Marcus, Illinois
23 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1892 and the latest in 1984. It stands in Washington Township. It lies in ZIP code area 61074. It lies near Island Number 259. The Survey maps it on the Blackhawk quadrangle. It stands 607 feet above sea level.
Topographic sheets covering this place
8 surveys from 23 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.
- 1892 USGS Savanna quadrangle1:62500, 8 printings
- 1952 USGS Savanna quadrangle1:62500, 3 printings
- 1953 USGS Blackhawk quadrangle1:24000, 3 printings
- 1959 USGS Dubuque quadrangle1:250000
- 1961 USGS Dubuque quadrangle1:250000
- 1962 USGS Dubuque quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1976 USGS Dubuque quadrangle1:250000
- 1984 USGS Dubuque South quadrangle1:100000, 4 printings
In the county-history sources
362 words on this townshipThe History of Carroll County, Illinois, Containing a History of the County-its Cities, Towns, Etc., a Biographical Directory ... War Record ... Statistics, Portraits of Early Settlers and Prominent Men ... History of the Northwest ... Illinois ... Miscellaneous Matters, Etc, published 1878 has no passage naming this settlement, which was common for smaller places. Its township is covered in full.
The chapter on Washington Township covers the township.
Read the chapter on Washington Township - 362 words.
Fires near this place
9 since 2004Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 9 fires within 5 miles of Marcus between 2004 and 2018, burning about 14 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/undetermined | 4 |
| Debris and open burning | 4 |
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 April 2006 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Savanna District, Upper Mississippi National Wildlife Refuge | BROWN'S LAKE |
| 5 April 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | Savanna District, Upper Mississippi National Wildlife Refuge | ESMAY SLOUGH |
| 28 April 2018 | Debris and open burning | 1.0 acres | Illinois Division of Forestry Resources | 35 |
| 23 April 2018 | Debris and open burning | 1.0 acres | Illinois Division of Forestry Resources | 31 |
| 2 April 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 5.0 acres | Illinois Division of Forestry Resources | 26 |
| 15 April 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Illinois Division of Forestry Resources | 38 |
| 1 April 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | Illinois Division of Forestry Resources | 25 |
| 1 April 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | Illinois Division of Forestry Resources | 24 |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
9 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 9 workings within 5 miles of Marcus: 5 past producers, 3 producers, 1 occurrence. 3 still produce. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Limestone, General, Zinc. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Henry Mine | Zinc, Lead | Past Producer | ||
| Schultz Quarry | Limestone, General | Producer | ||
| Trenkamp Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Turner Sand Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Unknown | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Hoffman Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Klock Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Limestone Prospect | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Occurrence | ||
| Marshall Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer |
Storms near this place
17 since 2003Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Marcus in 17 storm reports between 2003 and 2026: 5 flood, 4 thunderstorm wind, 4 flash flood, 2 heavy rain. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2010 | Flash Flood | Marcus | $1,000,000 | Heavy rains of 3 to 9 inches fell across Carroll County during the late evening hours of July 22 and through the morning hours of July 23 resulting in flash flooding of much of the county. Several roads across the county, especially the northern half, were closed due to the flash flooding. The Shannon area received over 8 inches of rain during the night and was in need of sludge pumps to assist with the flooding issues in the area. Areas that had never flooded before were flooded. |
| April 2013 | Flash Flood | Marcus | $250,000 | Several rounds of heavy rains resulted in some flash flooding of much of Carroll County during the afternoon hours of April 17. |
