Lowell, Idaho
10 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1924 and the latest in 1994. It stands in the Elk City census division. It lies in ZIP code area 83539. It stands on Lochsa River. The Survey maps it on the Lowell quadrangle. It stands 1,486 feet above sea level.
Topographic sheets covering this place
8 surveys from 10 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.
- 1924 USGS Weippe quadrangle1:125000
- 1956 USGS Hamilton quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1959 USGS Hamilton quadrangle1:250000
- 1960 USGS Hamilton quadrangle1:250000
- 1964 USGS Hamilton quadrangle1:250000
- 1966 USGS Lowell quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1981 USGS Kooskia quadrangle1:100000
- 1994 USGS Lowell quadrangle1:24000
Fires near this place
98 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 98 fires within 5 miles of Lowell between 1992 and 2019, burning about 16,608 acres in total. 74 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 |
|---|---|
| Natural | 74 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 14 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 4 |
| Debris and open burning | 2 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 2 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 September 2012 | Natural | under an acre | Nez Perce - Clearwater National Forests | IDAHO POINT |
| 7 September 1998 | Natural | 1.5 acres | Nez Perce - Clearwater National Forests | HOT ELK |
| 7 September 1998 | Natural | under an acre | Nez Perce - Clearwater National Forests | NORTH |
| 7 September 1998 | Natural | under an acre | Nez Perce - Clearwater National Forests | RATTY |
| 4 September 1992 | Natural | under an acre | Nez Perce - Clearwater National Forests | not named |
| 24 September 2005 | Recreation and ceremony | under an acre | Nez Perce - Clearwater National Forests | MIDDLE FORK SLASH |
| 2 September 1996 | Natural | under an acre | Nez Perce - Clearwater National Forests | BIG HILL |
| 18 September 2007 | Natural | under an acre | Nez Perce - Clearwater National Forests | RYE |
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 Lowell: 2 occurrences, 1 prospect. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Titanium, Zirconium, REE, Nickel, Antimony. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coolwater Nickel Deposit | Nickel | Occurrence | ||
| Pete King Creek Placer | Titanium, Zirconium, REE | Occurrence | ||
| Shangra La Antimony | Antimony | Prospect |
Storms near this place
19 since 1998Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Lowell in 19 storm reports between 1998 and 2024: 9 heavy rain, 7 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 2017 | Heavy Rain | Lowell | $50,000 | Several locations along US-12 experienced flooding, mud and debris on the road which caused it to close for 10 hours. Three inches of rain with snow-melt occurred a week before this event contributing to saturated soils. A nearby sensor in Lowell recorded 1.23 inches of rainfall 24 hours leading up to the flooding. Multiple culvert washouts and other mudslides were reported through March 24 along the following roads: Cedar Creek, Big Cedar and Cove. Idaho County declared a state of emergency because of all the issues. |
| June 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lowell | $5,000 | A witness described multiple living, mature Douglas Fir and Grand Fir trees snapped in half. After reviewing the radar data, it appears a microburst occurred. After the thunderstorm pulsed up over the headwaters of the American River basin, north of Elk City, it then dropped over the Selway River between Selway Falls and Glover Campground. For these healthy trees to be snapped in half, the wind speeds could have exceeded 70 mph. It was reported that some of the trees were positioned towards the west-southwest direction. |
| July 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lowell | $1,000 | A thunderstorm in its decaying stage unleashed strong gusty winds that blew over a 24 inch diameter tree onto a camper at the Wilderness Gateway Campground on the Lochsa River. |
| June 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lowell | $1,000 | The spotter at the Three Rivers resort reported multiple tree downed by strong wind. |
| August 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lowell | - | The Montana Department of Highways reported that multiple large trees were down, and crossed the road along US Highway-12, near Lolo Pass. Inbound velocities on radar reached 60 mph. |
| August 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lowell | - | A tree was downed on US Highway 12 near mile post 143. |
| February 2016 | Heavy Rain | Lowell | - | Fenn Ranger Station RAWS reported 2.21 inches of rain over the 7 days preceding the event. The greatest 1 day rainfall was Feb 15, when 0.81 inches fell. |
| October 2012 | Heavy Rain | Lowell | - | The Lowell ASOS measured 0.42 inch of rain in an hour. |
| October 2012 | Heavy Rain | Lowell | - | Heavy rain was measured 4 miles southeast of Lowell when 0.57 inch fell in an hour. |
| October 2011 | Heavy Rain | Lowell | - | Observer at Powell reported a 24 hour rainfall total of 1.19 inches. |
| October 2011 | Heavy Rain | Lowell | - | Observer at Lowell reported a 24 hours rainfall total of 1.18 inches. |
| October 2011 | Heavy Rain | Lowell | - | The equipment at Savage Pass reported 1.40 inches of rainfall in 24 hours. |
| October 2011 | Heavy Rain | Lowell | - | A spotter in Lowell reported 0.85 inches of rainfall. |
| August 2010 | Hail | Lowell | - | A US Forest Service trail crew reported hail up to 1.75 inches in diameter. |
| August 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lowell | - | Severe thunderstorm winds blew down a large tree on to a cabin at Three Rivers Resort in Lowell. Very heavy rain was blowing sideways. |
| June 2009 | Heavy Rain | Lowell | - | Heavy rain produced rock and debris slides onto Highway 12 near Lowell. An estimated 600 pound rock rolled onto Highway 12 west of Lowell. |
| July 2001 | Hail | Lowell | - | no account filed |
| July 1998 | Hail | Lowell | - | no account filed |
| July 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lowell | - | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Syringa | 7.0 miles | 10 | |
| Tahoe | 11.7 miles | 12 | |
| Clark Tree | 12.2 miles | 10 | |
| Big Cedar | 12.4 miles | 12 | |
| Glenwood | 14.3 miles | 9 | |
| Newsome | 16.4 miles | 13 | |
| York | 17.3 miles | 10 | |
| Clearwater | 17.8 miles | 9 |
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 Lowell | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q14687205 | 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 396823. 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.







