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.
Then and now
1920 to 1983The 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 sheets covering this place
10 surveys from 18 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.
- 1920 USGS Kismet quadrangle1:31680
- 1946 USGS Le Grand quadrangle1:62500, 2 printings
- 1947 USGS San Jose quadrangle1:250000
- 1948 USGS Kismet quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1956 USGS San Jose quadrangle1:250000
- 1961 USGS Kismet quadrangle1:24000, 4 printings
- 1961 USGS Le Grand quadrangle1:62500
- 1962 USGS San Jose quadrangle1:250000, 4 printings
- 1966 USGS San Jose quadrangle1:250000
- 1983 USGS Merced quadrangle1:100000
Fires near this place
501 since 1992Regional 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/undetermined | 217 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 117 |
| Debris and open burning | 60 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 58 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 29 |
| Smoking | 14 |
| Natural | 4 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 1 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 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 2000 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Merced-Mariposa Unit | DURAN |
| 8 September 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.5 acres | Merced-Mariposa Unit | PACIFIC DR MADERA_ACRES |
| 8 September 1999 | Debris and open burning | 2.0 acres | Merced-Mariposa Unit | CASTRO |
| 8 September 1999 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Merced-Mariposa Unit | CHEMICAL |
| 7 September 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection | AVE 21 / RD 31 |
| 7 September 1996 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | Merced-Mariposa Unit | FRIED BIRD |
| 6 September 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | Merced-Mariposa Unit | GREENTREE AV MADERA_ACRE |
| 4 September 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Merced-Mariposa Unit | OPEN |
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 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 | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adobe Ranch | Gold | Past Producer | Gold | |
| Daulton Copper Mine | Copper, Zinc | Past Producer | ||
| Daulton Group | Copper, Silver, Gold, Cobalt | Past Producer | 1865, 1942, 1945 | |
| Fresno River Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Zollars Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Nelson Claim | Copper | Prospect | ||
| Questo | Copper | Past Producer | ||
| Questo Mine | Copper | Past Producer |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Talbot (historical) | 1.2 miles | 18 | |
| Lake Madera Country Estates | 1.8 miles | 28 | |
| Madera Country Club Estates | 3.6 miles | 18 | |
| Madera Acres | 4.0 miles | 18 | |
| Kismet | 4.2 miles | 18 | |
| Daulton | 4.4 miles | 28 | |
| River Road Estates | 4.7 miles | 19 | |
| Madera Highlands | 4.9 miles | 18 |
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 Q7912120 | The 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.









