Watseka, Illinois

11 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1935 and the latest in 1990. It stands in Middleport Township. It lies in ZIP code area 60970. It stands on Sugar Creek. The Survey maps it on the Watseka quadrangle. 4,679 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 633 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Watseka within Iroquois County

On record in Watseka

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 3 records

Old Iroquois County Courthouselisted 1975
Watseka Union Depotlisted 1999
Watseka Downtown Historic Districtlisted 2026

Population over time

2 figures

Watseka fell from 5,255 to 4,679 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	5,255
2020	4,679	-576 (-11%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

8 surveys from 11 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.

1935 USGS Watseka quadrangle1:48000
1939 USGS Watseka quadrangle1:62500, 2 printings
1953 USGS Danville quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
1955 USGS Danville quadrangle1:250000
1956 USGS Danville quadrangle1:250000
1964 USGS Watseka quadrangle1:24000
1984 USGS Watseka quadrangle1:100000
1990 USGS Watseka quadrangle1:100000

Fires near this place

2 since 2011

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 2 fires within 5 miles of Watseka in 2011, burning about 4 acres in total. None 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
Missing data/not specified/undetermined	2

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
29 October 2011	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Illinois Division of Forestry Resources	1029112
23 October 2011	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	4.0 acres	Illinois Division of Forestry Resources	102311

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Iroquois County

Mines and quarries near this place

8 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 8 workings within 5 miles of Watseka: 8 past producers. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Stone. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Site	Commodity	Status
Iroquis Cty Hwy Dept	Stone	Past Producer
Watseka City Eng Pit	Stone	Past Producer
Gray Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer
Hocutt Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer
Peters Pit De Lynch	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer
Peters Pit Johnwood	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer
Peters Pit Wood Trucking	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer
Thompson Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer

