Olmsted, Illinois

25 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1931 and the latest in 1987. It stands in Olmsted precinct. It lies in ZIP code area 62970. The Survey maps it on the Olmsted quadrangle. 285 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 354 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Olmsted within Pulaski County

On record in Olmsted

Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.

On the National Register 1 record

Olmstead Depotlisted 1989

Population over time

2 figures

Olmsted fell from 333 to 285 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.

Year	People	Change
2010	333
2020	285	-48 (-14%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

15 surveys from 25 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.

1931 USGS Cairo quadrangle1:62500, 2 printings
1933 USGS Cairo quadrangle1:62500, 3 printings
1939 USGS Cairo quadrangle1:62500
1949 USGS Paducah quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
1950 USGS Paducah quadrangle1:250000
1953 USGS Cairo quadrangle1:62500, 3 printings
1954 USGS Olmsted quadrangle1:24000
1954 USGS Paducah quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
1955 USGS Cairo quadrangle1:62500
1961 USGS Paducah quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
1964 USGS Paducah quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
1967 USGS Olmsted quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
1984 USGS Cape Girardeau quadrangle1:100000
1986 USGS Cape Girardeau quadrangle1:100000
1987 USGS Paducah quadrangle1:250000

Mines and quarries near this place

1 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 1 working within 5 miles of Olmsted: 1 producer. All of them still produce. What was taken out: Clay. 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
	Southern Clay, Inc. Pit	Clay	Producer

Every working recorded in Pulaski County

Storms near this place

51 since 1995

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Olmsted in 51 storm reports between 1995 and 2025: 40 flood, 6 hail, 3 thunderstorm wind, 2 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.

