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1942 USGS Hesperia quadrangle1:62500
- 1953 USGS San Bernardino quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1956 USGS Hesperia quadrangle1:24000, 6 printings
- 1956 USGS San Bernardino quadrangle1:250000
- 1957 USGS San Bernardino quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS San Bernardino quadrangle1:250000
- 1959 USGS San Bernardino quadrangle1:250000
- 1966 USGS San Bernardino quadrangle1:250000
- 1982 USGS San Bernardino quadrangle1:100000
Fires near this place
394 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 394 fires within 5 miles of Thorn between 1992 and 2020, burning about 555 acres in total. 2 started naturally. 54 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 | 257 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 54 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 22 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 18 |
| Debris and open burning | 18 |
| Smoking | 17 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 3 |
| Natural | 2 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 2 |
| Fireworks | 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 2008 | Misuse of fire by a minor | under an acre | California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection | not named |
| 9 September 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection | not named |
| 8 September 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | San Bernardino Unit | not named |
| 7 September 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection | not named |
| 5 September 2019 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | San Bernardino Unit | not named |
| 4 September 1996 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | San Bernardino Unit | BOLDING |
| 30 September 2008 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection | not named |
| 3 September 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | San Bernardino Unit | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
8 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 8 workings within 5 miles of Thorn: 6 past producers, 1 occurrence, 1 unknown. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Granite, Silica, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feldspar Mine | Feldspar | Past Producer | ||
| H and P Limestone Quarry | Limestone, Dimension | Unknown | ||
| Martre White Pit and Mill | Silica | Past Producer | ||
| Millionaire | Silver, Copper, Gold, Lead | Occurrence | ||
| Corona Granite | Granite | Past Producer | ||
| Lif Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| St. John Granite | Granite | Past Producer | ||
| Victorville Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer |
Storms near this place
8 since 2011Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Thorn in 8 storm reports between 2011 and 2023: 5 flood, 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 2012 | Flash Flood | Thorn | $3,000 | Heavy rain from thunderstorms just north of Victorville resulted in flooding on National Trails Highway at Lynhaven Lane and a swift water rescue of a van caught in 4 feet of moving water. Barbosa Road was also washed out. |
| August 2023 | Flood | Thorn | - | Reports of street flooding on Park Avenue in Victorville. |
| December 2023 | Flood | Thorn | - | I-15 offramp to Main Street was closed due to flooding. |
| September 2015 | Flash Flood | Thorn | - | Multiple swift water rescues along Bear Valley Road. Water flowed fast down the road with some areas of water around 5 feet deep. A spotter reported water 4-6 deep at the intersection of Bear Valley Road and Apple Valley Road. |
| August 2012 | Flash Flood | Thorn | - | Spotter 625 reported 6 to 8 inches of water on the roadway near Bear Valley and Amethyst with the roadway completely covered with debris and water. There was also water flowing rapidly across the roadway approximately 1 to 2 feet deep, not allowing cars to pass. The same spotter also reported that the roadway at Corwin and Waalew Roads was covered with debris but still passable. The debris consisted of mostly dirt and rocks with an estimated 5 inches of water flow. A driver was stuck in widespread urban flooding at Topaz and Luna Roads in Victorville. Water was flowing very strong along Arrowhead Road at the Victorville Golf Course, resulting in a water rescue. Another spotter reported 2 to 4 inches of water over the intersection of Highway 395 and Highway 18, containing a lot of debris and stranding a few cars. |
| July 2011 | Flood | Thorn | - | Heavy rain from several hours caused street flooding on Palmdale Road at Del Gado.|1 inch rain in 12 hours. |
| July 2011 | Flood | Thorn | - | Parts of Ridgecrest Road flooded near railroad tracks. Many streets in Spring Valley have flowing water. Street flooding between Balsom and Mariposa. Outside lane flooding between Cottonwood and Nisqualli. |
| July 2011 | Flood | Thorn | - | Parts of Ridgecrest Road flooded near railroad tracks. Many streets in Spring Valley have flowing water. Street flooding between Balsom and Mariposa. Outside lane flooding between Cottonwood and Nisqualli. |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring Valley Lake | 1.4 miles | 29 | |
| Frost | 2.4 miles | 24 | |
| Greentree East | 2.5 miles | 24 | |
| Sunset Hills | 3.4 miles | 35 | |
| Desert Knolls | 3.5 miles | 24 | |
| Hesperia | 3.6 miles | 29 | |
| Mountain View Acres | 3.9 miles | 29 | |
| Victorville | 4.2 miles | 24 |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1661566. 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.











