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Visalia, California

23 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1927 and the latest in 1993. It stands in the Visalia census division. It lies in ZIP code area 93291. The Survey maps it on the Visalia quadrangle. 141,384 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 331 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Visalia within Tulare County

Then and now

1927 to 1993

The same ground, surveyed 66 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Visalia, surveyed 1993
Topographic sheet of Visalia, surveyed 1927

On record in Visalia

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 6 records

Population over time

3 figures

Visalia grew from 548 to 141,384 between 1860 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
1860548
2010124,442
2020141,384+16,942 (+14%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

12 surveys from 23 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

582 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 582 fires within 5 miles of Visalia between 1992 and 2020, burning about 409 acres in total. 2 started naturally. 77 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/undetermined331
Arson/incendiarism77
Equipment and vehicle use76
Misuse of fire by a minor39
Debris and open burning27
Smoking25
Power generation/transmission/distribution4
Natural2
Railroad operations and maintenance1

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
8 September 2005Missing data/not specified/undetermined25 acresTulare UnitGOLDSMITH
6 September 2005Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCalifornia Department of Forestry & Fire Protectionnot named
5 September 2009Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCalifornia Department of Forestry & Fire Protectionnot named
5 September 2004Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreTulare UnitSTATE OF CALIF #101
3 September 2017Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCalifornia Department of Forestry & Fire Protectionnot named
3 September 2011Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreTulare Unitnot named
3 September 2002Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreTulare UnitTULARE CO #91
28 September 2006Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCalifornia Department of Forestry & Fire Protectionnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Tulare County

Mines and quarries near this place

2 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 2 workings within 5 miles of Visalia: 2 past producers. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction. 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
Garland PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Mcwilliams Sand PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

Every working recorded in Tulare County

Storms near this place

36 since 1995

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Visalia in 36 storm reports between 1995 and 2024: 9 heavy rain, 6 hail, 6 flood, 5 funnel cloud. 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
February 1998Heavy RainVisalia$13,900,000no account filed
September 2003WildfireVisalia$824,000Homers Nose 2 Fire in the Sequoia-Kings Canyon Park was lightning ignited on the 5th and allowed to burn throughout the month. As of the 30th, it had consumed 230 acres at a cost of $824K with no fatalities or injuries nor structures lost.
September 1997WildfireVisalia$750,000Amphitheater Fire. It was the result of an escaped prescribed burn. The total burn area was 242 acres within the Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Park.
May 1995Thunderstorm WindVisalia$250,000National Weather Service survey conducted with straightline winds causing damage approximately three miles from the northwest to the southeast into the City of Visalia. Trees toppled, lines downed, minor structures moved, fences downed, and roof damage occurred. Newspaper accounts gave the time of start by eyewitnesses at 1940 PDT. Radar indicated 60 dBZ prior to the storm but it is unknown if the cell got stronger at the time of this report. Radar information is believed to be archived.
April 2003Heavy RainVisalia$50,000Poor visibilities in a short-lived driving rain led to indirect damage of $50K as cars collided on a Visalia freeway. It was reported 17 vehicles were involved as 0.35" of rain fell in a very short period of time in and around the city.
April 2006Heavy RainVisalia$50,000no account filed
December 1997Thunderstorm WindVisalia$10,000Thunderstorm passage through the Visalia area brought gusty wind. Tree limbs were downed in the middle part of town causing some traffic flow problems. A barn roof was damaged on the west side of Central Visalia from the wind. As a result of the gusty wind and downed tree limbs, power lines were also felled causing power outages in the vicinity.
May 2009Thunderstorm WindVisalia$2,000NWS Employee reported trees down and near zero visibility in blowing dust along SR 198 just east of Visalia.
February 2024FloodVisalia-California Highway Patrol reported roadway flooding on SR 198 at the Ben Maddox Way exchange.
February 2024FloodVisalia-California Highway Patrol reported the on ramp to eastbound SR 198 completely flooded between Court St. and Santa Fe St.
February 2024FloodVisalia-An NWS Employee reported water 12-18 inches deep on E. Douglas Ave. between N. Enos St. and N. O'Malley St. following a period of heavy rainfall from a thunderstorm.
February 2024FloodVisalia-California Highway Patrol reported roadway flooding on eastbound SR 198 at the Court St. underpass.
February 2023Heavy RainVisalia-Public report in Visalia of measured rainfall of 2.50 inches of rainfall inches of rainfall on February 24 and an additional 0.60 inches during the morning of February 25 for a total of 3.10 inches.
March 2018Funnel CloudVisalia-A brief cold air funnel was reported by an NWS employee at the corner of Houston Ave. and Mooney Blvd. in north Visalia.
September 2005LightningVisalia-Early morning thunderstorms moved over the east side of the Central and South San Joaquin Valley. Only trace to very light amounts of rain were reported on the Valley Floor.
May 2002HailVisalia-While no verifiable severe storm events occurred in Tulare County, significant damage was caused by large amounts of small hail and locally heavy thundershowers at a time of year when many stone and citrus fruits are vulnerable.
April 1999HailVisalia-Hail damage to young vines, strone fruit, and decidiuous crops. This particular damage band was reported between Goshen/Caldwell ESE through Visalia toward Exeter in Tulare County.
September 1999LightningVisalia-Lightning struck two poles in Visalia around 0730 PST.
May 1995Thunderstorm WindVisalia-Radar reports of 55-59 dBZ from the earlier Severe Thunderstorm Warning for Kings County was due to track into Tulare County and near Visalia by 1700 PDT. No damage was reported by either Kings or Tulare County Sheriffs from either event.
February 2005Heavy RainVisalia-no account filed
March 2005Funnel CloudVisalia-no account filed
April 2005Heavy RainVisalia-no account filed
December 2003LightningVisalia-no account filed
February 2003Funnel CloudVisalia-no account filed
February 2003Heavy RainVisalia-no account filed
April 2003Heavy RainVisalia-no account filed
January 2001LightningVisalia-no account filed
March 2000FloodVisalia-no account filed
June 2000FloodVisalia-no account filed
May 1998Heavy RainVisalia-no account filed
March 1998HailVisalia-no account filed
January 1997Funnel CloudVisalia-no account filed
March 1996HailVisalia-no account filed
March 1996HailVisalia-no account filed
March 1996HailVisalia-no account filed
March 1996Funnel CloudVisalia-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
Ambler1.6 miles23
Chinowths Corner2.3 miles23
Rector3.1 miles20
Higby3.1 miles23
Mitchell Corner4.6 miles20
Cameron Creek Colony4.7 miles20
Loma5.0 miles23
Farmersville5.0 miles20

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 VisaliaAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q495373The 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 1652807. 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.