BlockFrom the record
4 National Register listings published here.
Sources: the National Register database, National Park Service
Chickasaw County, Iowa
26 topographic sheets cover 23 settlements here, and 4 properties are on the National Register of Historic Places.
Research this county
What the record shows
- 173 topographic sheet readings cover the county's settlements.
- 4 properties here are on the National Register of Historic Places: 4 buildings.
- 2 of the 4 listings were added during the 1970s.
- The Geographic Names Information System records 23 populated places in this county; 23 are covered by at least one topographic sheet.
Places on the National Register
4Every property in this county listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with the year it was listed and the federal nomination document.
| Photograph | Property | Type | Listed | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Chickasaw County Courthouse | building | 1981 | 81000228 |
| Chickasaw Octagon House | building | 1979 | 79000888 | |
| George Darrow Round Barn | building | 1986 | 86001421 | |
| John Foley House | building | 1979 | 79000889 |
Wildfire, 2006 to 2020
65 firesEvery wildfire the federal occurrence database records inside this county: 65 of them, burning about 1,522 acres. None started naturally and none was recorded as arson. Each settlement page carries the fires within five miles of it.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 40 |
| Debris and open burning | 25 |
The five largest, by the area the report gives. None of them was recorded as arson.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 April 2015 | Debris and open burning | 750 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 11 April 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 85 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 22 April 2020 | Debris and open burning | 65 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 28 March 2015 | Debris and open burning | 60 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 28 March 2015 | Debris and open burning | 60 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 3 April 2019 | Debris and open burning | 50 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 2 April 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 45 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | 270TH ST., IA |
| 18 April 2014 | Debris and open burning | 45 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
Every settlement page carries the fires within five miles of it - see the settlement index below.
Storms, 1953 to 2026
60 of 316 shownThe NOAA Storm Events Database holds 316 reports for this county, causing 1 death, 5 injuries and about $11,429,830 in recorded property damage. Each settlement page carries the reports that name it.
| Kind of event | Reports |
|---|---|
| Hail | 111 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 108 |
| Tornado | 30 |
| Flash Flood | 27 |
| Heavy Rain | 17 |
| Flood | 16 |
| Funnel Cloud | 5 |
| Lightning | 2 |
The most serious of them, by death, then injury, then recorded damage. The accounts are quoted exactly as the forecast office filed them.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 2016 | Flash Flood | Little Turkey | 1 killed, $10,000 | One person drowned when a vehicle was swept off the road by flood waters from the Little Turkey River. This occurred north of Lawler where Union Avenue crosses the river. The driver called 911 at 340 a.m. |
| August 1993 | Tornado (F2) | New Hampton | 2 hurt, $500,000 | no account filed |
| June 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nashua | 1 hurt, $500,000 | no account filed |
| March 2010 | Flood | Deerfield | 1 hurt, $7,000 | A 13-year old girl was swept into a flooded creek in rural Alta Vista when cutting across a field after being dropped off a school bus. She was swept into and through a culvert before escaping. She was treated for hypothermia (direct injury) and released.||In addition, 15 roads were closed or washed out across the county. Some of this damage was due to water running over roads as culverts were frozen shut or plugged with ice. ||Other minor flooding of low lying areas and small streams and creeks was reported across the county from the evening of March 10th through the early morning of March 13th. |
| July 1956 | Tornado (F2) | not stated | 1 hurt, $250 | no account filed |
| July 1971 | Tornado (F4) | not stated | $2,500,000 | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Flood | Horn Fld Arpt | $600,000 | Highways 18 and 63 were closed in spots from flood waters. A Local Area Emergency (LAE) was issued for the county based on requests early Sunday morning June 8. Main roads were mostly open, but secondary and township roads were under water. The Cedar River caused flooding in parts of Nashua where sand bagging efforts were unable to save a water main from breaking and cutting off the towns water supply. Rainfall totals of 6 to 7 inches were reported during the weekend of June 7-8. |
| August 2021 | Flood | Deerfield | $500,000 | Numerous roads were closed across Chickasaw County because of flood waters in the Ionia area. The East Fork of the Wapsipinicon River went out of its banks forcing officials to close U.S. Highway 18 near Fredericksburg. A train attempting to cross the Wapsipinicon River southwest of New Hampton derailed causing officials to evacuate nearby residents when one of the tank cars leaked some anhydrous ammonia. |
