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Comanche County, Kansas

16 topographic sheets cover 4 settlements here, and 3 properties are on the National Register of Historic Places.

Research this county

From the record

3 National Register listings published here.

Sources: the National Register database, National Park Service

Kansas within the United States
Comanche County within Kansas

What the record shows

  • 52 topographic sheet readings cover the county's settlements.
  • 3 properties here are on the National Register of Historic Places: 3 buildings.
  • The Geographic Names Information System records 4 populated places in this county; 4 are covered by at least one topographic sheet.

Places on the National Register

3

Every property in this county listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with the year it was listed and the federal nomination document.

Photograph PropertyType ListedReference
Chief Theaterbuilding200505000010
Comache County Courthousebuilding200202000395
Protection High Schoolbuilding200505001244

Wildfire, 2015 to 2020

56 fires

Every wildfire the federal occurrence database records inside this county: 56 of them, burning about 40,162 acres. 15 started naturally and none was recorded as arson. Each settlement page carries the fires within five miles of it.

Reported cause Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined20
Natural15
Equipment and vehicle use14
Debris and open burning5
Fireworks1
Smoking1

The five largest, by the area the report gives. None of them was recorded as arson.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
8 March 2017Debris and open burning37,000 acresComanche County2017016
19 October 2015Missing data/not specified/undetermined1,400 acresKansas Forest Service2015055
11 April 2020Missing data/not specified/undetermined900 acresKansas Forest Servicenot named
7 February 2017Missing data/not specified/undetermined320 acresComanche CountyKOGER FIRE
20 February 2018Missing data/not specified/undetermined150 acresKansas Forest Service2018008
25 September 2020Missing data/not specified/undetermined100 acresKansas Forest Servicenot named
21 February 2015Equipment and vehicle use80 acresKansas Forest Service2015009
9 September 2017Equipment and vehicle use80 acresComanche County2017053

Every settlement page carries the fires within five miles of it - see the settlement index below.

Storms, 1950 to 2025

60 of 627 shown

The NOAA Storm Events Database holds 627 reports for this county, causing no deaths, 3 injuries and about $2,130,120 in recorded property damage. Each settlement page carries the reports that name it.

Kind of event Reports
Hail425
Thunderstorm Wind111
Tornado46
Heavy Rain24
Flash Flood10
Flood9
Strong Wind1
Lightning1

