Obsidian, Idaho
16 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1919 and the latest in 1989. It stands in the Stanley census division. It lies in ZIP code area 83278. It stands on Huckleberry Creek. The Survey maps it on the Obsidian quadrangle.
Topographic sheets covering this place
8 surveys from 16 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.
- 1919 USGS Custer quadrangle1:125000
- 1922 USGS Custer quadrangle1:125000, 3 printings
- 1957 USGS Challis quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1960 USGS Challis quadrangle1:250000
- 1963 USGS Challis quadrangle1:250000
- 1963 USGS Obsidian quadrangle1:24000, 3 printings
- 1982 USGS White Cloud Peaks quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
- 1989 USGS Challis quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
30 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 30 fires within 5 miles of Obsidian between 1992 and 2019, burning about 480 acres in total. 13 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 |
|---|---|
| Natural | 13 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 10 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2 |
| Smoking | 2 |
| Debris and open burning | 1 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 1 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 September 2009 | Natural | under an acre | Sawtooth National Forest | REDFISH SOUTH |
| 24 September 2019 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Sawtooth National Forest | FISH WHEEL |
| 4 August 2019 | Recreation and ceremony | under an acre | Sawtooth National Forest | MAYS |
| 3 August 2002 | Natural | under an acre | Sawtooth National Forest | 4TH OF JULY CREEK |
| 29 August 2001 | Recreation and ceremony | under an acre | Sawtooth National Forest | MCDONALD |
| 22 August 1999 | Recreation and ceremony | under an acre | Sawtooth National Forest | INLET |
| 22 August 1994 | Smoking | under an acre | Sawtooth National Forest | BIKE |
| 20 August 1992 | Natural | under an acre | Sawtooth National Forest | OZ |
Mines and quarries near this place
7 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 7 workings within 5 miles of Obsidian: 3 past producers, 2 prospects, 1 occurrence, 1 producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Gold, REE, Tantalum, Niobium (Columbium), Titanium, Geothermal. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold Creek Placer | REE, Gold, Niobium (Columbium), Garnet, Tantalum, Zirconium, Titanium | Prospect | Placer | |
| Unnamed Hot Spring | Geothermal | Occurrence | ||
| Williams Creek Placer | Gold, REE, Tantalum, Niobium (Columbium), Titanium | Prospect | Placer | |
| Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Obsidian Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer |
Storms near this place
1 since 2025Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Obsidian in 1 storm report in 2025: 1 thunderstorm wind. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Obsidian | - | A 61 mph wind gust recorded at Horton Peak mesonet site. |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stanley | 10.7 miles | 16 | |
| Lower Stanley | 11.1 miles | 16 | |
| Sunbeam | 14.6 miles | 16 | |
| Robinson Bar | 14.7 miles | 15 | |
| Torreys | 17.7 miles | 14 | |
| Grandjean | 17.9 miles | 17 | |
| Bonanza | 21.1 miles | 16 | |
| Custer | 22.8 miles | 15 |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 396978. 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.