| July 1999 | Flash Flood | Countywide | $500,000 | no account filed |
| July 1994 | Tornado (F2) | New Hampton - | $500,000 | no account filed |
| July 1994 | Thunderstorm Wind | New Hampton | $500,000 | no account filed |
| July 1994 | Tornado (F1) | Fenton to | $500,000 | no account filed |
| July 2017 | Flash Flood | Bassett | $350,000 | Heavy rains of 4 to 8 inches caused flash flooding to occur across the southern sections of Chickasaw County. Flood waters from two small creeks covered U.S. Highway 18 west of Fredericksburg. The flood waters prompted sandbagging to be done in New Hampton. Numerous roads across the county sustained damage during the flooding. |
| July 1999 | Flash Flood | Countywide | $350,000 | no account filed |
| December 2021 | Tornado (EF0) | Deerfield | $330,000 | The second tornado of the night in Chickasaw County formed southwest of Alta Vista and moved northeast before crossing into Howard County along County Line Road just east of the Little Wapsipinicon River. This tornado was rated EF0. The tornado damaged a greenhouse facility, otherwise, damage was limited to trees. |
| December 2021 | Tornado (EF1) | Bassett | $255,000 | An EF1 tornado formed west of North Washington and moved to northeast for about 4 miles before dissipating. The tornado damaged trees and some farm outbuilding along its path. |
| October 1984 | Tornado (F1) | not stated | $250,000 | no account filed |
| April 1965 | Tornado (F1) | not stated | $250,000 | no account filed |
| May 2004 | Flash Flood | Countywide | $150,000 | no account filed |
| June 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nashua | $150,000 | no account filed |
| June 2013 | Flash Flood | Nashua | $120,000 | Locally heavy rain produced some street flooding and caused water to go in some basements in Nashua. Flooding also impacted Lawler and caused damage to secondary roads across the southern sections of the county. |
| July 1999 | Tornado (F1) | Nashua | $120,000 | Tornado began in Floyd County |
| July 1995 | Tornado (F1) | New Hampton | $100,000 | The cold front from the system that affected Iowa the previous day had not yet moved through the state. The air mass remained fairly unstable overnight, and with surface heating became more unstable. Once the cap broke a line of thunderstorms formed over the central sections around mid day. The storms moved east during the afternoon. A storm formed ahead of the main line over Chickasaw County. This storm became severe as it produced a tornado. The tornado touched down south of New Hampton where it destroyed one farm building and damaged a few others on one farmstead. Several trees were also taken down. The tornado tracked across fields to the southeast of New Hampton and did not directly effect another farmstead. The tornado dissipated south of Lawler. |
| May 2004 | Flash Flood | South Portion | $100,000 | no account filed |
| May 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nashua | $100,000 | no account filed |
| May 1996 | Hail | Saude | $90,000 | no account filed |
| July 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Fredricksburg | $80,000 | Emergency management reported numerous trees and limbs down in Fredericksburg. This damaged power lines and a few homes. |
| May 1996 | Hail | Ionia | $75,000 | no account filed |
| May 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | New Hampton | $65,000 | Numerous garages and buildings were damaged across New Hampton. Power lines and approximately 100 trees were also blown down. |
| June 2000 | Flash Flood | Countywide | $60,000 | no account filed |
| June 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | North Washington | $60,000 | no account filed |
| April 2026 | Hail | Alta Vista | $55,000 | Local fire and rescue in Alta Vista reported golf ball sized hail. |
| May 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Fredricksburg | $50,000 | A grain elevator was damaged in Fredericksburg. |
| June 2009 | Hail | Lawler | $50,000 | Crops in approximately 15 sections of land north of Lawler were stripped and destroyed. Also, some window, siding and roof damage was reported. Areas impacted were between State Highway 24 and County Road B33 and a corridor 2 miles west and east of County Road V56. Hail in the entire area was estimated between 1 and 2 inches in diameter. |
| April 2008 | Flash Flood | Fredricksburg | $50,000 | Reports from the emergency manager indicated six county roads were washed out due to an estimated 5 to 6 inches of rain. One car was stuck in high water near the Chickasaw-Bremer County line. |
| April 1994 | Hail | Nashua | $50,000 | Thunderstorms developed in the warm and unstable air over Iowa. They developed north and northeast of Des Moines and tracked northeast across northeast Iowa. One of them dropped three-quarter-inch diameter hail at Conrad. A short time later, golf ball-size hail fell south of Scarville. Farther northeast, one-inch diameter hail was reported in Chickasaw County at Nashua. The hail fell for 10 to 15 minutes. Some damage was reported, but no serious damage. |
| April 2008 | Flood | Horn Fld Arpt | $50,000 | no account filed |
| July 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | New Hampton | $50,000 | no account filed |
| June 1997 | Lightning | New Hampton | $50,000 | no account filed |