The most serious of them, by death, then injury, then recorded damage. The accounts are quoted exactly as the forecast office filed them.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
March 2000Thunderstorm WindButtermilk1 hurt, $50,000Downburst destroyed a shed and toppled a 75 foot radio tower. An empty fuel tank was carried 400 yards. A camper trailer parked at an oil rig was heavily damaged and the male occupant received a minor injury.
May 1950Tornado (F2)not stated1 hurt, $2,500no account filed
March 2000Tornado (F1)Buttermilk1 hurtBarn completely destroyed and several dog houses were destroyed but no injuries to the animals resulted. Debris was carried 2 miles.
July 1996HailProtection$1,500,000no account filed
September 1973Tornado (F3)not stated$250,000no account filed
May 1998Strong WindProtection$100,000Unknown wind event occurred in the absence of any thunderstorms. The event occurred in an isolated location. Lots of roof damage, numerous windows blown out of houses, bricks blown off buildings, large tree branches blown down. A trampoline was blown onto a garage. A gas meter was blown off a building.
December 2016Tornado (EF0)Wilmore$85,000This QLCS tornado overturned an irrigation sprinkler.
April 1993Thunderstorm WindWilmore$50,000Thunderstorm winds blew out the side of a barn and the tin roofs of a grainery and a carport.
September 1994Thunderstorm WindColdwater$30,000Thunderstorm winds gustine 80 to 100 mph were reported by the Comanche County Law Enforcement at 2110 CST.
March 1973Tornado (F2)not stated$25,000no account filed
May 1998HailProtection$9,000no account filed
July 2013Thunderstorm WindButtermilk$5,000Up to 10 power poles were broken from the high wind.
May 1998Thunderstorm WindColdwater$5,000Ten power poles snapped 6 feet above the ground.
April 1993Thunderstorm WindColdwater$5,000A tin roof was blown off a hangar.
June 1994HailColdwater$5,000no account filed
May 1986Tornado (F1)not stated$2,500no account filed
July 1981Tornado (F1)not stated$2,500no account filed
June 1951Tornadonot stated$2,500no account filed
June 1997Thunderstorm WindColdwater$500Window blown out of a house.
April 1993Thunderstorm WindColdwater$500Winds blew two large doors off a barn.
May 1978Tornado (F0)not stated$30no account filed
April 1958Tornadonot stated$30no account filed
April 1957Tornadonot stated$30no account filed
April 1957Tornado (F0)not stated$30no account filed
September 2025HailButtermilk-The emergency manager reported 1.75 inch hail.
April 2025HailButtermilk-Comanche County emergency manager sent a picture of golf ball size hail via Slack.
August 2025Flash FloodProtection-The emergency manager reported roadway flooding along Road 5.
August 2025Flash FloodProtection-The emergency manager reported flooding along Route 183, along the Comanche and Clark County border.
August 2025Flash FloodWilmore-The emergency manager reports continued flooding along Road 17 between Avenue D and the Kiowa County border.
August 2025FloodButtermilk-The emergency manager reported water over roadways at the intersection of Avenue V and Road 17. They also reported flooding ongoing along Avenue Y between Road 14 and 16.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindButtermilk-Reported outbuilding damage in this approximate location. Time was estimated from radar and the report came from Emergency Management.
July 2025Thunderstorm WindProtection-Emergency management report tree damage just north of Protection.
July 2025Thunderstorm WindColdwater-An Ambient wind measuring station reported 78 mph gusts.
July 2025Thunderstorm WindColdwater Stark Arpt-Downed powerlines on highway 160 going from the KDOT building to about 1.6 miles east.
July 2025Thunderstorm WindColdwater-Social media report of broken windows, downed trees, and downed power poles.
May 2025Tornado (EF3)Coldwater-First tornado of this prolific cyclic supercell with the vortex starting in far northern Comanche County KS and then traveling north-northeast for over 8 miles before ending around 7 miles southeast of Mullinville KS in Kiowa County KS. Maximum width of almost a half mile with peak winds of at least 155 mph (EF3). ||A farm grain cart was tossed/tumbled at least 100 yards, Total destruction of a metal building system. Trees debarked with only stubs of largest branches remaining. Electrical transmission lines were damaged.
September 2025HailWilmore-An emergency manager reported 2.75 inch hail.
June 2024Thunderstorm WindColdwater-A wind gust of 60 mph was reported.
June 2024Thunderstorm WindColdwater Stark Arpt-Report from mping.
June 2024Thunderstorm WindWilmore-Reported through Mping.
June 2024Thunderstorm WindColdwater Stark Arpt-One inch tree limbs broken.
June 2024Thunderstorm WindColdwater-Trees uprooted or snapped.
June 2024Thunderstorm WindWilmore-Trees uprooted or snapped.
May 2024HailButtermilk-Mostly pea size hail or smaller. Hail was covering the ground. Did have a few stones as large as a half dollar.
June 2024Flash FloodProtection-Heavy rain over highway.
September 2024HailColdwater-A NWS employee reported hail of 1.25 4 miles south of Lake Coldwater.
September 2024Thunderstorm WindButtermilk-A public report estimated winds of 60 MPH associated with the storm 2 miles NW of Buttermilk.
June 2023Thunderstorm WindProtection-Report through social media.
May 2022Tornado (EF0)Protection-Landspout observed by law enforcement and storm spotters.
May 2022Tornado (EF0)Buttermilk-Brief ground circulation from this landspout. Observed by law enforcement and storm spotters.
December 2022HailProtection-Report received by social media.
December 2022HailWilmore-Report was received by social media.
July 2021Thunderstorm WindButtermilk-Tree limbs of at least 1 inch in diameter were broken by the high wind.
May 2019Flash FloodProtection-Street flooding in Protection.
May 2019Heavy RainColdwater Stark Arpt-Rainfall of 2.45 inches fell in 45 minutes.
August 2019Thunderstorm WindProtection-Damage was done to a large shed.
September 2018Flash FloodProtection-Water was reported to be over the road.
August 2018Heavy RainColdwater-Rainfall of 3.07 inches was observed.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindColdwater-Winds were estimated to be 60 MPH, at least.
October 2018Heavy RainButtermilk-Rainfall for the period was 6.92 inches.

Every populated place in the county

4

Named settlements recorded in the Geographic Names Information System, each with the topographic sheets covering it. Villages, hamlets and abandoned places alike. Each is shown with the nearest named watercourse or landform and the survey quadrangle it falls on.

Provenance

  • Topographic sheets. USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection, county index, measured from the bulk metadata.
  • Fire insurance maps. Library of Congress Sanborn collection, faceted to this county.
  • Photographs. Each place queried individually against the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs search.
  • 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.