Brewster, Kansas
8 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1954 and the latest in 1985. It stands in West Hale Township. It lies in ZIP code area 67732. The Survey maps it on the Brewster quadrangle. 291 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 3,428 feet above sea level.
Population over time
2 figuresBrewster fell from 305 to 291 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 | 305 | |
| 2020 | 291 | -14 (-5%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
5 surveys from 8 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.
- 1954 USGS Goodland quadrangle1:250000
- 1956 USGS Goodland quadrangle1:250000
- 1957 USGS Goodland quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1966 USGS Brewster quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1985 USGS Goodland quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
1 since 2015Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 1 fire within 5 miles of Brewster in 2015, burning about 1 acre 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 |
|---|---|
| Equipment and vehicle use | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 July 2015 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1.0 acres | Kansas Forest Service | 47 |
Storms near this place
60 of 111 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Brewster in 111 storm reports between 1993 and 2025: 66 hail, 33 thunderstorm wind, 8 tornado, 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 2011 | Tornado (EF1) | Brewster | $200,000 | The tornado developed about 4 miles SSE of Brewster near Roads 3 and M. The tornado traveled north-northeast at speeds of 50 mph, passing east of Brewster and dissipating about 4 miles northeast of Brewster near roads 4 and T. One farmstead south of Interstate 70 received damage to outbuildings, trees, a large grain bin and utility poles on the property. Fortunately only minor roof damage occurred as the large tree branches fell on the house. Further northeast several utility poles were snapped and at least one irrigation pivot was overturned. Numerous outbuildings were also damaged at a farm near Roads 4 and R as the tornado moved northeast. |
| May 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | $75,000 | Straight-line winds destroyed an empty grain bin, tore some roof off of a barn and collapsed a second barn. Structural integrity of the collapsed barn prior to the damaging winds is unknown. |
| April 2007 | Tornado (EF0) | Brewster | $48,000 | Tornado affected one homestead at Roads L and 5, destroying an empty, poorly anchored grain bin. Several trees were uprooted, and minor home damage occurred. |
| August 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | $15,000 | A 12-inch diameter tree branch was blown onto a house in the south part of town. Power lines were also downed in strong winds. Numerous 3-5 inch diameter tree limbs were down throughout town. |
| July 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | $3,000 | Strong winds uprotted trees and blew over tower. |
| May 2021 | Hail | Brewster | $1,000 | Golf ball to tennis ball size hail was reported. The hail broke the vehicle's windshield. |
| August 2025 | Hail | Brewster | - | EM reported ping pong ball hail in Brewster. |
| August 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | A powerline was reported down in Brewster. |
| August 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | A chicken coop was blown away in Brewster, KS. |
| July 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | Spotter reports live trees down, fences down, and shingles blown off of houses in Brewster, KS. Wind speed estimated based on damage indicators. |
| August 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | Off-duty employee reported 1/4 mile visibility due to dust associated with storm outflow moved through 2 miles east of Brewster, KS. Gusts up to 42 mph were measured via an anemometer held at 8 feet. |
| July 2022 | Tornado (EFU) | Brewster | - | Landspout sighted about 10 miles east-southeast from the Sherman/Cheyenne County line, north of Edson, KS. |
| July 2022 | Tornado (EFU) | Brewster | - | A second landspout was spotted a mile north of the first landspout in extreme northwest Thomas County. Landspout was sighted 10 miles east-southeast of the Sherman/Cheyenne County line, north of Edson. |
| June 2022 | Hail | Brewster | - | Pea to quarter sized hail reported. Most of the hail was pea to dime in size. |
| May 2021 | Hail | Brewster | - | A supercell thunderstorm produced dime to quarter sized hail. |
| May 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | A linear cluster of storms moved into western Thomas County, producing strong winds estimated near 70 and blowing dust with near zero visibility. |
| June 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | Officer reported an estimated 60 mph wind gust and heavy rain near Brewster. |
| June 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | Trained spotter reported estimated 60 mph wind gusts at the location. |
| May 2019 | Hail | Brewster | - | Hail covered the ground. |
| May 2019 | Hail | Brewster | - | Irregularly shaped hail. |
| June 2019 | Hail | Brewster | - | Report from near the Brewster exit on I-70. |
| June 2019 | Flash Flood | Brewster | - | Water of unknown depth was running across both roads near the intersection of County Road 3 and County Road P just east of Brewster. |
| August 2019 | Flash Flood | Brewster | - | Local law enforcement reported that several of the streets in Brewster were flooded. |
| June 2018 | Hail | Brewster | - | The hail ranged from pea to penny in size and was accompanied by 40-50 MPH wind gusts. |
| July 2017 | Hail | Brewster | - | The hail ranged from one to two inches. |
| May 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | The winds lasted three to four minutes. |
| May 2016 | Hail | Brewster | - | The hail sizes ranged from nickel to quarter size. |
| September 2016 | Hail | Brewster | - | A home lost all of the windows in it from the hail. The glass was blown into the house. |
| September 2016 | Hail | Brewster | - | The hail ranged from half dollar to tennis ball size. Many downtown businesses lost windows. The school lost 34 windows. Some of the glass was embedded in the gym floor from the hail and wind. At least one corn field near town was completely destroyed. |
| May 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | Power lines were blown down onto the roadway causing I-70 to be closed at mile marker 38. Near zero visibility was also reported due to the blowing dust. |
| April 2015 | Hail | Brewster | - | Hail reportedly covered the Interstate 3 miles east of Brewster. |
| June 2014 | Tornado (EF0) | Brewster | - | Location approximate as viewed from Goodland, and estimated by Doppler velocity couplet. |
| August 2014 | Hail | Brewster | - | The spotter also reported 0.40 inches of rain in 15 minutes. |
| July 2013 | Hail | Brewster | - | Spotter reported mostly quarter size hail and at least one stone that was 2.5 inches long and 1 inch wide. |
| June 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | Two-inch diameter branches down in Brewster. Time estimated from Doppler radar. |
| May 2012 | Hail | Brewster | - | Hail was mostly quarter size with a few stones as large as golf balls. |
| July 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | Spotter estimated peak wind gusts to 60 mph. |
| May 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | Off duty NWS employee reported 77 mph gust at I-70 mile marker 42. |
| May 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | Off duty NWS employee reported 77 mph gust at I-70 mile marker 42. |
| April 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | Car blown off Interstate 70 at mile marker 39 just east of Brewster. No known injuries. |
| April 2007 | Hail | Brewster | - | Golf ball hail covering the ground. |
| September 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | Tree down and power pole broken. |
| July 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | The strong winds knocked down power lines in the Brewster area. |
| October 2000 | Funnel Cloud | Brewster | - | Funnel spotted from Brewster, but was likely located across county line. |
| May 2021 | Hail | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| May 2021 | Hail | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| July 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| July 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| May 2019 | Hail | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| June 2019 | Hail | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| June 2019 | Hail | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| June 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| May 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| May 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| August 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| May 2017 | Hail | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| July 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| July 2017 | Hail | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| April 2015 | Hail | Brewster | - | no account filed |
| June 2014 | Hail | Brewster | - | 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.
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 Brewster | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q2403590 | 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 471255. 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.
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.




