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Howard, Kansas

13 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1885 and the latest in 1985. It stands in Howard Township. It lies in ZIP code area 67349. It stands on Snake Creek. The Survey maps it on the Howard quadrangle. 570 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,037 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Howard within Elk County

On record in Howard

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 2 records

Population over time

2 figures

Howard fell from 687 to 570 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
2010687
2020570-117 (-17%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

6 surveys from 13 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

31 since 1998

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 31 fires within 5 miles of Howard between 1998 and 2020, burning about 3,981 acres in total. None started naturally. 2 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 burning13
Missing data/not specified/undetermined11
Equipment and vehicle use3
Arson/incendiarism2
Smoking2

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
25 September 2017Arson/incendiarism110 acresElk County17078
2 July 2015Missing data/not specified/undetermined20 acresKansas Forest Service1500074
17 May 2018Debris and open burningunder an acreKansas Forest Service1869
4 April 2018Debris and open burning20 acresKansas Forest Service1832
4 April 2015Arson/incendiarism80 acresKansas Forest Service1500054
30 April 2018Debris and open burning200 acresKansas Forest Service1865
28 April 2018Debris and open burning500 acresKansas Forest Service1861
18 April 2018Debris and open burning350 acresKansas Forest Service1850

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Elk County

Storms near this place

60 of 110 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Howard in 110 storm reports between 1993 and 2025: 52 hail, 32 thunderstorm wind, 11 heavy rain, 6 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
July 2007Flash FloodHoward$27,000,000Extremely heavy rainfall from the end of June into early July caused flash flooding throughout Elk County. The flooding damaged or destroyed around 400 houses. This led 12 to 42 million dollars in damage. An awesome 21.49 inches of rain fell during the month of June. Much of this fell during the last few days of the month.
August 2013Thunderstorm WindHoward$50,000Numerous trees were knocked down across town.
June 2001LightningHoward$50,000The northwest roof of Elk County Courthouse was struck, inflicting damage to the roof tile, the elevator, and several computers. A second lightning strike set fire to a hay barn. The barn was a total loss.
April 2010Thunderstorm WindHoward$35,000A pole barn with dimensions of 40 feet by 60 feet was completely destroyed. Additionally, some minor shed and house damage occurred. Ten inch tree limbs were blown down as well.
June 2008Thunderstorm WindHoward$27,000High winds knocked out power to Howard.
July 1996Thunderstorm WindHoward$12,000no account filed
April 2010Thunderstorm WindHoward$3,000Estimated 70 mph winds damaged a fence and a sheet metal shed.
April 2010Thunderstorm WindHoward$2,250Estimated 70 mph winds damaged a tree and damaged a barn roof.
May 1993HailHoward$500A thunderstorm dropped three-quarter inch hail around Howard.
May 1993HailHoward$500no account filed
July 2010Thunderstorm WindHoward$100Winds estimated at 50 to 60 mph downed some small tree limbs as well as damaged a screen door.
June 2008FloodHoward$100Heavy rainfall produced 4.30 inches of rain with agriculture flooding and some minor road flooding.
April 1994HailHoward$50no account filed
July 2025Thunderstorm WindHoward-Several trees and large tree limbs were reported down corroborated from two different CO-OP observers that there was widespread tree damage across Howard. Time was estimated from radar.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindHoward-The KSU mesonet measured a 62 mph wind gust.
May 2024Heavy RainHoward-Twenty four hour rainfall from CoCoRaHS observer of 2.05 inches. Street flooding occurred in town during the late evening hours of the 6th.
April 2024HailHoward-Trained spotters relayed report to emergency management of quarter sized hail at Kansas Highway 99 and Rock Road.
