Samuel and Emma A. Ranshaw House

Built in 1908 (Queen Anne style). Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2012.

From the record

“Ranshaw House is a historic building in North Liberty, Iowa, United States. At the time this house was built in 1908, North Liberty was a small and prosperous farming community.”
Wikipedia article Samuel and Emma A. Ranshaw House, CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of 96 National Register listings published here for Johnson County · listed in 2012 · category: Building · built in 1908, Queen Anne style.

Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

Listed as. Ranshaw, Samuel and Emma A., House - the National Register files a house under its owner's surname.
Address. 515 W. Penn St., North Liberty, 52317
When was it listed? September 2012
Category. building
Township. Penn township
When was it built? 1908
Architectural style. Queen Anne style
National Register reference number. 12000814 - the number the National Park Service assigned this property when it was listed, and the key its nomination file is catalogued under at the National Archives.

Fires near this property

17 since 2006

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 17 fires within 5 miles of Samuel and Emma A. Ranshaw House between 2006 and 2020, burning about 58 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
Debris and open burning	10
Missing data/not specified/undetermined	7

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
19 July 2009	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	2.0 acres	Iowa Department of Natural Resources	not named
4 June 2012	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	1.0 acres	Iowa Department of Natural Resources	not named
29 May 2012	Debris and open burning	5.0 acres	Iowa Department of Natural Resources	not named
19 May 2017	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Iowa Department of Natural Resources	not named
4 April 2013	Debris and open burning	3.0 acres	Iowa Department of Natural Resources	not named
30 April 2013	Debris and open burning	4.0 acres	Iowa Department of Natural Resources	not named
21 April 2019	Debris and open burning	under an acre	Iowa Department of Natural Resources	not named
2 April 2014	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	2.0 acres	Iowa Department of Natural Resources	not named

Every fire recorded in Johnson County

Mines and quarries near this property

8 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 8 workings within 5 miles of Samuel and Emma A. Ranshaw House: 6 past producers, 2 producers. 2 still produce. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Limestone, Dimension. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Site	Commodity	Status
Old State Quarry	Limestone, Dimension	Past Producer
Unknown	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer
Wagner Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer
Conklin Quarry and Mill	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Producer
Klein Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Producer
Vogel Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Past Producer
W.J. Turecek Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Past Producer
Wray Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Past Producer

