BlockBefore

Ashkum, Illinois

12 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1944 and the latest in 1990. It stands in Ashkum Township. It lies in ZIP code area 60911. The Survey maps it on the Clifton quadrangle. 750 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 669 feet above sea level.

Ashkum within Iroquois County

Population over time

2 figures

Ashkum fell from 761 to 750 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.

YearPeople Change
2010761
2020750-11 (-1%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

8 surveys from 12 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.

Storms near this place

24 since 1997

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Ashkum in 24 storm reports between 1997 and 2025: 12 thunderstorm wind, 5 tornado, 5 hail, 1 flash flood. 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
May 2011Thunderstorm WindAshkum$5,000A tree was reported down and a grain bin was blown over when a line of strong thunderstorms hit the town of Ashkum.
July 2025Thunderstorm WindAshkum-A photo showed a large rotted tree snapped a few feet above its base which partially landed on the roof of a house and an adjacent garage.
December 2025Tornado (EF0)Ashkum-A tornado with estimated peak winds of 80 mph touched down just southeast of the intersection of N 400 East Road and E 2900 North Road, west of Clifton. Three utility poles were snapped as the tornado moved northeast across E 2900 North Road. Roofing material was peeled off of a house and trees were damaged at the intersection of N 500 East Road and E 2900 North Road. As the tornado crossed N 600 East Road and E 2950 North Road, two farm outbuildings had portions of their roofs ripped off at the same property. Additional tree damage was noted. The tornado lifted before reaching N 700 East Road.
July 2021Thunderstorm WindAshkum-Several tree limbs were blown down along Route 45.
October 2021Tornado (EFU)Ashkum-Trained spotters reported a brief tornado touched down in a corn field northwest of Ashkum. No known damage was caused by the tornado.
April 2020Thunderstorm WindAshkum-Two semi trucks were blown over along Interstate 57.
April 2020Thunderstorm WindAshkum-A portion of a roof was removed from a farm shed and trees were blown down.
August 2016FloodAshkum-Minor flooding was reported with roads with 2 to 3 inches of rain falling.
July 2015Flash FloodAshkum-Two feet of flowing water was reported across 600 East Road just west of Ashkum.
December 2008Thunderstorm WindAshkum-A farmer reported buildings and vehicles moved on his property by strong winds near Ashkum.
April 2006Tornado (F0)Ashkum-A brief tornado was reported near US 45 and Danforth Road. No damage was reported.
April 2004Tornado (F0)Ashkum-A weak tornado originated in Ford County 9 NNE of Piper City and moved into Iroquois County 9 W of Ashkum or 10.5 NNE of Piper City. This tornado moved through open farm land. There was no damage. This data is for the portion of the tornado path in Iroquois County.
October 2001HailAshkum-Golf ball size hail covered Interstate 57 at mile marker 287 forcing numerous cars to the side of the road.
May 2000Thunderstorm WindAshkum-Thunderstorm winds were estimated to be 60 to 65 mph in Iroquois County. Limbs were blown down in Papineau.
July 1997Thunderstorm WindAshkum-Thundestorms produced wind gusts to 65 mph.
March 2019HailAshkum-no account filed
June 2008HailAshkum-no account filed
July 2003Thunderstorm WindAshkum-no account filed
July 2003HailAshkum-no account filed
August 2003Thunderstorm WindAshkum-no account filed
August 2003HailAshkum-no account filed
July 2003Thunderstorm WindAshkum-no account filed
June 2002Thunderstorm WindAshkum-no account filed
May 2000Tornado (F0)Ashkum-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Iroquois 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
Clifton3.9 miles12
Danforth4.3 miles12
L'Erable5.9 miles12
Leonard7.9 miles12
Gilman8.1 miles12
Crescent City9.2 miles12
La Hogue10.7 miles14
Freedville11.3 miles11

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 AshkumAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q2175038The 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 403669. 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.

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.