Leon, Iowa
7 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1954 and the latest in 1981. It stands in Leon City. It lies in ZIP code area 50144. The Survey maps it on the Leon quadrangle. 1,822 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,125 feet above sea level.
Research this city
On record in Leon
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
Decatur County Courthouselisted 1981
Grand River Bridgelisted 1998
Population over time
2 figuresLeon fell from 1,977 to 1,822 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 | 1,977 | |
| 2020 | 1,822 | -155 (-8%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
5 surveys from 7 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 Centerville quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1957 USGS Centerville quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS Centerville quadrangle1:250000
- 1964 USGS Leon quadrangle1:24000
- 1981 USGS Leon quadrangle1:100000
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 Leon: 3 past producers. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Clay, Stone, Crushed/Broken, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mills Brick Yard | Clay | Past Producer | ||
| Millsap Quarries | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer |
Storms near this place
53 since 1993Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Leon in 53 storm reports between 1993 and 2025: 22 hail, 21 thunderstorm wind, 4 lightning, 2 flash flood. The reports record 5 injuries. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | 2 hurt, $25,000 | no account filed |
| April 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | 2 hurt, $5,000 | no account filed |
| August 2010 | Lightning | Leon | 1 hurt | A 15 year old girl was struck by lightning. |
| March 2022 | Tornado (EF2) | Leon | $500,000 | This tornado passed through three counties including Decatur, Wayne and Lucas. The tornado developed east of Leon in central Decatur county and headed northeast. The torndo remained in rural areas of the county for the duration of its path. Damage was primarily to broken power poles, although residential house damage was also noted. A roof was removed from a house just east of Garden Grove producing EF2 damage with other damage to nearby outbuildings also noted. The tornado exited into Wayne county just north of 140th Street. |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $200,000 | Significant tree damage in the town of Leon. An estimated 100 to 200 trees felled in town with large trees littering the town. Trees fell on the roofs of many houses, but no major structural damage. |
| June 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $90,000 | Osceola Fire Department reported a grain bin toppled and blocking US Highway 69. Time estimated via radar. |
| September 1993 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $50,000 | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Hail | Leon | $30,000 | Extensive hail damage to a RV camper and a residential skylight. |
| September 1996 | Lightning | Leon | $30,000 | no account filed |
| May 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $25,000 | no account filed |
| September 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $20,000 | Law enforcement reported power lines down and a power outage in Leon. Basement flooding was also reported at some locations in the area. This is a delayed report. |
| June 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $20,000 | no account filed |
| September 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $10,000 | Large tree branches reported down. |
| June 2008 | Flash Flood | Leon | $10,000 | Water reported over roads in Leon. |
| August 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $10,000 | no account filed |
| August 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $10,000 | no account filed |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $5,000 | Heavy rain and pea size hail also reported west of Leon. Wind speed estimated. |
| June 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $5,000 | Power lines and tree limbs were down in town. |
| August 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $5,000 | no account filed |
| April 2006 | Hail | Leon | $5,000 | no account filed |
| July 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $5,000 | no account filed |
| June 2005 | Hail | Leon | $5,000 | no account filed |
| May 2004 | Hail | Leon | $5,000 | no account filed |
| August 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $5,000 | no account filed |
| August 2003 | Hail | Leon | $5,000 | no account filed |
| April 2001 | Lightning | Leon | $5,000 | no account filed |
| August 1999 | Lightning | Leon | $5,000 | no account filed |
| June 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $5,000 | no account filed |
| May 1996 | Hail | Leon | $5,000 | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $3,000 | Large tree limbs were blown down. |
| May 2004 | Hail | Leon | $2,000 | no account filed |
| July 2001 | Hail | Leon | $2,000 | no account filed |
| April 2015 | Hail | Leon | $1,000 | no account filed |
| April 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | $1,000 | no account filed |
| May 2004 | Hail | Leon | $1,000 | no account filed |
| May 2004 | Hail | Leon | $1,000 | no account filed |
| September 2000 | Hail | Leon | $1,000 | no account filed |
| August 2025 | Heavy Rain | Leon | - | Event total rainfall of 3.07 inches from personal weather station. |
| June 2025 | Flash Flood | Leon | - | Heavy rain occurred over the area with over 3 inches in an hour. This resulted in a number of flooded roads in town, with water actively flowing at mid rim height on vehicles in flood waters. Impacts were largely confined to town which lies lower that surroundings area. Highway 69, coming into town from the north, had water over it for a time but this remained minor enough that a road closure was not needed. |
| May 2024 | Hail | Leon | - | Time of occurrence estimated from radar. |
| June 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | - | Social media photo of wind blown hail causing damage to siding, windows, gutters, screens, and air conditioner. Time estimated by radar. |
| May 2018 | Hail | Leon | - | Law enforcement reported quarter sized hail. |
| April 2016 | Hail | Leon | - | Emergency Manager reported nickel sized hail. |
| July 2010 | Funnel Cloud | Leon | - | Storm chasers reported a brief funnel southeast of Leon. |
| August 2009 | Heavy Rain | Leon | - | Rainfall amount of 4.07 inches was reported. |
| June 2004 | Hail | Leon | - | Dime size hail |
| March 2014 | Hail | Leon | - | no account filed |
| March 2014 | Hail | Leon | - | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Hail | Leon | - | no account filed |
| April 2006 | Hail | Leon | - | no account filed |
| March 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leon | - | no account filed |
| May 2004 | Hail | Leon | - | no account filed |
| April 2003 | Hail | Leon | - | no account filed |
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 | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Decatur | 4.6 miles | 10 | |
| Blockly (historical) | 5.5 miles | 10 | |
| Kingston | 6.9 miles | 7 | |
| Barrell (historical) | 7.0 miles | 10 | |
| Terre Haute | 7.4 miles | 10 | |
| Davis City | 7.7 miles | 10 | |
| High Point | 8.3 miles | 7 | |
| Woodland | 8.5 miles | 7 |
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 Leon | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q1911261 | 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 458291. 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.
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.