When	Event	Place named	Harm	What the report says
March 2018	Flood	Olmsted	$100,000	Major flooding continued on the Ohio River from late February. At the Grand Chain river gage, the river crested on March 2 at 57.3 feet. This was the fifth highest stage on record, and it was exactly one-half foot below the flood crest of March, 1997. Flood stage is 42 feet. Numerous county roads were closed near the river. Widespread flooding of low-lying farmland occurred. Most of the farmland was still unplanted.
March 2011	Flood	Olmsted	$100,000	no account filed
January 2016	Flood	Olmsted	$50,000	Major flooding of the Ohio River continued into January. At the Grand Chain river gage, the river crested at 55.4 feet on the 3rd. Flood stage there is 42 feet. This flood was very similar to the flood of May, 1995, when the crest was 55.1 feet. Flood stage there is 42 feet. There was widespread flooding of low-lying fields, and a number of secondary roads were flooded.
April 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Olmsted	$30,000	The roof was blown off an old barn. A small shed was tossed around.
July 2001	Flash Flood	Olmsted	$25,000	Slow-moving thunderstorms dumped torrential rains over Pulaski County. An engineer with the county highway department measured 3.5 inches of rain during the early morning hours. Rushing floodwater blocked Illinois Route 37 in two places for more than 4 hours near Olmsted and just south of America Road. An Olmsted convenience store was flooded by 5 inches of water. More than 20 county roads were closed. Four culverts were washed away by erosion and fast-moving debris. The hardest hit areas were in the central parts of the county, between New Grand Chain and America. Heavy rain damaged the roof of the Olmsted library and leaked into the building, damaging books.
March 2025	Thunderstorm Wind	Olmsted	$20,000	A few power poles were snapped near Olmsted.
May 2013	Flood	Olmsted	$20,000	Continuing from April into May, moderate flooding occurred on the Ohio River. At the Grand Chain river gage, the river crested at 49.8 feet on the morning of the 9th. This was about 8 feet over the flood stage of 42 feet. There was considerable flooding of low-lying fields and woodlands near the river. Park land and some river access roads were under water.
April 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	Olmsted	$2,000	Several tree limbs were down around the town of Olmsted.
April 2013	Flood	Olmsted	$2,000	Minor flooding occurred along the Ohio River near Grand Chain, affecting low-lying fields, woods, and river access roads. The river continued rising into early May.
March 2016	Flood	Olmsted	$1,000	Minor flooding continued from February along the Ohio River. There was flooding of low-lying bottomland woods and fields.
June 2015	Flood	Olmsted	$1,000	Minor flooding occurred along the Ohio River. The flooding inundated mainly agricultural bottomland and low lying areas. The flooding continued into July.
December 2011	Flood	Olmsted	$1,000	Minor flooding occurred on the Ohio River. At the Grand Chain river gage, the river crested at 46.80 feet on the 15th. Flood stage is 42 feet. Minor flooding of bottomland fields and some park land occurred. A few county roads along the river were affected. River recreation facilities such as boat ramps were affected.
February 2025	Flood	Olmsted	-	Moderate flooding occurred on the Ohio River at the Olmsted Lock and Dam. Low-lying fields and woodlands in the flood plain were underwater, along with some river access roads. The river crested at 42.9 feet, just above the moderate flood stage of 42 feet. The flooding continued into early March.
May 2024	Flood	Olmsted	-	Minor flooding occurred on the Ohio River near Olmsted in low-lying areas.
March 2023	Flood	Olmsted	-	The Ohio River rose above flood stage and caused some minor flooding of low-lying woods and fields. The river remained above flood stage into early April.
February 2022	Flood	Olmsted	-	The Ohio River rose above flood stage and remained there into March. The crest occurred in March.
March 2022	Flood	Olmsted	-	Moderate flooding occurred on the Ohio River. The river crested at 44.10 feet at the Olmsted river gage on the 2nd, which is 8.1 feet above flood stage. Low-lying fields and woodlands in the flood plain were underwater, along with some river access roads.
March 2020	Flood	Olmsted	-	Considerable flooding occurred on the Ohio River. At the Olmsted river gage, the river crested at 47.35 feet on the 31st. Flood stage is 36 feet. Bottomland fields were inundated. A few rural county roads were flooded. The flooding continued into April.
January 2020	Flood	Olmsted	-	Moderate flooding occurred along the Ohio River. The river crested at 43.80 feet on the evening of the 15th at the Olmsted gage. Moderate flooding begins at 42 feet. There was considerable flooding of low-lying fields and woods near the river.
May 2017	Flood	Olmsted	-	An extended period of moderate flooding occurred on the Ohio River. At the Grand Chain river gage, the river crested at 51.2 feet on May 11. Major flooding begins at 53 feet. Low-lying cropland and a nature preserve were flooded, along with some side roads.
April 2017	Flood	Olmsted	-	The Ohio River rose above flood stage. Through the end of April, the flooding was mostly minor. The river continued rising beyond the end of the month.
February 2016	Flood	Olmsted	-	Minor flooding occurred along the Ohio River. There was flooding of low-lying bottomland woods and fields. The river continued rising into March.
April 2015	Flood	Olmsted	-	Minor flooding occurred along the Ohio River. Water reached the power house at Lock and Dam 53. Low-lying areas near the river were under water.
December 2015	Flood	Olmsted	-	The Ohio River began its rise above flood stage late in the month. The flooding in December was relatively insignificant compared to the major flooding in January. In December, there was widespread flooding of low-lying fields and woodlands. Some river access roads were underwater.
January 2014	Flood	Olmsted	-	Minor flooding lingered along the Ohio River through the first couple days of 2014. Low-lying fields and woodlands were flooded.
April 2014	Flood	Olmsted	-	Minor flooding occurred along the Ohio River. Low-lying woods and fields were inundated, including portions of riverside parks and recreation areas.
December 2013	Flood	Olmsted	-	Minor flooding occurred along the Ohio River. Low-lying fields and woodlands were flooded.
March 2013	Flood	Olmsted	-	Minor flooding occurred along the Ohio River at Grand Chain. Some low-lying fields and river access roads were underwater.
January 2012	Flood	Olmsted	-	Minor flooding of low-lying fields occurred along the Ohio River.
February 2012	Flood	Olmsted	-	Minor flooding of low-lying fields occurred along the Ohio River.
June 2011	Flood	Olmsted	-	The Ohio River fell below flood stage at Grand Chain for the first time since February 27. The flooding in June was relatively very minor. Some low-lying fields and woods along the river were flooded.
May 2009	Flood	Olmsted	-	Moderate flooding of the Ohio River occurred. At the Grand Chain gage, where flood stage is 42 feet, the river crested at 51.60 feet on the 12th. Agricultural bottomland and low-lying areas were flooded. Water reached the power house at Lock and Dam 53.
April 2008	Flood	Olmsted	-	Major flooding of the Ohio River occurred. The river remained above flood stage from early March through late April. On the Grand Chain gage, the crest in April was 53.20 feet on the 12th. Flood stage at Grand Chain is 42 feet. Water reached the power house at Lock and Dam 53. Many low-lying areas were flooded, primarily farm fields. Crop damage was still negligible, since the flooding started before planting season.
November 2004	Flash Flood	Olmsted	-	A county road was barricaded due to flooding.
June 1995	Hail	Olmsted	-	The hail covered the ground to a depth of three inches.
April 2023	Flood	Olmsted	-	no account filed
April 2023	Hail	Olmsted	-	no account filed
March 2023	Flood	Olmsted	-	no account filed
January 2022	Flood	Olmsted	-	no account filed
May 2020	Flood	Olmsted	-	no account filed
May 2020	Flood	Olmsted	-	no account filed
April 2020	Flood	Olmsted	-	no account filed
June 2020	Flood	Olmsted	-	no account filed
January 2019	Flood	Olmsted	-	no account filed
January 2019	Flood	Olmsted	-	no account filed
February 2019	Flood	Olmsted	-	no account filed
April 2018	Flood	Olmsted	-	no account filed
March 2016	Hail	Olmsted	-	no account filed
March 2008	Hail	Olmsted	-	no account filed
May 2004	Hail	Olmsted	-	no account filed
May 2003	Hail	Olmsted	-	no account filed

Every storm recorded in Pulaski 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.

Place	Distance	Sheets
Levings	2.9 miles	25
Pryortown	3.2 miles	24
America	3.4 miles	25
Villa Ridge	5.8 miles	24
Grand Chain	6.0 miles	18
New Grand Chain	6.1 miles	18
Pulaski	6.6 miles	24
Spencer Heights	6.7 miles	24

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 Olmsted	An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q2671852	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 415105. 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.

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.