| July 2011 | Flash Flood | Marcus | $250,000 | Torrential rains of 2 to 5 inches caused some flash flooding across the northern half of Carroll County during the late evening of July 27 and morning of July 28. Several streets in the town of Savanna were flooded forcing the evacuations of 80 residents. Portions of Mount Carroll along the Plum River were also flooded. Both railroad yards in the town were also underwater. |
| April 2011 | Flood | Marcus | $250,000 | no account filed |
| June 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Marcus | $25,000 | Wind gusts estimated to be 70 mph blew down some trees and branches about 4 miles north of Savanna, IL around 522 pm June 27. A power outage was also observed. |
| August 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Marcus | $5,000 | Bookend vorticy of squall line left Jackson County Iowa and entered Carroll County Illinois around 1900 CST (0100 UTC) near Marcus. Only damage reports received were that of large limbs down that took two people to move on Illinois 84 during 1902-1907 CST. The location is between 0.2 miles north northeast of Marcus near the golf course to 0.4 miles east northeast of Marcus near the northwest edge of Mississippi Pallisades State Park. The sheriff department indicated additional trees down on Senic Ridge Road during 1904-1909 CST. The location is likely between the Jo Daviess/Carroll county line and the northeast edge of Pallisades State Park. Although no additional reports of severe winds were received, KDVN 88D data suggests the potential for additional wind damage across the rest of Washington township, and across Woodland into Freedom townships to a development around Lake Carroll. |
| July 2003 | Heavy Rain | Marcus | $5,000 | no account filed |
| May 2018 | Hail | Marcus | $1,000 | Local law enforcement reported hail damage to roofs and cars. |
| March 2026 | Thunderstorm Wind | Marcus | - | Law Enforcement Officers reported a large tree down on the outskirts of U.S. Army Depot near Savanna. The time of the event was estimated using radar. |
| May 2019 | Flood | Marcus | - | The Mississippi River at Bellevue Lock and Dam 12 began the month above its major flood stage of 20 feet. The river stage at the beginning of the month was 20.81 feet. The river fell below major flood stage around 4 PM on May 3rd. |
| April 2019 | Flood | Marcus | - | River levels continued to run high during the month of April. Heavy rain across the area caused the Mississippi River at Bellevue Lock and Dam 12 to rise above its major flood stage of 20.0 feet early in the morning on the 27th, and it remained above its major flood stage into the month of May. During this second crest, the river crested at 20.87 feet. on April 29th. Preliminarily, this is the 4th highest crest on record at Bellevue Lock and Dam 12. |
| June 2016 | Flash Flood | Marcus | - | Emergency manager reported fairly widespread flash flooding over the northern half of Carroll county, with several roads closed in the Woodland and Washington townships in rural areas. The Plum River well out of its banks, over roads. Five mudslides occurred over highway 84 in the bluff area adjacent to Mississippi Palisades State Park, just north of the junction of highway 64 and highway 84. Plows were required to re-open the highway. |
| June 2016 | Flood | Marcus | - | Emergency manager reported fairly widespread flash flooding over the northern half of Carroll county, with several roads closed in the Woodland and Washington townships in rural areas. The Plum River well out of its banks, over roads. Five mudslides occurred over highway 84 in the bluff area adjacent to Mississippi Palisades State Park, just north of the junction of highway 64 and highway 84. Plows were required to re-open the highway. |
| July 2011 | Heavy Rain | Marcus | - | As of 1138 pm CDT July 27, the 3 hour rainfall total about 7 miles northwest of Mount Carroll, IL was 3.80 inches and it was still raining. |
| July 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Marcus | - | Wind gusts estimated to be 65 mph were observed 7 miles northwest of Mount Carroll, IL at 625 am CDT July 11. |
| March 2024 | Hail | Marcus | - | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Flood | Marcus | - | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arnold | 1.8 miles | 23 | |
| Blackhawk | 2.5 miles | 23 | |
| Savanna | 4.9 miles | 24 | |
| Ayers | 8.4 miles | 21 | |
| Polsgrove | 9.2 miles | 21 | |
| Center Hill | 9.6 miles | 21 | |
| Hickory Grove | 9.6 miles | 21 | |
| Wacker | 10.5 miles | 21 |
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 Marcus | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q6757970 | 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 422938. 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.







