Russell, Iowa
11 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1935 and the latest in 1981. It stands in Washington Township. It lies in ZIP code area 50238. The Survey maps it on the Russell quadrangle. 472 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,027 feet above sea level.
Population over time
2 figuresRussell fell from 554 to 472 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 | 554 | |
| 2020 | 472 | -82 (-15%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
7 surveys from 11 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.
- 1935 USGS Russell quadrangle1:62500, 2 printings
- 1938 USGS Russell quadrangle1:62500, 2 printings
- 1954 USGS Centerville quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1957 USGS Centerville quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS Centerville quadrangle1:250000
- 1966 USGS Russell quadrangle1:24000
- 1981 USGS Leon quadrangle1:100000
Fires near this place
18 since 2006Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 18 fires within 5 miles of Russell between 2006 and 2020, burning about 636 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 | 11 |
| Debris and open burning | 6 |
| Smoking | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 July 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | CHARITON VOL FD |
| 5 April 2014 | Debris and open burning | 10 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 15 April 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 15 April 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 15 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 15 April 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 5.0 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 11 April 2014 | Debris and open burning | 5.0 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 6 March 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 31 March 2015 | Debris and open burning | 2.0 acres | Iowa Department of Natural Resources | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
1 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 1 working within 5 miles of Russell: 1 past producer. 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 | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer |
Storms near this place
60 of 61 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Russell in 61 storm reports between 1994 and 2024: 33 flood, 11 hail, 8 thunderstorm wind, 5 heavy rain. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Russell | $50,000 | Trained spotter reported damaged brick and concrete silos, barn damage, roof damage, and tree damage. Time radar estimated. |
| May 2013 | Flash Flood | Russell | $50,000 | Several spots have fast flowing water 3 to 4 inches deep across 500th Ave or County line between Lucas and Monroe County. |
| May 2013 | Flash Flood | Russell | $50,000 | Water over 242nd Ave due to Wolf Creek flooding. |
| May 2013 | Flood | Russell | $50,000 | no account filed |
| August 2009 | Flood | Russell | $50,000 | no account filed |
| March 2008 | Flood | Russell | $50,000 | no account filed |
| March 2008 | Flood | Russell | $50,000 | no account filed |
| June 1994 | Hail | Russell | $50,000 | no account filed |
| October 2001 | Hail | Russell | $40,000 | no account filed |
| April 2015 | Hail | Russell | $25,000 | Hail covered the ground and stripped decorative concrete from a retaining wall. |
| April 2010 | Flood | Russell | $25,000 | no account filed |
| March 2009 | Flood | Russell | $25,000 | no account filed |
| March 2009 | Flood | Russell | $25,000 | no account filed |
| April 2008 | Flood | Russell | $25,000 | no account filed |
| April 2008 | Flood | Russell | $25,000 | no account filed |
| August 2007 | Flood | Russell | $25,000 | no account filed |
| July 2016 | Flash Flood | Russell | $20,000 | Law Enforcement reported water onto roadways causing road closures near 500th street and 320th Ave. Numerous other flooded minor roadways in eastern Lucas County. Time estimated from radar, delayed report. |
| June 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Russell | $20,000 | no account filed |
| July 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Russell | $10,000 | Corn was bent over by the high winds. |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Russell | $10,000 | An awning of a camper was torn off, some siding from a house was also removed. Power reported out. |
| June 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Russell | $10,000 | Power lines were reported down across the road and a car blown into the ditch on U.S. Highway 34. |
| March 2010 | Flood | Russell | $10,000 | no account filed |
| July 2010 | Flood | Russell | $10,000 | no account filed |
| April 2009 | Flood | Russell | $10,000 | no account filed |
| May 2009 | Flood | Russell | $10,000 | no account filed |
| July 2009 | Flood | Russell | $10,000 | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Flood | Russell | $10,000 | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Flood | Russell | $10,000 | no account filed |
| July 2008 | Flood | Russell | $10,000 | no account filed |
| July 2008 | Flood | Russell | $10,000 | no account filed |
| October 2001 | Hail | Russell | $10,000 | no account filed |
| October 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Russell | $10,000 | no account filed |
| October 2001 | Hail | Russell | $10,000 | no account filed |
| July 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Russell | $5,000 | Three to four inch tree limbs down and 5 gallon buckets blown around. |
| May 2010 | Flood | Russell | $5,000 | no account filed |
| June 2009 | Flood | Russell | $5,000 | no account filed |
| December 2008 | Flood | Russell | $5,000 | no account filed |
| September 2008 | Flood | Russell | $5,000 | no account filed |
| July 2008 | Hail | Russell | $3,000 | Quarter size hail reported. This was the 3rd storm that hailed at this location with the previous dropping hail nickel size or less. |
| October 2001 | Hail | Russell | $3,000 | no account filed |
| May 2002 | Hail | Russell | $2,000 | no account filed |
| October 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Russell | - | Peak gust of 62 mph from a personal weather station. |
| June 2021 | Heavy Rain | Russell | - | Coop observer reported 4.70 inches of rain in 24 hours. |
| July 2021 | Heavy Rain | Russell | - | A 24 hour rain total of 4.10 inches. |
| May 2020 | Heavy Rain | Russell | - | CoCoRaHs report of 2 inches of rain. Beginning and end time roughly estimated from radar. |
| June 2019 | Hail | Russell | - | Trained spotter reported quarter sized hail. |
| August 2018 | Heavy Rain | Russell | - | Mesonet station recorded heavy rainfall of 2.02 inches over the last 24 hours. |
| September 2015 | Heavy Rain | Russell | - | Mesonet recorded heavy rainfall of 2.38 inches storm total. |
| May 2014 | Funnel Cloud | Russell | - | no account filed |
| June 2011 | Flood | Russell | - | no account filed |
| December 2009 | Flood | Russell | - | no account filed |
| August 2009 | Flood | Russell | - | no account filed |
| October 2009 | Flood | Russell | - | no account filed |
| October 2009 | Flood | Russell | - | no account filed |
| August 2008 | Flood | Russell | - | no account filed |
| May 2008 | Flood | Russell | - | no account filed |
| May 2008 | Flood | Russell | - | no account filed |
| May 2008 | Flood | Russell | - | no account filed |
| November 2008 | Flood | Russell | - | no account filed |
| October 2001 | Hail | Russell | - | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zero | 3.8 miles | 11 | |
| Chariton | 6.1 miles | 11 | |
| Olmitz | 7.1 miles | 10 | |
| Williamson | 7.9 miles | 11 | |
| Indianola Junction | 9.3 miles | 11 | |
| Tipperary | 9.4 miles | 10 | |
| Whitebreast | 9.6 miles | 11 | |
| Belinda | 10.8 miles | 10 |
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 Russell | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q1925704 | 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 460861. 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.






