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Parsons, Kansas

19 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1886 and the latest in 1990. It stands in Parsons City. It lies in ZIP code area 67357. It stands on Tolen Creek. The Survey maps it on the Parsons West quadrangle. 9,600 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 902 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Parsons within Labette County

On record in Parsons

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 6 records

Population over time

2 figures

Parsons fell from 10,500 to 9,600 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
201010,500
20209,600-900 (-9%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

13 surveys from 19 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

41 since 2015

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 41 fires within 5 miles of Parsons between 2015 and 2018, burning about 143 acres in total. None 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 burning16
Missing data/not specified/undetermined16
Arson/incendiarism4
Equipment and vehicle use3
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
8 September 2018Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreKansas Forest Service180043
5 July 2018Arson/incendiarismunder an acreKansas Forest Service318
11 July 2017Equipment and vehicle use5.0 acresLabette County18
9 June 2017Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreLabette County15
9 April 2018Debris and open burningunder an acreKansas Forest Service180025
23 April 2018Arson/incendiarismunder an acreKansas Forest Service180423
11 April 2017Missing data/not specified/undetermined5.0 acresLabette County13
10 April 2017Debris and open burningunder an acreLabette County134

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Labette County

Storms near this place

60 of 135 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Parsons in 135 storm reports between 1993 and 2026: 55 thunderstorm wind, 42 hail, 12 flash flood, 9 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 FloodParsons$540,000Extremely heavy rainfall from the end of June into early July caused flash flooding throughout Labette County. The flash flooding and the ensuing river flooding resulted in 2 homes being destroyed and 11 others suffering major damage. This resulted in roughly 540 thousand dollars in damage. Major flooding was observed at Parsons and Oswego. Parsons recorded a crest of 35.05 feet while Oswego recorded a crest of 30.0 feet. These crests were 14.05 feet and 13 feet above flood stage respectively. The Neosho fell blow flood stage on the July 7th at both locations.
May 2007Flash FloodParsons$350,000A car trying to get away from flood water was swept off a road leading to a water rescue.
August 2009Thunderstorm WindParsons$250,000Several trees, limbs and power lines were downed in the Parsons area. Some of the downed power lines caused fires, but they were extinguished fairly rapidly. Property damage was limited mainly to trees and limbs falling on homes and other structures. Roof damage occurred to a handful of structures from winds peeling back a portion of the roof. Substantial water damage occurred inside at least one of the structures due to rain falling onto a heavily damaged roof. The Parsons Sun contributed to this report.
May 2009Thunderstorm WindParsons$180,000Several large trees were knocked all over town as thunderstorm winds estimated at 80 mph moved through the area. The storms also knocked down 20 power poles all over town. The strong winds also caused minor roof damage to numerous businesses. The trees and debris fell on houses and cars throughout the town.
September 2014Thunderstorm WindParsons$120,000Several trees, limbs and power lines were knocked down from Big Hill Lake, Mound Valley and Parsons.
April 2016Thunderstorm WindParsons$50,000There was unspecified structural damage to a building at the Highway 400/Wallace Rd. Intersection. Power outages were reported across much of Northern Labette County.
June 1999Thunderstorm WindParsons$50,000Substantial damage sustained to hangar as well as damage to rear landing gear and tail section of a Cessna 170 housed inside.
April 1999LightningParsons$35,000Lightning struck a single-story, woodframed house, setting it afire. Though the house was a total loss, no one was injured. The lightning strike also damaged an apartment located directly behind the house.
July 2003Thunderstorm WindParsons$25,000Downed limbs, some of which entangled with power lines, resulted in power outages. The Parsons Sun contributed to this narrative.
August 2002LightningParsons$25,000Initially striking the roof, the lightning traveled down a bedroom wall then "jumped" to another room. South end of attic heavily damaged, the bulk of which was to insulation.
September 2001Thunderstorm WindParsons$25,000Widespread tree and power line damage, including a few trees that were uprooted, one of which fell onto a house. Area newspapers contributed to this report.
October 2001Thunderstorm WindParsons$25,000Downed limbs onto power lines resulted in power outages to approximately 500 residences, of which 81 were still without power the following morning. Time is estimated based on arrival of thunderstorms into northward-neighboring Neosho County.
May 2000Thunderstorm WindParsons$25,000The following property was damaged: Siding was ripped from a house, metal roofing was ripped from the tops of two small businesses, a temporary wall at a building supply proved to be just that as it was blown down, and a sign that had been set with 4-inch metal pipes was bent over. In addtion, damage to trees and power lines was widespread.