July 2023Thunderstorm WindHoward-This was a measured wind gust from a Kansas Mesonet site northwest of Howard.
July 2023Thunderstorm WindHoward-There was a picture on social media of at least a 1-foot diameter tree branch snapped.
July 2023HailHoward-There were pictures on social media of golf ball sized hail near Howard.
July 2023HailHoward-There was a picture of at least 2-inch hail on the outskirts of Howard.
July 2023Thunderstorm WindHoward-This was an estimated wind gusts. This was corroborated by other similar reports.
May 2022Heavy RainHoward-A Cocorahs station in Howard, Kansas, reported a 24 hour rainfall total of 3.85 inches.
June 2022Heavy RainHoward-A Cocorahs observer near Howard reported 4.93 inches of rainfall in 24 hours.
June 2022Heavy RainHoward-A Coop observer reported 5.60 inches of rainfall in 24 hours.
June 2022Heavy RainHoward-A Cocorahs observer near Howard reported 4.93 inches of rainfall in 24 hours.
June 2022Heavy RainHoward-A Coop observer in Howard reported 2.63 inches of rainfall in 24 hours.
October 2021Heavy RainHoward-This is a 24 hour rainfall report of 3.67 inches about 1 mile SSE of Howard.
May 2020Thunderstorm WindHoward-This was an estimated wind gust.
April 2019HailHoward-The quarter sized hail lasted for a few minutes.
April 2019HailHoward-Report came in via Facebook.
June 2019Heavy RainHoward-This is a 24 hour total.
June 2019Heavy RainHoward-This is a 24 hour total.
June 2019Flash FloodHoward-A deputy reported that the main road heading west out of Howard was covered with swiftly flowing water in multiple places which made them impassable.
May 2014Funnel CloudHoward-The funnel cloud went half way to the ground, but did not last very long. A distinct wall cloud was also noted.
May 2014Funnel CloudHoward-A trained spotter reported the funnel cloud about halfway to the ground.
August 2013FloodHoward-Several streets in downtown Howard are under a small amount of water. The ditches along the roads are full and spilling over.
April 2013Heavy RainHoward-Observer in Howard measured 2.15 inches in the past 24 hours.
June 2011Thunderstorm WindHoward-Estimated gust reported by a trained spotter.
June 2011HailHoward-Law Enforcement also reported 70 mph wind gusts.
June 2011Thunderstorm WindHoward-Estimated gust reported by a Law Enforcement officer.
June 2011HailHoward-Winds up to 60 mph were also reported.
March 2010HailHoward-Pea to nickel sized hail covered the ground.
July 2010Heavy RainHoward-The Elk county dispatch center measured 4.7 inches since midnight.
August 2008FloodHoward-Numerous roads in the town of Howard were flooded.
June 2007Flash FloodHoward-Widespread 14 to 17 inch rainfall amounts occurred across Elk County from June 27th through July 1st, producing widespread, significant flooding. Please refer to this event in the July 2007 StormData publication for complete details.
June 2007Flash FloodHoward-Numerous thunderstorms moved across Elk County during the predawn hours of June 1st, dumping widespread 3 to 4 inch rainfall amounts across primarily the northwest half of the county. Several roads were flooded and impassable northwest of Howard.
June 2005Flash FloodHoward-Several county roads flooded.
August 2005Thunderstorm WindHoward-AGTAP EK104.
April 2003Thunderstorm WindHoward-Limbs downed.
June 2003Thunderstorm WindHoward-Trees uprooted.
March 2002Thunderstorm WindHoward-Limbs downed.
May 2002Flash FloodHoward-Highway 99 flooded one mile south of the Greenwood/Elk county line.
September 2002Thunderstorm WindHoward-Unspecified farm equipment moved slightly. Velocities estimated between 61 and 70 kts. Time of occurrence estimated.
June 2001Thunderstorm WindHoward-Branches 5-6 inches in diameter downed.
May 2000Thunderstorm WindHoward-Tree blown down.
June 2025HailHoward-no account filed
June 2025HailHoward-no account filed
June 2025HailHoward-no account filed
May 2024FloodHoward-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Elk 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
Fiat5.7 miles19
Moline7.9 miles13
Elk Falls8.1 miles13
Cave Springs8.7 miles19
Longton11.6 miles13
Busby11.6 miles13
Grenola13.0 miles13
Upola14.5 miles16

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 HowardAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q2232935The 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 469959. 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.