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Valley Lake Ranchos, California

18 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1920 and the latest in 1983. It stands in the Madera census division. It lies in ZIP code area 93638. The Survey maps it on the Kismet quadrangle. It stands 331 feet above sea level.

Valley Lake Ranchos within Madera County

Then and now

1920 to 1983

The same ground, surveyed 63 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Valley Lake Ranchos, surveyed 1983
Topographic sheet of Valley Lake Ranchos, surveyed 1920

Topographic sheets covering this place

10 surveys from 18 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

501 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 501 fires within 5 miles of Valley Lake Ranchos between 1992 and 2020, burning about 6,481 acres in total. 4 started naturally. 58 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/undetermined217
Equipment and vehicle use117
Debris and open burning60
Arson/incendiarism58
Misuse of fire by a minor29
Smoking14
Natural4
Power generation/transmission/distribution1
Recreation and ceremony1

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 2000Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreMerced-Mariposa UnitDURAN
8 September 2019Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.5 acresMerced-Mariposa UnitPACIFIC DR MADERA_ACRES
8 September 1999Debris and open burning2.0 acresMerced-Mariposa UnitCASTRO
8 September 1999Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreMerced-Mariposa UnitCHEMICAL
7 September 2016Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCalifornia Department of Forestry & Fire ProtectionAVE 21 / RD 31
7 September 1996Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresMerced-Mariposa UnitFRIED BIRD
6 September 2020Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresMerced-Mariposa UnitGREENTREE AV MADERA_ACRE
4 September 2012Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMerced-Mariposa UnitOPEN

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Madera County

Mines and quarries near this place

8 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 8 workings within 5 miles of Valley Lake Ranchos: 5 past producers, 2 producers, 1 prospect. 2 still produce. What was taken out: Copper, Sand and Gravel, Construction, 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 SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Adobe RanchGoldPast ProducerGold
Daulton Copper MineCopper, ZincPast Producer
Daulton GroupCopper, Silver, Gold, CobaltPast Producer1865, 1942, 1945
Fresno River PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Zollars QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenProducer
Nelson ClaimCopperProspect
QuestoCopperPast Producer
Questo MineCopperPast Producer

Every working recorded in Madera 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
Talbot (historical)1.2 miles18
Lake Madera Country Estates1.8 miles28
Madera Country Club Estates3.6 miles18
Madera Acres4.0 miles18
Kismet4.2 miles18
Daulton4.4 miles28
River Road Estates4.7 miles19
Madera Highlands4.9 miles18

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 Q7912120The 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 1812779. 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.