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Sanford, Florida

14 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1955 and the latest in 1979. It stands in the Sanford census division. It lies in ZIP code area 32771. It stands on Mills Creek. The Survey maps it on the Sanford quadrangle. 61,051 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 36 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Sanford within Seminole County

Then and now

1955 to 1979

The same ground, surveyed 24 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Sanford, surveyed 1979
Topographic sheet of Sanford, surveyed 1955

On record in Sanford

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 9 records

Population over time

2 figures

Sanford grew from 53,570 to 61,051 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
201053,570
202061,051+7,481 (+14%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

6 surveys from 14 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

59 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 59 fires within 5 miles of Sanford between 1992 and 2018, burning about 395 acres in total. 4 started naturally. 4 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
Railroad operations and maintenance31
Missing data/not specified/undetermined11
Natural4
Arson/incendiarism4
Equipment and vehicle use3
Recreation and ceremony2
Debris and open burning2
Misuse of fire by a minor2

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
2 September 1999Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreFlorida Forest Servicenot named
8 August 2006Misuse of fire by a minorunder an acreFlorida Forest ServiceWF-STONE ISLAND ROAD
19 August 1993Railroad operations and maintenance2.0 acresFlorida Forest Servicenot named
13 August 2008Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreFlorida Forest ServiceOUT THERE (03)
7 July 2016Natural14 acresFlorida Forest ServiceLAKE MONROE 415 (64)
28 July 2009Naturalunder an acreFlorida Forest ServiceWF ENTERPRISE RD
12 July 2011Natural3.0 acresFlorida Forest ServiceMORE RAIN (59)
6 June 2000Recreation and ceremony2.0 acresFlorida Forest Servicenot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Seminole County

Mines and quarries near this place

6 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 6 workings within 5 miles of Sanford: 5 unknowns, 1 producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Sand, Clay. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Every working recorded in Seminole County

Storms near this place

29 since 1993

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Sanford in 29 storm reports between 1993 and 2021: 17 thunderstorm wind, 7 hail, 2 flash flood, 1 lightning. The reports record 1 death and 4 injuries. 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 2018Thunderstorm WindSanford1 killed, 1 hurtThe large circulation around Hurricane Michael located near the western tip of Cuba combined with high pressure to the north caused quick-moving showers with gusty winds to move west across central Florida from the Atlantic. As these showers moved over inland lakes, wind gusts of 30 to 40 mph occurred. A boat containing two men who were fishing on Lake Monroe capsized due to choppy seas created by the gusty winds. One man, who was wearing a non-secured life vest, drifted away from the boat and was found deceased the following day. The other man retrieved his lift vest while hanging onto the side of the boat and was rescued nearly 24 hours later. He was transported to a local hospital, suffering from hypothermia and exhaustion and was later released.
August 1999Thunderstorm WindSanford2 hurt, $80,000Thunderstorm winds produced widespread damage along the marina area of Sanford. A hotel, several boats, dock houses, and an office building suffered damage. Two people were injured when their car windows were blown out.
August 1997LightningSanford1 hurtA 41 year old woman was injured by lightning while standing next to a window in a house.
February 1998Tornado (F0)Sanford$200,000A small F-0 tornado touched down in Sanford destroying the roof on a log cabin house.
August 2002Flash FloodSanford$60,000Three inches of rapid rainfall flooded streets and six homes in Sanford.
January 1999Thunderstorm WindSanford$50,000Thunderstorm winds blew down trees in the Sanford area. The fallen trees damaged two mobile homes and a house.
August 1997Thunderstorm WindSanford$45,000Thunderstorm winds blew a large tree on to a house causing extensive damage.
May 2001Thunderstorm WindSanford$5,000Thunderstorm winds blew down numerous trees and damaged pool screens.
March 1993Thunderstorm WindSanford$500Thunderstorm winds blew down trees and power lines.
September 2021Flash FloodSanford-Between 4 and 6 inches of rain fell during the late afternoon hours in portions of northern Seminole County. Heavy thunderstorms that were nearly stationary produced significant rainfall accumulations in approximately 2 hours, and this resulted in localized flash flooding in the Sanford area. Standing water reached at least 2 feet in some spots, resulting in numerous road closure and several stalled vehicles. Flood waters briefly entered one home and several nearby garages. Several businesses in Downtown Sanford along 1st Street reported having 2-3 inches of water inside their establishments.
May 2020HailSanford-A trained spotter reported penny sized hail in Downtown Sanford near the intersection of Magnolia Avenue and East First Street.
September 2017FloodSanford-Rainbands associated with Hurricane Irma produced rainfall totals between 10 and 13 inches, resulting in areas of urban and poor drainage flooding. Numerous roadways were impacted by significant levels of standing water and many retention ponds reached capacity or overflowed. The most impacted areas occurred within Altamonte Springs, Casselberry, Longwood and Sanford.
February 2014HailSanford-A retired NWS employee observed quarter-sized hail just west of Sanford.
May 2014HailSanford-An Orlando TV station relayed a report from the public of quarter-sized hail at the Sanford Memorial Stadium.
July 2006Thunderstorm WindSanford-Sanford airport recorded a thunderstorm wind gust to 58 MPH.
May 2005Thunderstorm WindSanford-The Sanford airport ASOS recorded a wind gust to 67 knots (76 mph).
June 2005Thunderstorm WindSanford-Thunderstorm winds blew down large branches and power lines in Sanford. Some minor street flooding was also reported.
August 2005Thunderstorm WindSanford-Thunderstorm winds blew down trees blocking Highway 46 just east of Sanford.
June 2004Thunderstorm WindSanford-Thunderstorm winds blew down trees and power lines in the Sanford area.
May 2004Thunderstorm WindSanford-Thunderstorm winds blew down power lines in Sanford.
March 2003Thunderstorm WindSanford-Thunderstorm winds blew down power lines and a large tree branch in Sanford. Sanford airport reported a wind gust to 54 mph.
June 2001Thunderstorm WindSanford-Thunderstorm wind blew down trees over much of Sanford and the Maitland areas.
May 1997Thunderstorm WindSanford-Thunderstorm winds blew down large signs and damaged a railroad crossing gate.
May 1997Thunderstorm WindSanford-Thunderstorm winds blew down a few trees in Sanford.
October 1997Thunderstorm WindSanford-Thunderstorm winds blew down trees near Sanford and power lines near Oviedo.
June 2004HailSanford-no account filed
July 2003HailSanford-no account filed
May 2001HailSanford-no account filed
June 1999HailSanford-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Seminole 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
Sanlanta0.5 miles14
Highland Park0.5 miles14
Country Club Manor0.9 miles14
Bel-Air1.1 miles14
Lincoln Heights1.1 miles14
Dreamworld1.1 miles14
Wynwood1.3 miles14
Roseland Park1.4 miles12

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 SanfordAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q786770The 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 290631. 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.