Every working recorded in Johnson County

Storms near this property

49 since 1994

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names North Liberty, the town this property stands in, in 49 storm reports between 1994 and 2025: 22 hail, 22 thunderstorm wind, 2 lightning, 1 flood. The reports record 1 injury. 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 2014	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	1 hurt	The emergency manager reported a tree fell on a person in North Liberty, and was transported to the hospital.
September 2013	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	$140,000	Three properties were damaged on the northwest side of New Liberty. Two homes had their garage doors blown in and walls subsequently blown out of the houses. There were also house windows broken and a flagpole was ripped out of the ground and thrown over a house. A weather station operated by the City of North Liberty measured a peak gust of 73 mph.
June 2010	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	$100,000	Wind gusts estimated to be 60 mph blew down some trees onto houses in North Liberty, IA around 1240 pm June 18.
June 1994	Hail	North Liberty	$50,000	no account filed
June 2011	Lightning	North Liberty	$25,000	Lightning struck a house in North Liberty, IA around 1040 pm CDT June 8 causing a fire.
June 2010	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	$25,000	Wind gusts estimated to be 70 mph blew out the windows of several cars near Coralville Mall around 1225 pm June 18. In addition, trees and signs were blow down.
August 2010	Lightning	North Liberty	$10,000	Lightning struck a civil defense siren in North Liberty, IA during the afternoon of August 13. The strike caused the siren to malfunction and activate.
May 2008	Tornado (EF0)	North Liberty	$10,000	A brief tornado spun up where two intersecting boundaries enhanced a strengthening updraft. A house incurred minor damage to the gutters and siding, and lost some shingles off the roof. The garage door was also blown in. Several trees were uprooted and a few were snapped off.
August 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	$5,000	Sheriff department reported trees down along Scales Bend Road NE.
May 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	$5,000	Severe thunderstorm winds, or possibly a gustnado, uprooted a tree and damaged several others at a residence. The house sustained minor damage.
April 2006	Hail	North Liberty	$5,000	no account filed
August 2003	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	$2,000	Occurred with the gust front; 18 inch diameter trees down
May 2001	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	$2,000	Large dog kennel blown over and pieces of home siding blown off.
August 2025	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	-	A large downed tree approx. 2-2.5 ft diameter across.
July 2024	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	-	A public report of a tree blown down. The time of the event was estimated using radar.
July 2024	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	-	A public report of a tree blown down in North Liberty. The time of the event was estimated using radar.
May 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	-	Estimated 60 mph wind gust from thunderstorm.
May 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	-	Several large tree branches down in town, with multiple smaller limbs. Time estimated from radar.
July 2020	Hail	North Liberty	-	Quarter to golf ball sized hail lasted 5 minutes.
May 2019	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	-	Estimated winds of 60 to 70 mph were reported.
August 2018	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	-	A trained spotter reported a 24 inch diameter tree was down in their front yard. Time of the event was estimated using radar.
February 2017	Hail	North Liberty	-	Dime size hail was reported by a spotter.
May 2017	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	-	A public report was received of a tree blown over.
June 2016	Hail	North Liberty	-	Trained spotters reported 5 to 6 minutes of dime size hail.
June 2014	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	-	A trained spotter reported 5 inch diameter trees snapped.
April 2013	Hail	North Liberty	-	Quarter sized hail fell 1 mile south southwest of North Liberty, IA at 1022 am CDT April 17.
August 2012	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	-	Thunderstorm wind gusts snapped an aluminum flag pole and damaged several trees.
August 2012	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	-	Thunderstorm wind gusts were estimated between 60 and 65 mph.
April 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	-	Wind gusts estimated to be 70 mph were observed 1 mile north of North Liberty, IA at 645 pm CDT April 3.
May 2011	Hail	North Liberty	-	Quarter sized hail fell 2 miles north northwest of North Liberty, IA at 342 pm CDT May 22.
April 2010	Hail	North Liberty	-	Quarter sized hail fell in North Liberty, IA at 542 pm April 5.
April 2010	Hail	North Liberty	-	Non-severe hail (<1.0) fell in North Liberty, IA at 550 pm April 5.
April 2010	Hail	North Liberty	-	Non-severe hail (<1.0) fell at Exit 4 on Interstate 380 near North Liberty, IA at 545 pm April 5.
April 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	-	A few trees were blown down near North Liberty.
May 2006	Funnel Cloud	North Liberty	-	Also seen and reported by law, media, and spotters.This funnel cloud and the second one near Solon caused great concern in Johnson County. Only three and a half weeks earlier Iowa City had been hit by a major tornado. The sighting of funnel clouds so soon and close to Iowa City had officials and the public erring on the side of caution. Numerous pictures and video were taken by eyewitnesses as the funnel crossed over I-380 and moved toward North Liberty. Although picture and video evidence shows the funnel within a few hundred feet of the ground, no debris cloud was observed and no evidence of a touchdown could be found in the empty fields it traveled over.
June 1999	Flood	North Liberty	-	Thunderstorms dumped over 2 inches of rain resulting in localized flooding of city streets.
June 2024	Hail	North Liberty	-	no account filed
March 2023	Hail	North Liberty	-	no account filed
May 2023	Hail	North Liberty	-	no account filed
May 2023	Hail	North Liberty	-	no account filed
July 2020	Hail	North Liberty	-	no account filed
July 2020	Hail	North Liberty	-	no account filed
July 2020	Hail	North Liberty	-	no account filed
March 2017	Thunderstorm Wind	North Liberty	-	no account filed
May 2014	Hail	North Liberty	-	no account filed
June 2010	Hail	North Liberty	-	no account filed
July 2009	Hail	North Liberty	-	no account filed
June 2006	Hail	North Liberty	-	no account filed
October 2002	Hail	North Liberty	-	no account filed

Every storm recorded in Johnson County

Map coverage status

No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.

Listed places nearby

6 within 8 miles

Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.

Property	Distance	Listed
H. A. White General Store and House	0.7 miles	1984
State Quarry, Old	2.0 miles	1998
Buresh Farm	4.6 miles	1977
Coralville Public School	5.7 miles	1974
Coralville Union Ecclesiastical Church	5.8 miles	1977
Sylvanus Johnson House	5.9 miles	1990

Sources for this property

National Archives record	The nomination case file for reference 12000814 in Record Group 79.
Wikipedia article	Community-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA.
Johnson County	All 96 listed properties in this county.

Provenance

Listing record. National Park Service National Register of Historic Places, listed-properties dataset, current to 2026-05-22.
Map join. Address geocoded through the United States Census geocoder, then tested against the published boundary of every sheet in the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection.
How this page is made. Listing fields come from federal records; map-sheet coverage is a labelled coordinate-to-boundary calculation, not a source-field claim.
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.