BlockBefore

Farrar, Iowa

8 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1954 and the latest in 1984. It stands in Washington Township. It lies in ZIP code area 50161. The Survey maps it on the Mingo quadrangle.

Farrar within Polk County

Topographic sheets covering this place

6 surveys from 8 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

14 since 2011

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 14 fires within 5 miles of Farrar between 2011 and 2017, burning about 1,073 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
Missing data/not specified/undetermined7
Debris and open burning5
Equipment and vehicle use1
Smoking1

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
5 April 2011Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreIowa Department of Natural Resources10500 NE HUBBLE, IA
22 April 2014Missing data/not specified/undetermined40 acresIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
2 April 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined5.0 acresIowa Department of Natural Resources10643 NE 142ND AVE, IA
11 April 2014Debris and open burning100 acresIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
11 April 2014Missing data/not specified/undetermined10 acresIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
10 April 2014Smoking17 acresIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
29 March 2012Debris and open burning8.0 acresIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
29 March 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined5.0 acresIowa Department of Natural Resources14443 NE 84TH ST., IA

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Polk County

Mines and quarries near this place

5 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 5 workings within 5 miles of Farrar: 5 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
John Geisler PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Kilker PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
UnknownSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
UnknownSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
UnknownSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

Every working recorded in Polk County

Storms near this place

10 since 2008

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Farrar in 10 storm reports between 2008 and 2024: 5 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail, 1 tornado, 1 lightning. 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
July 2016LightningFarrar$50,000Fire department reported that a lightning strike caused a fire.
July 2008Thunderstorm WindFarrar$50,000Eight to 12 inch diameter trees down west of Elkhart on NE 126th Avenue.
July 2008Tornado (EF1)Farrar$50,000Numerous trees were downed with two houses damaged. Part of one house was in the trees.
July 2008Thunderstorm WindFarrar$20,000Damage to house siding and trees blown down.
July 2008Thunderstorm WindFarrar$10,000Numerous large trees down.
May 2013HailFarrar$3,000Nickel to quarter size hail at the intersection of 620th Ave and 340th St.
July 2019Thunderstorm WindFarrar$2,000Public reported a resident shed tipped over. Time estimated from radar.
May 2014Thunderstorm WindFarrar$2,000Winds were estimated at 60 MPH.
May 2024HailFarrar-Delayed report of pea to nickel sized hail in Elkhart.
July 2019HailFarrar-Public reported penny sized hail, as well as sapling trees snapped.

Every storm recorded in Polk 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
Loring4.0 miles8
Santiago6.6 miles11
Elkhart8.1 miles11
Bondurant8.8 miles12
Mitchellville9.5 miles11
Enterprise9.9 miles16
Quilhart (historical)10.5 miles16
Altoona12.2 miles12

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 456558. 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.