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Stratford, Iowa

9 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1954 and the latest in 1993. It stands in Marion Township. It lies in ZIP code area 50249. The Survey maps it on the Stratford quadrangle.

Stratford within Hamilton County

On record in Stratford

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 1 record

Topographic sheets covering this place

5 surveys from 9 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

25 since 2009

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 25 fires within 5 miles of Stratford between 2009 and 2020, burning about 192 acres in total. None started naturally. 1 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/undetermined16
Debris and open burning7
Arson/incendiarism1
Equipment and vehicle use1

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 September 2012Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
22 September 2011Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreIowa Department of Natural Resources1305 370 ST STRATFORD, IA
27 August 2013Debris and open burningunder an acreIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
3 July 2012Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
26 July 2011Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreIowa Department of Natural Resources1954 390TH ST. STRATFORD, IA
19 July 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.5 acresIowa Department of Natural Resources1336 330TH ST STRATFORD, IA
14 July 2017Arson/incendiarismunder an acreIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
9 June 2012Debris and open burning3.0 acresIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Hamilton County

Mines and quarries near this place

7 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 7 workings within 5 miles of Stratford: 6 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 SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Dutcher PitsSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Faro PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Iles PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Knox PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
UnknownSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
UnknownSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Wrede PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer

Every working recorded in Hamilton County

Storms near this place

42 since 1999

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Stratford in 42 storm reports between 1999 and 2025: 17 hail, 9 flood, 6 thunderstorm wind, 5 tornado. The reports record 1 death and 3 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
November 2005Tornado (F3)Stratford1 killed, 3 hurt, $11,700,000Tornado moved from Webster County in to Hamilton County. One woman was killed when her house collapsed.
December 2021Tornado (EF2)Stratford$180,000This tornado entered Hamilton County from Webster County just south of Stratford and passed just south and east of town. This produced tree damage and completely destroyed an outbuilding northeast of town. The tornado continued to produce damage northeast of Stratford to outbuildings and trees before entering the Boone River valley and dissipating south several miles south of Webster City.
December 2021Tornado (EF2)Stratford$100,000This tornado entered Hamilton County from Webster County. The tornado produced damage to multiple large utility poles along several county roads to the south and east of Stratford. The tornado finally lifted northwest of Stanhope as it approached the Boone River valley.
September 2018FloodStratford$100,000The Boone River at Webster City crested at 14.40 feet on 23 September 2018 at 1800 UTC.
August 2015Flash FloodStratford$50,000Hamilton County Law Enforcement reported road closures due to heavy rain and flooding. Locations include along Highway 175 from Stratford to Stanhope. One retirement home was evacuated due to high water.
August 2007FloodStratford$50,000no account filed
March 2007FloodStratford$50,000no account filed
June 2004HailStratford$50,000no account filed
April 2001Thunderstorm WindStratford$40,000no account filed
October 2002Thunderstorm WindStratford$30,000no account filed
March 2010FloodStratford$25,000no account filed
April 2007FloodStratford$25,000no account filed
October 2007FloodStratford$25,000no account filed
June 2004HailStratford$25,000no account filed
June 1999Thunderstorm WindStratford$25,000no account filed
May 2006Thunderstorm WindStratford$20,000no account filed
June 2014HailStratford$10,000Up to tennis ball size hail just south of town.
August 2010Flash FloodStratford$10,000Highway 175 at the intersection of Fenton Ave is closed due to high water.
April 2007FloodStratford$10,000no account filed
April 2006HailStratford$10,000no account filed
June 2004HailStratford$10,000no account filed
March 2006Thunderstorm WindStratford$5,000no account filed
June 2004HailStratford$5,000no account filed
June 2000LightningStratford$5,000no account filed
April 2013HailStratford$3,000Hail was up to half dollar size.
February 2000HailStratford$3,000no account filed
July 2021Tornado (EF0)Stratford$2,000Tornado developed just northeast of Stratford and moved east northeast for duration of the event. Tornado remained almost entirely in agricultural fields. It did encounter a farmstead near the end of the path and produced some tree damage. As this tornado began to rope out, another tornado developed in close proximity and continued for some distance. Track was enhanced using hi-resolution satellite imagery.
June 2014HailStratford$2,000no account filed
May 2006HailStratford$2,000no account filed
March 2025Thunderstorm WindStratford$1,600Tree fell on power line in Stratford. Time estimated from radar.
July 1999HailStratford$1,000no account filed
July 2024Heavy RainStratford-Personal weather station reporting 3.7 inches storm total with rain still in progress.
April 2018HailStratford-Public reported pea to nickel sized hail in Stratford.
June 2018HailStratford-Public reported ping pong and golf ball sized hail.
September 2016FloodStratford-The Boone River at Webster City crested at 14.20 feet on 25 September 2016 at 1015 pm CDT.
August 2014Tornado (EF0)Stratford-The tornado formed just northeast of Stratford and moved northeast producing crop and minor tree damage. This tornado merged with another tornado before dissipating. Tornado was found at rated using high resolution satellite imagery.
July 2010Heavy RainStratford-Twenty four hour rainfall total of 1.57 inches.
June 2014HailStratford-no account filed
March 2008FloodStratford-no account filed
April 2004HailStratford-no account filed
June 2004HailStratford-no account filed
June 2004HailStratford-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Hamilton 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
Stanhope7.1 miles9
Homer7.1 miles9
Rosedale11.8 miles15
Kamrar13.4 miles9
Highview13.9 miles9
Webster City14.9 miles9
Jewell15.4 miles9
Randall17.4 miles15

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 462029. 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.