| May 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alta Vista | $50,000 | no account filed |
| June 1994 | Thunderstorm Wind | Fredericksburg | $50,000 | no account filed |
| July 1994 | Thunderstorm Wind | Fredericksburg | $50,000 | no account filed |
| July 1994 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alta Vista | $50,000 | no account filed |
| August 1993 | Hail | Alta Vista | $50,000 | no account filed |
| September 2016 | Flash Flood | Nashua | $48,000 | The fire department had to pump water out of basements in Nashua and volunteers helped sandbag homes in both Nashua and Ionia. Flood waters from the Wapsipinicon River covered U.S. Highway 18 west of New Hampton. For the second time this month, school was canceled in the New Hampton school district because of flooding. |
| June 2024 | Flood | Nashua | $45,000 | Significant rainfall later into June pushed the Little Cedar River at Nashua into flood stage on June 24th. The river stage crested during the early morning on June 25th in major flood stage at 959.94 ft. |
| July 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Fredricksburg | $40,000 | A barn and outbuilding were destroyed northeast of Fredericksburg. |
| May 2019 | Flash Flood | New Hampton Muni Arp | $40,000 | Heavy rainfall of 3 to 5 inches caused flash flooding to occur in and near New Hampton. There were many reports of high water in town with numerous streets and intersections under water along with water in basements. Sandbagging was performed in some parts of town. The flood waters also covered U.S. Highway 63 north of town. |
| May 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | Jerico | $40,000 | no account filed |
| September 2016 | Flash Flood | Lawler | $35,000 | Flood waters covered State Highway 24 northeast of Lawler. Many other roads across Chickasaw County were reported to be under water as well. |
| May 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alta Vista | $35,000 | no account filed |
| June 2014 | Hail | Boyd | $30,000 | Golf ball sized hail fell east of New Hampton. The hail broke windows and damaged siding on several homes. |
| June 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Boyd | $30,000 | Numerous trees were either blown down or uprooted on and near a golf course east of New Hampton. One of the downed trees caused one lane of State Highway 24 to be closed, a semi trailer was blown over onto its side and an outbuilding was destroyed. The cart shelter at the golf course was also damaged by the high winds. |
| July 1995 | Thunderstorm Wind | New Hampton | $30,000 | no account filed |
| July 1995 | Hail | Nashua | $30,000 | no account filed |
| June 1998 | Flash Flood | New Hampton | $25,000 | no account filed |
| May 1996 | Hail | Lawler | $25,000 | no account filed |
| July 1995 | Thunderstorm Wind | New Hampton | $25,000 | no account filed |
| May 1989 | Tornado (F1) | not stated | $25,000 | no account filed |
| June 1983 | Tornado (F1) | not stated | $25,000 | no account filed |
Mines and quarries
40 recordedThe Survey's mineral resources record lists 40 workings inside this county. 6 still produce and 34 are closed or unrecorded. Each settlement page carries the workings within five miles of it.
| Commodity | Workings |
|---|---|
| Sand and Gravel, Construction | 30 |
| Stone, Crushed/Broken | 10 |
The least common of them first, because a county's hundredth gravel pit says nothing its first ten did not.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Biglow Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Boise Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Chickasaw Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Hunt Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Kane | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Kobliska | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Mahoney Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Nashua | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Tracy | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Unknown | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Unknown | ||
| Blazek Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Boevers Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Boveig Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown | ||
| Busta Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Nashua Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer |
Every populated place in the county
23Named settlements recorded in the Geographic Names Information System, each with the topographic sheets covering it. Villages, hamlets and abandoned places alike. Each is shown with the nearest named watercourse or landform and the survey quadrangle it falls on.
-
Dresden
Richland township · 50659 · Frederika quadrangle
9 sheets, 1954 to 1984
No longer a settlement
-
Fredericksburg
Dresden township · 50630 · On Marsh Creek · Fredericksburg quadrangle
9 sheets, 1954 to 1984
The vanished settlements of Chickasaw County: the places named above that are no longer on the map.
Provenance
- Topographic sheets. USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection, county index, measured from the bulk metadata.
- Fire insurance maps. Library of Congress Sanborn collection, faceted to this county.
- Photographs. Each place queried individually against the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs search.
- 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.