Elkader, Iowa

12 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1902 and the latest in 1984. It stands in Boardman Township. It lies in ZIP code area 52043. It lies near French Hollow. The Survey maps it on the Elkader quadrangle. 1,209 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 732 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Elkader within Clayton County

On record in Elkader

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 12 records

Carter Houselisted 1976
Clayton County Courthouselisted 1976
Timothy Davis Houselisted 1976
Elkader Downtown Historic Districtlisted 2012
Elkader Keystone Bridgelisted 1976
Elkader Opera Houselisted 1976
Motor Innlisted 1977
Rialto Price Houselisted 1976
Schmidt Houselisted 1977
St. Joseph Church and Parish Halllisted 1976
J. C. Stemmer Houselisted 1976
Read Township Culvertlisted 1999

Population over time

2 figures

Elkader fell from 1,273 to 1,209 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.

Year	People	Change
2010	1,273
2020	1,209	-64 (-5%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

7 surveys from 12 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.

1902 USGS Elkader quadrangle1:125000, 4 printings
1959 USGS Dubuque quadrangle1:250000
1961 USGS Dubuque quadrangle1:250000
1962 USGS Dubuque quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
1964 USGS Elkader quadrangle1:24000
1976 USGS Dubuque quadrangle1:250000
1984 USGS Oelwein quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings

Fires near this place

3 since 2007

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 3 fires within 5 miles of Elkader between 2007 and 2020, burning about 54 acres in total. None started naturally. None was 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
Debris and open burning	2
Missing data/not specified/undetermined	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
5 September 2020	Debris and open burning	3.0 acres	Iowa Department of Natural Resources	not named
17 April 2007	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	36 acres	Iowa Department of Natural Resources	not named
1 April 2018	Debris and open burning	15 acres	Iowa Department of Natural Resources	not named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Clayton County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 23 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 23 workings within 5 miles of Elkader: 15 past producers, 5 producers, 3 unknowns. 5 still produce. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Phosphorus-Phosphates, Lead. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Site	Commodity	Status	Recorded
Elkader Mine	Zinc	Past Producer	Smithsonite
Old Indian Mines	Lead	Past Producer
Quarry	Phosphorus-Phosphates	Past Producer
Unknown	Flagstone	Past Producer
Bente Quarry	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Producer
Cheeseman Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer
Fairgrounds Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer
Unknown	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer
Bente/Elkader Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Producer
Eberhardt Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Past Producer

Every working recorded in Clayton County

Storms near this place

58 since 1994

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Elkader in 58 storm reports between 1994 and 2025: 34 flood, 13 thunderstorm wind, 11 hail. 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.

