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Tamms, Illinois

22 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1934 and the latest in 1996. It stands in Tamms precinct. It lies in ZIP code area 62988. It stands on Jackson Creek. The Survey maps it on the Tamms quadrangle. 430 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 341 feet above sea level.

Tamms within Alexander County

On record in Tamms

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

Population over time

2 figures

Tamms fell from 632 to 430 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
2010632
2020430-202 (-32%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

13 surveys from 22 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.

Fires near this place

19 since 1994

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 19 fires within 5 miles of Tamms between 1994 and 2020, burning about 364 acres in total. 1 started naturally. 4 were 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
Debris and open burning9
Missing data/not specified/undetermined4
Arson/incendiarism4
Natural1
Recreation and ceremony1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
9 April 2007Debris and open burning3.2 acresShawnee National ForestSANDY CREEK FIRE
5 April 2011Arson/incendiarismunder an acreShawnee National ForestOPOSSUM TROT RD
8 March 2020Debris and open burning1.5 acresShawnee National ForestTAMMS OLIVE
8 March 2010Debris and open burning15 acresShawnee National ForestOLIVE
7 March 2010Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresCypress Creek National Wildlife RefugeRIVER
6 March 2010Debris and open burning1.0 acresShawnee National ForestTATUMVILLE
6 March 2010Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresShawnee National ForestBURNER HILL
5 March 1994Debris and open burning1.0 acresShawnee National Forestnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Alexander County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 13 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 13 workings within 5 miles of Tamms: 7 past producers, 4 producers, 2 occurrences. 4 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Silica, Diatomite, Fire Clay (Refractory). Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Absorbent Clay Products PitClayProducer
Burk Mine Tammsco Inc.StonePast Producer
Shawnee Low Interest Refractory Clay DepositFire Clay (Refractory)OccurrenceSedimentary
Whitaker MinesDiatomitePast Producer
Whitaker MinesDiatomitePast Producer
Shawnee Special Use Silica Deposit 4SilicaOccurrence
Unimin PlantSilicaProducer
Unimin Plant & MillSilicaProducer
Jordan Creek PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Jordan R&S Quarry Markgraf MatlsSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer

Every working recorded in Alexander County

Storms near this place

18 since 1993

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Tamms in 18 storm reports between 1993 and 2023: 8 hail, 5 thunderstorm wind, 2 flash flood, 1 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
October 2001Thunderstorm WindTamms$25,000In Miller City, sheds were blown down, and there was minor damage to roofs. In Tamms, there were some trees and wires down. A tree fell on a house in Urbandale.
August 2009Thunderstorm WindTamms$20,000Trees were blown down countywide, primarily in the communities of Tamms, Olive Branch, and Miller City.
October 2013Tornado (EF1)Tamms$10,000The tornado produced only tree damage along its path through this forested area. Hardwood tree trunks were snapped. Peak winds were estimated near 100 mph as the tornado approached the Pulaski County line. The tornado continued into northwest Pulaski County.
July 2019Flash FloodTamms$5,000North of Tamms, Jackson Creek was out of its banks. A barn was flooded.
July 2015Thunderstorm WindTamms$3,000Trees were blown down at Tamms and on Route 127 south of Tamms.
April 2003Flash FloodTamms$2,000A county road was closed due to flooding.
May 2023Thunderstorm WindTamms-Numerous trees and power lines were down across the county.
July 2022Funnel CloudTamms-A brief funnel cloud was reported by a trained spotter.
January 2013Thunderstorm WindTamms-A trained spotter estimated a wind gust to 70 mph.
September 2000HailTamms-Golf ball size hail fell.
April 2020HailTamms-no account filed
March 2008HailTamms-no account filed
January 2008FloodTamms-no account filed
January 2008HailTamms-no account filed
June 2006HailTamms-no account filed
May 2001HailTamms-no account filed
May 2000HailTamms-no account filed
April 1993HailTamms-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Alexander 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
Tatumville1.6 miles24
Dawleys2.1 miles22
Sandusky2.2 miles22
Diswood2.8 miles22
Clank4.3 miles22
Elco4.5 miles24
Hodges Park5.4 miles22
Unity5.9 miles22

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 TammsAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q2669053The 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 425548. 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.