Grundy Center, Iowa
9 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1954 and the latest in 1984. It stands in Palermo Township. It lies in ZIP code area 50638. It stands on Minnehaha Creek. The Survey maps it on the Grundy Center quadrangle. 2,796 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,024 feet above sea level.
On record in Grundy Center
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 2 records
Grundy County Courthouselisted 1981- Grundy Center High Schoollisted 2020
Population over time
2 figuresGrundy Center grew from 2,706 to 2,796 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 | 2,706 | |
| 2020 | 2,796 | +90 (+3%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
4 surveys from 9 printed sheetsMatched 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.
- 1954 USGS Waterloo quadrangle1:250000, 4 printings
- 1955 USGS Waterloo quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1979 USGS Grundy Center quadrangle1:24000
- 1984 USGS Marshalltown quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
3 since 2006Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 3 fires within 5 miles of Grundy Center between 2006 and 2010, burning about 7 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/undetermined | 3 |
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 April 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 4.0 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 2 November 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2.0 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | FRED ABELS, 20902 J AVE, HOLLAND, IOWA |
| 21 October 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | 19000 BLOCK L AVE, IOWA |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
3 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 3 workings within 5 miles of Grundy Center: 2 past producers, 1 producer. 1 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 | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bowers Sand Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Grundy Center Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Holland Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer |
Storms near this place
60 of 67 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Grundy Center in 67 storm reports between 1994 and 2025: 22 thunderstorm wind, 19 hail, 17 heavy rain, 3 flood. 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 2007 | Flash Flood | Grundy Center | $100,000 | no account filed |
| May 2004 | Lightning | Grundy Center | $100,000 | no account filed |
| March 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $50,000 | no account filed |
| June 1998 | Flood | Grundy Center | $50,000 | no account filed |
| June 1998 | Flood | Grundy Center | $50,000 | no account filed |
| April 1994 | Hail | Grundy Center | $50,000 | no account filed |
| July 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $30,000 | no account filed |
| June 1998 | Flood | Grundy Center | $30,000 | no account filed |
| May 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $25,000 | no account filed |
| June 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $20,000 | A Sheriff deputy estimated winds of 70 MPH and pea size hail. |
| July 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $20,000 | no account filed |
| May 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $10,000 | Public reported 1 to 2 foot diameter trees down near the courthouse. Report via social media and is a delayed report. |
| August 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $10,000 | Winds of up to 65 MPH took out the power in Grundy Center. |
| June 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $10,000 | Awnings blown off of a business in Grundy Center. |
| May 2004 | Hail | Grundy Center | $10,000 | no account filed |
| May 2004 | Hail | Grundy Center | $10,000 | no account filed |
| May 2001 | Hail | Grundy Center | $10,000 | no account filed |
| May 2000 | Hail | Grundy Center | $8,000 | no account filed |
| July 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $5,000 | Public reported trees and large branches down in town. Time estimated from radar. Report via social media. |
| March 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $5,000 | no account filed |
| July 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $5,000 | no account filed |
| July 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $5,000 | no account filed |
| September 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $5,000 | no account filed |
| August 2009 | Hail | Grundy Center | $3,000 | no account filed |
| June 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $3,000 | no account filed |
| June 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $3,000 | no account filed |
| August 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $2,000 | Two to three inch diameter branches blow down. Nickel size hail. |
| July 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $2,000 | Four to five inch diameter tree limbs down in Grundy Center. |
| May 2004 | Tornado (F1) | Grundy Center | $2,000 | Tornado touched down in open fields. Dust debris blown across highway 14 as it crossed. The track was intermittent and the tornado was reported to be multiple vortex at times with two tornadoes on the ground at one point northeast of Grundy Center. |
| August 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | $2,000 | no account filed |
| April 2006 | Hail | Grundy Center | $2,000 | no account filed |
| April 2006 | Hail | Grundy Center | $2,000 | no account filed |
| April 2006 | Hail | Grundy Center | $2,000 | no account filed |
| April 2006 | Hail | Grundy Center | $2,000 | no account filed |
| May 2004 | Hail | Grundy Center | $2,000 | no account filed |
| May 2004 | Hail | Grundy Center | $2,000 | no account filed |
| May 2003 | Hail | Grundy Center | $2,000 | no account filed |
| July 1995 | Hail | Grundy Center | $1,000 | no account filed |
| June 2025 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | Rainfall since midnight of 3.68 inches. |
| July 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | - | Six inch tree limbs broken in Grundy Center. Time estimated via radar. |
| August 2021 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | A 24 hour rain total of 3.27 inches. |
| July 2021 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | A 24 hour rain total of 2.26 inches. |
| August 2021 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | A 24 hour rain total of 1.93 inches. |
| June 2020 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | Coop observer reported a 24 hour rainfall total of 2.75 inches. |
| June 2020 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | Coop observer reported a 24 hour rainfall total of 2.75 inches. |
| August 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Grundy Center | - | A trained spotter reported 60 mph wind gusts with pea sized hail. |
| August 2018 | Hail | Grundy Center | - | Trained spotter reported mostly pea to nickel sized hail, but a few stones as large as quarters were mixed in. |
| August 2018 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | Coop observer recorded heavy rainfall of 4.01 inches over the last 24 hours. |
| June 2018 | Hail | Grundy Center | - | Public reported nickel sized hail. |
| July 2018 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | Coop observer recorded heavy rainfall of 2.89 inches over the last 24 hours. Due to database entry limitation, beginning time coded as midnight CST. |
| July 2018 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | Emergency manager reported heavy rainfall of 3.20 inches. Due to database entry limitation, beginning time coded as midnight CST. Actual estimated start time of 5pm CDT on June 30th. |
| October 2018 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | Emergency manager relayed a report of 2.65 inches of heavy rainfall. This is a delayed report. Time estimated. Due to limitations in entry, beginning time entered as midnight CST, October 1st. |
| July 2015 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | KWWL-TV reported heavy rainfall from thunderstorms earlier today of 2.34 inches. |
| August 2015 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | Public reported heavy rainfall of 3.90 inches event total so far. |
| December 2015 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | Coop observer reported heavy rainfall of 5.96 inches over the last 48 hours/storm total so far. |
| June 2014 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | Rainfall of 4.07 inches in past 24 hours. |
| June 2014 | Hail | Grundy Center | - | Spotter estimates wind gusts of 40 MPH. |
| April 2014 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | Storm total rainfall for the two days was 2.90 inches. |
| April 2013 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | Rainfall 1.54 inches. |
| May 2013 | Heavy Rain | Grundy Center | - | Twenty four hour rainfall total of 1.44 inches. |
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.
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 Grundy Center | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q1861436 | 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 457172. 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.