June 2010Thunderstorm WindParsons$21,000Two windows were blown out and a portion of the roof was peeled back at a radio station and sporting goods store in downtown. The resulting rain from the open roof and windows soaked the radio equipment at the radio station and soaked half the inventory of the store. The equipment damage kept two radio staitons off the air over the weekend. A very large tree also fell on a house. 1100 residents were without power for awhile.
August 2003LightningParsons$20,000Unspecified number of power poles struck, severing power to 586 residences. By approximately 10 AM the following morning, power had been restored to all but 20 residences. Times of incidents are approximate. Narrative courtesy of Parsons Sun.
September 2010Thunderstorm WindParsons$15,000Widespread tree damage was reported across town. Some damage occurred to the Emergency Operations Center in Parsons.
September 2009Flash FloodParsons$10,000Over four inches of rainfall caused several roads to be flooded or barricaded across the city including 12th Street, 13th Street, Crawford and North Lincoln Street.
February 2009Thunderstorm WindParsons$8,000The visitors dugout at Ray Bennett sofball field was destroyed by a thunderstorm wind gust along with a portion of the outfield fence.
June 2016Thunderstorm WindParsons$5,000This was a delayed report from Twitter of a gas station canopy blown over at the Stockyard Travel Plaza. The time of the event was an estimate from radar.
June 2005Tornado (F0)Parsons$5,000Brief event that caused minor tree damage.
September 1993Thunderstorm WindParsons$5,000no account filed
July 2010Thunderstorm WindParsons$4,000The 70 mph winds blew a large grill off a deck and several tree limbs were knocked down.
June 2005Thunderstorm WindParsons$1,000Minor damage to one house.
September 2005LightningParsons$1,000Breaker at sub-station struck in Southwest Parsons, severing power to ~1,400 people. Power restored at 0407 CST. (Narrative courtesy Parsons Sun.)
May 2011HailParsons$500The very large hail blew out a deputy's car windshield.
July 2011Thunderstorm WindParsons$500Minor tree damage occurred.
May 2020Flash FloodParsons$100Several water rescues were reported across the county primarily in the Parsons area.
May 2019FloodParsons$100Numerous low water crossings were flooded across the county.
August 2019Flash FloodParsons$100Various low water crossings were flooded across the county.
August 2013FloodParsons$100Water was over numerous low water crossings.
April 2026Flash FloodParsons-Numerous streets were flooded with 4.41 inches of rainfall measured.
April 2026Flash FloodParsons-A car was swept off of the road due to flowing water.
May 2025Thunderstorm WindParsons-Multiple trees and power lines were downed in Parsons.
June 2024Thunderstorm WindParsons-Dime sized hail was reported along with 70 mph winds.
May 2023Thunderstorm WindParsons-Report of a tree uprooted in the 1400 block of Morton Avenue.
July 2023Thunderstorm WindParsons-It was reported that trees and power lines were down.
September 2023HailParsons-Law enforcement reported nickel sized hail.
September 2023HailParsons-Trained spotter reported one inch hail.
May 2022Heavy RainParsons-A Cocorahs station in Parsons, Kansas, reported a 24 hour rainfall total of 5.40 inches.
May 2022Heavy RainParsons-A Coop observer in Parson, Kansas, reported a 24 hour rainfall total of 7.75 inches.
June 2022Heavy RainParsons-A Coop observer 1 mile northwest of Parsons reported 3.56 inches of rainfall in 24 hours.
May 2021FloodParsons-Flooding was reported on 10th Street in Parsons. The report came in via social media.
July 2021FloodParsons-Very heavy rains forced several water rescues from folks driving into low water crossings.
July 2021Heavy RainParsons-This was a 24 hour rain total of 6.53 inches.
July 2020Thunderstorm WindParsons-Several large diameter tree limbs were downed. A significant amount of tree damage was also noted in and around Parsons. Winds were estimated at around 70 mph.
July 2020Thunderstorm WindParsons-A peak wind gust at a mesonet site on the north side of Parsons.
June 2019FloodParsons-Flooding occurred along a road near the 26,000th St./N. 10th St. intersection. The segment was closed.
August 2019Thunderstorm WindParsons-A trained spotter reported the gust.
May 2018HailParsons-Delayed report of one inch hail. A picture was sent in via facebook.
July 2018Thunderstorm WindParsons-A few reports of power lines being blown down.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindParsons-Measured by official observing equipment.
April 2017Thunderstorm WindParsons-No damage was reported.
September 2017Thunderstorm WindParsons-Power lines were blown down on the west side of town.
September 2017Thunderstorm WindParsons-Winds were estimated by a trained spotter.
April 2016Thunderstorm WindParsons-No damage was reported.
June 2016Thunderstorm WindParsons-Two small trees were uprooted.
April 2015HailParsons-The hail was nickel to quarter size.
August 2015Thunderstorm WindParsons-Winds were estimated at 60 mph.
September 2015Thunderstorm WindParsons-Tree limbs and power lines were reported down in the community.
April 2015Tornado (EF0)Parsons-Very brief tornado touchdown over open country. The tornado width was 50 yards.

Every storm recorded in Labette 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
Winway1.0 miles19
Orchard Park1.5 miles19
Brownstone3.6 miles18
Fern6.1 miles19
Laneville7.1 miles18
Garvin7.7 miles20
Dennis8.1 miles19
Montana8.5 miles18

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 ParsonsAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q2094222The 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 469782. 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.