Smith Center, Kansas
12 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1893 and the latest in 1985. It stands in Center Township. It lies in ZIP code area 66967. The Survey maps it on the Smith Center quadrangle. 1,571 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,795 feet above sea level.
Research this city
On record in Smith Center
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 4 records
First National Bank Buildinglisted 2006
Grimes Houselisted 2001
Home on the Range Cabinlisted 1973
Martyn Houselisted 2001
Population over time
2 figuresSmith Center fell from 1,665 to 1,571 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 | 1,665 | |
| 2020 | 1,571 | -94 (-6%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
5 surveys from 12 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.
- 1893 USGS Smith Center quadrangle1:125000, 3 printings
- 1955 USGS Beloit quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1959 USGS Beloit quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1973 USGS Smith Center quadrangle1:24000
- 1985 USGS Smith Center quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
12 since 1999Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 12 fires within 5 miles of Smith Center between 1999 and 2018, burning about 2,602 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 |
|---|---|
| Debris and open burning | 6 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 3 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 September 2017 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Smith County | 2017063 |
| 22 July 2017 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Smith County | 2017044 |
| 2 July 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Kansas Forest Service | 2018037 |
| 19 June 2017 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Smith County | 2017036 |
| 15 April 2017 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Smith County | 2017028 |
| 10 April 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Kansas Forest Service | 2015028 |
| 7 March 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Smith County | 2017021 |
| 6 March 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,100 acres | Smith County | 2017020 |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Storms near this place
60 of 92 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Smith Center in 92 storm reports between 1993 and 2024: 53 hail, 26 thunderstorm wind, 5 tornado, 4 heavy rain. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2024 | Hail | Smith Center | $500,000 | no account filed |
| May 2021 | Hail | Smith Center | $250,000 | Hail ranging anywhere from pea size to 2 inches in diameter was reported in Smith Center from a number of sources. |
| July 2004 | Hail | Smith Center | $100,000 | Hail ranging in size from pennies to golf balls pounded Smith Center for about 20 minutes. |
| September 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $100,000 | no account filed |
| September 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $80,000 | no account filed |
| August 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $75,000 | no account filed |
| June 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $65,000 | no account filed |
| May 2008 | Hail | Smith Center | $60,000 | Hail up to an inch and a half in diameter fell between 836 and 841 PM in the town of Smith Center. Damage from the hail was mainly to roofs, trees and a few windows. |
| May 2007 | Hail | Smith Center | $50,000 | no account filed |
| May 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $50,000 | no account filed |
| May 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $50,000 | no account filed |
| June 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $50,000 | no account filed |
| August 1998 | Hail | Smith Center | $50,000 | no account filed |
| June 1996 | Hail | Smith Center | $50,000 | no account filed |
| September 1993 | Hail | Smith Center | $50,000 | no account filed |
| May 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $45,000 | no account filed |
| September 1997 | Hail | Smith Center | $40,000 | no account filed |
| May 2002 | Hail | Smith Center | $30,000 | no account filed |
| July 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $25,000 | A wind gust of 62 MPH was measured by the Smith Center Airport AWOS. Social media reports noted tree damage across town, and that about 20 percent of the town lost power. |
| June 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $25,000 | Wind gusts estimated to be near 60 MPH accompanied quarter size hail. Tree limbs roughly 4 to 5 inches in diameter were downed. |
| May 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $25,000 | Wind gusts were estimated to be near 60 MPH. |
| May 2015 | Hail | Smith Center | $25,000 | no account filed |
| May 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $25,000 | no account filed |
| July 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $25,000 | no account filed |
| August 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $25,000 | no account filed |
| July 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $25,000 | no account filed |
| April 2015 | Tornado (EF0) | Smith Center | $20,000 | An EF-0 rated tornado occurred north-northeast of Smith Center, KS. Damage was mainly limited to minor roof damage on an outbuilding, and the path was most likely intermittent. Maximum wind speed was estimated at 75 mph. A combination of radar data, storm survey, photos, and personal accounts were used to determine the approximate location and time of the tornado. |
| May 2007 | Hail | Smith Center | $20,000 | no account filed |
| May 2006 | Flood | Smith Center | $20,000 | no account filed |
| June 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $15,000 | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Hail | Smith Center | $10,000 | Nickel to quarter size hail was reported. |
| May 2007 | Hail | Smith Center | $10,000 | no account filed |
| May 2007 | Hail | Smith Center | $10,000 | no account filed |
| May 2007 | Hail | Smith Center | $10,000 | no account filed |
| May 2006 | Hail | Smith Center | $10,000 | no account filed |
| May 2006 | Hail | Smith Center | $10,000 | no account filed |
| May 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $10,000 | no account filed |
| May 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $10,000 | no account filed |
| June 1998 | Hail | Smith Center | $10,000 | no account filed |
| July 1998 | Lightning | Smith Center | $10,000 | no account filed |
| May 1993 | Tornado (F0) | Smith Center | $5,000 | This tornado touched down over open county and remained over open country until it dissipated. |
| April 2008 | Hail | Smith Center | $5,000 | no account filed |
| May 2007 | Hail | Smith Center | $5,000 | no account filed |
| August 2007 | Flash Flood | Smith Center | $5,000 | no account filed |
| July 2001 | Hail | Smith Center | $5,000 | no account filed |
| July 1996 | Hail | Smith Center | $5,000 | no account filed |
| July 1994 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $5,000 | no account filed |
| July 1994 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $5,000 | no account filed |
| July 1994 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $5,000 | no account filed |
| May 1994 | Hail | Smith Center | $5,000 | no account filed |
| August 1993 | Hail | Smith Center | $5,000 | no account filed |
| June 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $1,000 | Wind gusts estimated to be near 60 MPH caused minor tree damage in Smith Center. |
| May 1993 | Tornado (F0) | Smith Center | $500 | This tornado remained over open country until it dissipated. |
| June 1994 | Thunderstorm Wind | Smith Center | $500 | no account filed |
| April 1994 | Hail | Smith Center | $500 | no account filed |
| May 1994 | Hail | Smith Center | $500 | no account filed |
| May 1993 | Hail | Smith Center | $500 | no account filed |
| May 1994 | Hail | Smith Center | $50 | no account filed |
| June 2018 | Heavy Rain | Smith Center | - | Storm total rainfall amounts of 3 to 5 inches was common across the area. The highest totals included 4.30 inches at Smith Center, 4.20 inches six miles north-northeast of Bellaire, and 3.35 inches in Lebanon. |
| May 2017 | Heavy Rain | Smith Center | - | A 24 hour rainfall total of 3.63 inches was reported. |
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 Smith Center | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q1023025 | 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 471958. 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.