Every working recorded in Iroquois County

Storms near this place

51 since 1994

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Watseka in 51 storm reports between 1994 and 2026: 34 thunderstorm wind, 7 hail, 4 flash flood, 3 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
August 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	$75,000	Tree limbs were blown down along Route 1, north of Watseka blocking the road. Several trees and tree limbs were blown down in Watseka. Two farm sheds were blown down at 1978E and 2300N. Power lines were also blown down.
June 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	$50,000	Several trees approximately two feet in diameter were blown down, some blocking streets. Several utility poles were either blown down or snapped off at their base. Numerous tree limbs and power lines were blown down. The roof of a house on Fourth Street was damaged when a chimney was blown down and fell onto the roof. The roof of another house on Fourth Street was damaged by a falling tree. A large tree was blown down near South Fifth and Locust.
April 1994	Tornado (F1)	Watseka	$50,000	Thunderstorm winds downed power lines and snapped a power pole east of Gilman on highway 24. A small tornado touched down briefly. An abandoned cinder block car wash building was moved from its foundation and the roof was damaged. Several metal storage buildings were damaged, one landed on a car. Tree limbs and power lines were knocked down.
May 2012	Tornado (EF1)	Watseka	$25,000	An EF1 tornado touched down east-southeast of Watseka with maximum winds of 85 to 95 mph. Two farmsteads experienced damage. A small barn was destroyed with its cinder block walls toppled and roof thrown one half mile. Multiple outbuildings had mainly minor damage. One utility pole was blown down. At one farmstead, there were several impaled objects, including pieces of wood into a camper and the ground, as well as a stop sign into the soil of an uprooted tree base.
June 2001	Flash Flood	Watseka	$25,000	no account filed
May 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	$10,000	Trees blown down north of Watseka and a large tree was uprooted near North Fifth Street and Sheridan. A 30 foot by 50 foot roof was ripped off a barn on County Road 1630 N.
July 2017	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	$5,000	Multiple utility poles were blown down.
April 2013	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	$5,000	Trees and power lines were blown down in Watseka.
May 2012	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	$5,000	Numerous large trees were blown down throughout the town of Watseka. Density was the highest on the north side of town, where three utility poles were also blown down. There was minor roof damage to a few buildings.
August 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	$500	Numerous trees and tree limbs were blown down. A window was blown out of a sunroom.
April 2026	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Emergency management reported extensive tree damage around Watseka, particularly the southeast part of town. Numerous uprooted trees and snapped trunks were reported. Two separate personal weather stations on the south and southeast sides of town recorded a 72 mph and a 73 mph gust.
August 2024	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	A healthy softwood tree approximately 6-12 in diameter snapped near its base.
June 2024	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	A tree was reported down on a car in Watseka.
June 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Trees and power lines were blown down across Watseka.
July 2021	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Multiple large trees, large tree limbs and power lines were blown down in Watseka.
August 2020	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Trees, tree limbs and power lines were blown down across many areas in Iroquois County including in Watseka, where some of the worst damage was in Peters Park and Hubbard Park.
May 2019	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	A wind gust to 83 mph was measured in the northeast part of Watseka.
May 2019	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	A flag pole was blown down onto a vehicle.
May 2019	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Numerous trees, tree limbs, power lines and utility poles were blown down. Partial roofs were also torn off. The worst of the damage was located on the west side of Watseka.
May 2019	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Power lines were blown down in Watseka.
February 2018	Flood	Watseka	-	Major flooding was recorded along Sugar Creek near Milford where the river crested at 28.52 feet on February 21st. This was the second highest stage recorded. Flood stage is 18 feet and major stage is 26 feet. Several buildings and homes were affected by the flood waters.
June 2018	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	A large tree fell onto a house and power lines, which started a fire.
July 2015	Hail	Watseka	-	Penny size hail fell at 8th and Elm.
July 2015	Flash Flood	Watseka	-	Numerous roads were flooded across portions of Iroquois County.
July 2015	Flash Flood	Watseka	-	The intersection of Route 24 and Route 1 was flooded and closed.
September 2014	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Numerous trees of various sizes were blown down along with power poles that were snapped. Damage was noted just south of Lincoln Avenue between 2nd Street and 5th Street.
May 2013	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Trees and power lines were blown down.
June 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Multiple large tree limbs were reported down across the town of Watseka.
May 2011	Flash Flood	Watseka	-	Heavy rain fell across Watseka causing streets to flood. Many intersections were barricaded and closed due to flooding. One spotter reported that 1.61 inches of rain fell in 75 minutes. An emergency manager reported a storm total of 2.12 inches. A co-op observer reported 2.17 inches.
June 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Large trees were blown down near Kay Street and Route 24.
October 2010	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Tree limbs and power lines were blown down.
August 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	A large tree was blown down on Walnut Street.
May 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Tree limbs blown down west of Watseka.
March 2007	Flood	Watseka	-	Several roads closed in Watseka due to high water. Watseka measured 2.58 inches of rainfal.
March 2007	Flood	Watseka	-	Small streams in Watseka were flooded, 2.50 inches of rainfall.
May 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Several trees were blown down.
May 2005	Hail	Watseka	-	Quarter size to Golfball size hail fell from northern Watseka to Sheldon.
July 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Tree limbs and power lines were blown down.
June 2000	Lightning	Watseka	-	Lightning struck a mobile home, causing fire which destoryed the home.
August 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Measured by County Sheriff.
August 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Several trees, large tree limbs, and power lines were blown down by thunderstorm winds throughout the Watseka area.
June 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	A 59 mph wind gust was recored at the Emergency Operation Center. Trees were blown down.
May 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	Strong winds downed trees.
August 2024	Hail	Watseka	-	no account filed
July 2017	Hail	Watseka	-	no account filed
July 2012	Hail	Watseka	-	no account filed
June 2008	Hail	Watseka	-	no account filed
July 2003	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	no account filed
April 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	no account filed
April 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Watseka	-	no account filed
April 1994	Hail	Watseka	-	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.

Place	Distance	Sheets
Coaler	2.0 miles	12
Woodland	4.3 miles	12
Eastburn	5.3 miles	11
Woodland Junction	5.5 miles	12
Freedville	5.9 miles	11
Pittwood	5.9 miles	11
Crescent City	6.5 miles	12
Webster	7.0 miles	13

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 Watseka	An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q575268	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 420641. 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.