When	Event	Place named	Harm	What the report says
June 2008	Flood	Elkader	$3,500,000	The Turkey River at Elkader established a new record crest at about 6 a.m. CDT on June 10 of 30.9 feet. The previous record crest was 27.3 feet on June 15, 1991. Flood stage is 12.0 feet. The river rose again above flood stage from June 12 through June 14th cresting at 16.63 feet.
April 2008	Flood	Elkader	$380,000	Runoff from heavy rainfall caused significant rises on the Turkey River and caused moderate to major flooding. At Elkader, the Turkey River crested at 18.84 feet on April 25. Flood stage is 12 feet. Damage was estimated at $100,000 including damage to the dike on the town's southwest side and erosion on the riverbank on the northwest side of the community. At Garber, the river crested at 27.98 feet on April 25, which was below the record setting crest of 32.8 feet on May 23, 2004. Flood stage at Garber is 17 feet.
May 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	Elkader	$100,000	no account filed
August 2016	Flood	Elkader	$63,000	Runoff from heavy rain pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested over ten feet above the flood stage at 22.57 feet. The flood waters damaged some trails, sidewalks and the riverbank.
August 1997	Hail	Elkader	$50,000	no account filed
May 1994	Thunderstorm Wind	Elkader	$50,000	no account filed
June 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Elkader	$35,000	no account filed
June 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Elkader	$8,000	no account filed
July 2020	Thunderstorm Wind	Elkader	$5,000	Trees were blown down in Elkader and across other parts of Clayton County. There was also a power outage in Elkader.
July 2019	Thunderstorm Wind	Elkader	$5,000	Trees were blown down onto power lines north of Elkader.
July 2017	Thunderstorm Wind	Elkader	$5,000	Power lines were blown down in Elkader.
March 2017	Thunderstorm Wind	Elkader	$3,000	A 73 mph wind gust occurred in Elkader. A light post and a 12 inch diameter tree were blown down.
June 2014	Thunderstorm Wind	Elkader	$3,000	Trees and power lines were blown down in Elkader.
June 2019	Thunderstorm Wind	Elkader	$2,000	Trees were blown down west of Elkader along State Highway 56.
September 2016	Flood	Elkader	$2,000	Runoff from heavy rain pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested over eight feet above the flood stage at 20.65 feet.
July 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Elkader	$1,500	no account filed
April 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Elkader	$1,500	no account filed
August 2025	Flood	Elkader	-	Heavy rain during the middle of August allowed the Turkey River at Elkader to rise into flood stage during the early evening on August 19th. The site crested at 13.33 ft in minor flood stage during the late morning on August 20th before falling below flood stage just after midnight on August 21st.
February 2023	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from the combination of rainfall and melting snow pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested almost two feet above the flood stage at 13.77 feet on the 27th.
August 2021	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rains pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested almost eleven feet above the flood stage at 22.82 feet on the 30th. This was the fourth highest crest on record.
March 2020	Hail	Elkader	-	Quarter sized hail fell in Elkader.
June 2020	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from the heavy rains associated with Tropical Depression Cristobal pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested over three feet above the flood stage at 15.21 feet on the 11th.
March 2019	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from rain and melting snow along with ice jams, pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested over six feet above the flood stage at 18.45 feet on March 14th.
May 2019	Hail	Elkader	-	Quarter sized hail fell in Elkader.
May 2019	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rain pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested less than a half foot above the flood stage at 12.23 feet.
January 2018	Flood	Elkader	-	Ice jams and runoff from heavy rain caused flooding along the Turkey River in Elkader. The river crested just over a foot above the flood stage at 13.05 feet.
September 2018	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rains pushed the Turkey River out of its banks near Elkader. The river crested just over four feet above the flood stage at 16.06 feet on September 5th.
May 2018	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rain pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested almost four feet above the flood stage at 15.82 feet on the 5th.
September 2018	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rains pushed the Turkey River out of its banks near Elkader. The river crested almost five feet above the flood stage at 16.71 feet on September 20th.
June 2018	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rain pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested a foot and a half above the flood stage at 13.44 feet on the 10th.
October 2018	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rains pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested less than a foot above the flood stage at 12.67 feet on October 1st.
October 2018	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rains pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested almost three above the flood stage at 14.72 feet on October 10th.
June 2017	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rains pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested over two feet above the flood stage at 14.23 feet.
July 2017	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rains pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested above the flood state twice. The first crest was around a half foot above the flood stage at 12.52 feet very early on the 22nd. The river dipped briefly below the flood stage before cresting again around a half foot above the flood stage at 12.4 feet during the evening of the 22nd.
June 2016	Flood	Elkader	-	Heavy rains across portions of northeast Iowa pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested at 12.81 feet, less than a foot above the flood stage.
September 2016	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rain pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested over a foot above the flood stage at 13.36 feet.
September 2016	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rain pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested over five feet above the flood stage at 17.17 feet.
July 2016	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rains pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested less than a half foot above the flood stage at 12.21 feet.
December 2015	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rain pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested at 12.82 feet, just under a foot over the flood stage.
June 2015	Hail	Elkader	-	Quarter sized hail fell in Elkader. Around a 1000 acres of corn and beans were damaged by the hail northeast of Elkader.
July 2014	Flood	Elkader	-	Flooding that began in late June on the Turkey River in Elkader ended when the river went below the flood stage on the first day of July.
June 2014	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rain pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested almost seven feet above the flood stage at 18.82 feet.
June 2014	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rain pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested around a foot and a half above the flood stage at 13.52 feet. The river remained above flood stage into July.
June 2013	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rain pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested almost three feet above the flood stage at 14.95 feet.
June 2013	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rain pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested about a foot and a half above the flood stage at 13.66 feet.
March 2013	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from snow melt and heavy rains pushed the Turkey River out of its banks near Elkader. The river crested almost two feet above the flood stage at 13.98 feet.
May 2013	Flood	Elkader	-	Runoff from heavy rain pushed the Turkery River out of its banks in Elkader. The river crested almost four feet above the flood stage at 15.86 feet.
March 2011	Flood	Elkader	-	The combination of rainfall and melting snow pushed the Turkey River at Elkader out of its banks. The river exceeded the flood stage for a short period on the 23rd. The river crested less than a quarter of a foot over the flood stage at 12.14 feet.
March 2010	Flood	Elkader	-	The Turkey River near Elkader rose above the flood stage of 12 feet on the morning of March 11th. It crested at 14.42 feet on March 12th around 10:00 p.m., before falling back below flood stage around noon on March 14th.\|\|Only minor flooding was observed as the river rose above flood stage, with no damage reported.
July 2010	Flood	Elkader	-	Locally heavy rains pushed the Turkey River out of its banks in Elkader on July 7th. The river exceeded the flood stage by a half foot cresting at 12.52 feet.
July 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	Elkader	-	Trained spotter reported 12 inch limbs down and hail one half inch in diameter.
April 2018	Hail	Elkader	-	no account filed
July 2017	Hail	Elkader	-	no account filed
April 2010	Hail	Elkader	-	no account filed
April 2005	Hail	Elkader	-	no account filed
April 2005	Hail	Elkader	-	no account filed
May 2000	Hail	Elkader	-	no account filed
August 1997	Hail	Elkader	-	no account filed

Every storm recorded in Clayton 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.

Place	Distance	Sheets
Motor	4.3 miles	12
Clayton Center	4.6 miles	12
Osborne	4.8 miles	12
Communia	5.0 miles	12
Saint Olaf	5.3 miles	12
Mederville	6.3 miles	12
Littleport	7.1 miles	12
Farmersburg	7.7 miles	12

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 Elkader	An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q932507	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 456303. 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.