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Three Rivers, California

28 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1904 and the latest in 1986. It stands in the Woodlake-Three Rivers census division. It lies in ZIP code area 93271. It stands on North Fork Kaweah River. The Survey maps it on the Kaweah quadrangle. 2,053 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 843 feet above sea level.

Three Rivers within Tulare County

Then and now

1904 to 1986

The same ground, surveyed 82 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Three Rivers, surveyed 1986
Topographic sheet of Three Rivers, surveyed 1904

Compare 1904 against another survey:

On record in Three Rivers

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 8 records

Population over time

2 figures

Three Rivers fell from 2,182 to 2,053 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.

YearPeople Change
20102,182
20202,053-129 (-6%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

13 surveys from 28 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

150 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 150 fires within 5 miles of Three Rivers between 1992 and 2020, burning about 6,188 acres in total. 13 started naturally. 19 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/undetermined59
Equipment and vehicle use30
Arson/incendiarism19
Natural13
Power generation/transmission/distribution8
Debris and open burning5
Misuse of fire by a minor5
Recreation and ceremony4
Smoking3
Other causes3
Fireworks1

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 1996Arson/incendiarismunder an acreTulare UnitLEMON
8 September 2007Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresTulare UnitTUU-7168 - SLICK ROCK
30 September 1999Arson/incendiarismunder an acreTulare UnitWHITNEY
30 September 1998Equipment and vehicle use1.5 acresTulare UnitGOLF
3 September 2017Naturalunder an acreSequoia & Kings Canyon National ParksCA-TUU-MYNATT
29 September 2019Arson/incendiarismunder an acreTulare UnitSIERRA DR THREE_RIVERS 7
26 September 2004Missing data/not specified/undetermined7.0 acresTulare UnitBLOSSOM
25 September 1993Recreation and ceremony1.0 acresSequoia & Kings Canyon National ParksKAWEAH

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Tulare County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 18 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 18 workings within 5 miles of Three Rivers: 8 occurrences, 5 past producers, 2 producers, 2 unknowns. 2 still produce. What was taken out: Tungsten, Limestone, General, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Molybdenum. 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
Britten Granite PitStone, Crushed/BrokenProducer
Britten Limestone DepositCalciumOccurrence
Carter DepositFeldsparPast Producer
Kaweah Pit and MillSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Unnamed ProspectMolybdenumUnknown
AllenLimestone, GeneralOccurrence
AllesLimestone, GeneralPast Producer
Blossom Peak LimestoneLimestone, GeneralOccurrence
Fort HillLimestone, GeneralOccurrence
Lavelle DepositLimestone, GeneralPast Producer

Every working recorded in Tulare County

Storms near this place

21 since 2001

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Three Rivers in 21 storm reports between 2001 and 2025: 15 flood, 2 wildfire, 2 heavy rain, 1 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
October 2003WildfireThree Rivers$1,540,000The Paradise 2 Fire was lightning ignited at 2300 PST on September 25th and had previously been reported as part of the Kaweah-Kern Complex in September Stormdata. By the end of October this specific fire had consumed 1,298 acres at a cost of $1.54M.
January 2023FloodThree Rivers$1,000,000The Tulare County Emergency Manager reported that the town of Three Rivers was trapped behind flood waters moving over the egress route. This resulted in several emergency response personnel being trapped behind the flood waters who were in place to limit flood waters impact on structures.
October 2009Heavy RainThree Rivers$5,000The California Highway Patrol reported power lines and poles downed due to heavy rain near the intersection of South Fork Dr and Blossom Dr near Three Rivers.
October 2025FloodThree Rivers-CHP Reports rock slide at junction of Eastbound Route 198 and Horse Creek Campground.
January 2023FloodThree Rivers-Public report of the roadway flooded and rock and mudslides on eastbound SR 198 near Dinely Rd. and Craig Branch Rd.
January 2023FloodThree Rivers-California Highway Patrol reported the bridge flooded on N. Fork Dr. near SR 198.
January 2023FloodThree Rivers-California Highway Patrol reported flooding on S. Fork Dr. at Heidi Dr. in Three Rivers.
March 2023FloodThree Rivers-California Highway Patrol reported on SR 198 at Sierra Dr.
March 2023FloodThree Rivers-California Highway Patrol reported flooding, rocks and debris on SR 198 east of Encina Ave. in Three Rivers.
March 2023FloodThree Rivers-California Highway Patrol reported flooding on SR 198 west of Pierce Dr.
March 2023FloodThree Rivers-California Highway Patrol reported SR 198 flooded in Three Rivers.
January 2017Flash FloodThree Rivers-California Highway Patrol reports mud slide and boulders blocking Mineral King Road near Three Rivers.
January 2017Debris FlowThree Rivers-California Highway Patrol report of mud, dirt, and rock partially blocking Mineral King Road and Highway 198 intersection near Hammond. Traffic was able to move around the obstruction.
January 2017FloodThree Rivers-California Highway Patrol reported flooding on Highway 198 and water flowing over Airport Drive and Upper North Fork bridges in Three Rivers.
January 2017FloodThree Rivers-Tulare County Official reported that the bridge at Kaweah River Drive was closed due to flooding northeast of Three Rivers.
January 2017FloodThree Rivers-California Highway Patrol reported roadway flooding on Highway 198 and Craig Ranch Road northeast of Three Rivers.
February 2017FloodThree Rivers-California Highway Patrol reported debris blocking roadway due to recent roadway flooding from heavy rain on Mineral King Road near Mitchel Ranch near Oak Grove.
April 2010Heavy RainThree Rivers-The rainfall for the 24 hour period was 2.09 inches.
November 2003WildfireThree Rivers-The Paradise 2 Fire was lightning ignited at 2300 PST on September 25th and had previously been reported as part of the Kaweah-Kern Complex in September Stormdata. By the first of November this specific fire had consumed 1,298 acres at a cost of $1.54M and accounted for in earlier months.
April 2006FloodThree Rivers-no account filed
November 2001FloodThree Rivers-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Tulare 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
Kaweah2.3 miles28
Hammond2.9 miles28
Advance5.3 miles26
Oak Grove6.0 miles28
Citro7.1 miles19
Sandspur (historical)7.4 miles19
Lemoncove7.4 miles19
Potwisha7.8 miles26

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 Three RiversAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q601394The 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 1661569. 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.