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Switzerland, Florida

20 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1917 and the latest in 1992. It stands in the Fruit Cove census division. It lies in ZIP code area 32259. It stands on Hickory Slough. The Survey maps it on the Fleming Island quadrangle.

Switzerland within St. Johns County

Then and now

1917 to 1992

The same ground, surveyed 75 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Switzerland, surveyed 1992
Topographic sheet of Switzerland, surveyed 1917

Compare 1917 against another survey:

Topographic sheets covering this place

11 surveys from 20 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

160 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 160 fires within 5 miles of Switzerland between 1992 and 2019, burning about 1,800 acres in total. 42 started naturally. 23 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
Natural42
Misuse of fire by a minor27
Arson/incendiarism23
Equipment and vehicle use22
Missing data/not specified/undetermined16
Railroad operations and maintenance14
Debris and open burning11
Fireworks5

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
11 September 2010Misuse of fire by a minor2.0 acresFlorida Forest ServiceWF-55-IVY HOLLOW
3 August 1993Natural1.5 acresFlorida Forest Servicenot named
2 August 1999Natural2.5 acresFlorida Forest Servicenot named
2 August 1999Natural2.0 acresFlorida Forest Servicenot named
2 August 1999Natural1.0 acresFlorida Forest Servicenot named
16 August 2016Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresFlorida Forest ServiceFLORIDA STREET (10)
14 August 1993Equipment and vehicle use15 acresFlorida Forest Servicenot named
10 August 2007Natural3.0 acresFlorida Forest ServiceWF 4445 SR 210 WEST

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in St. Johns County

Storms near this place

18 since 1997

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Switzerland in 18 storm reports between 1997 and 2025: 12 thunderstorm wind, 2 lightning, 1 funnel cloud, 1 hail. The reports record 1 death. 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
August 1999LightningSwitzerland1 killedno account filed
May 2025Thunderstorm WindSwitzerland$15,000A tree fell on a house causing significant roof damage along Bartram Plantation and Greenbriar Rd. Time of event based on radar data.
July 1997Thunderstorm WindSwitzerland$5,000Large trees and power lines were blown down. A mobile home was damaged.
September 1999Thunderstorm WindSwitzerland$3,500Large trees and power lines were blown down.
August 1999Thunderstorm WindSwitzerland$3,500no account filed
August 2025LightningSwitzerland$2,000Lightning strike caused a structure fire near Marlee Road. The time of was based on lightning data. The cost of damage was unknown, but it was estimated for inclusion of the event in Storm Data.
July 1998Thunderstorm WindSwitzerland$1,500Large trees and power lines were blown down.
June 2021Thunderstorm WindSwitzerland$1,000A few trees were blown down along Hickory Acres Lane. One tree clipped a home. The cost of damage was unknown, but it was estimated for the event to be included in Storm Data.
June 2023Thunderstorm WindSwitzerland-Trees were blown down and snapped at the base along State Road 13 which caused power outages around San Juan Del Rio Catholic Church. The time of damage was based on radar.
July 2019Heavy RainSwitzerland-A public rain gauge in Bartram Plantation measured 4.01 inches of rain since 11 am.
February 2017Thunderstorm WindSwitzerland-A large tree about 2 ft in diameter fell onto an SUV. The time of damage was based on radar.
September 2017Flash FloodSwitzerland-Multiple swift water rescues were conducted by law enforcement due to river flooding.
January 2010Thunderstorm WindSwitzerland-Trees were uprooted along State Road 13, about 3 miles north of Orangedale. The time of the event was based on radar.
June 2008Thunderstorm WindSwitzerland-Power lines were blown down near State Road 13 in Switzerland and near Race Track Road in Fruitcove. The time of damage was based on radar.
May 2003Funnel CloudSwitzerland-Near County Road 305 and State Road 13. Numerous reports of a funnel cloud along the St. Johns River near Racy Point. One unconfirmed report of a touchdown; however, no damage reported.
March 2005HailSwitzerland-no account filed
July 2004Thunderstorm WindSwitzerland-no account filed
June 2004Thunderstorm WindSwitzerland-no account filed

Every storm recorded in St. Johns 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
San Diego Salamototo (historical)1.9 miles20
Fruit Cove2.4 miles20
Julia (historical)4.2 miles18
Pine Bluff4.7 miles18
Orangedale5.0 miles18
Blacks Ford5.0 miles18
Florence7.0 miles13
Whites Ford7.4 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.

Wikipedia article on SwitzerlandAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q80282The 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 308143. 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.

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.