Blackford, Kentucky
13 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1909 and the latest in 1983. It stands in the Clay census division. It lies in ZIP code area 42404. It lies near Gobblers Knob. The Survey maps it on the Blackford quadrangle. It stands 364 feet above sea level.
Topographic sheets covering this place
7 surveys from 13 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.
- 1909 USGS Providence quadrangle1:62500, 3 printings
- 1954 USGS Blackford quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1954 USGS Evansville quadrangle1:250000
- 1954 USGS Providence quadrangle1:62500
- 1957 USGS Evansville quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1961 USGS Evansville quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1983 USGS Madisonville quadrangle1:100000
Fires near this place
14 since 1999Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 14 fires within 5 miles of Blackford between 1999 and 2019, burning about 180 acres in total. None started naturally. 3 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 |
|---|---|
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 3 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 3 |
| Debris and open burning | 2 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 2 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 September 2019 | Arson/incendiarism | 2.0 acres | Kentucky Division of Forestry | COWNA STORE ROAD |
| 18 September 1999 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 2.0 acres | Kentucky Division of Forestry | not named |
| 4 March 2010 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 4.0 acres | Kentucky Division of Forestry | not named |
| 30 March 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 4.0 acres | Kentucky Division of Forestry | not named |
| 25 March 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 50 acres | Kentucky Division of Forestry | not named |
| 23 March 2009 | Debris and open burning | 50 acres | Kentucky Division of Forestry | not named |
| 21 March 2012 | Recreation and ceremony | 3.0 acres | Kentucky Division of Forestry | SWINGSET |
| 19 March 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 20 acres | Kentucky Division of Forestry | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
2 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 2 workings within 5 miles of Blackford: 1 producer, 1 unknown. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken, Clay. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highway Junction Shale | Clay | Unknown | ||
| Marion Mine & Mill | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer |
Storms near this place
5 since 2005Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Blackford in 5 storm reports between 2005 and 2023: 3 flood, 1 tornado, 1 hail. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 2005 | Tornado (F2) | Blackford | $75,000 | The tornado crossed into Webster County from Crittenden County and moved rapidly east-northeast. The track ended on the north side of the community of Wheatcroft. Most of the damage occurred along and near Highway 109 around Wheatcroft, the only community directly affected by the tornado. West of Wheatcroft, there was slight structural damage, and trees were snapped. A large shed door was blown off, and pillar columns on a house were bent. On the north side of Wheatcroft, a tool shed was destroyed and two campers were overturned. A pickup truck without an engine was rolled about 200 feet. The hood of the truck went through a window. Smaller trees and a house antenna were blown down. |
| January 2023 | Flood | Blackford | - | A couple of state roads were closed due to flooding, including portions of Kentucky 138 at mile markers 7 to 8 and Kentucky 270. These were flood-prone locations. |
| February 2019 | Flood | Blackford | - | The Tradewater River flooded large areas of fields and woodlands, along with some state roads including Highway 120. |
| March 2008 | Flood | Blackford | - | Several roads were closed due to flooding. Kentucky 109 between Clay and Wheatcroft was closed due to two feet of water across it. Most of the other roads were near Clay and in the Slaughter area. State Route 132 between Dixon and Clay was covered with water but not closed. |
| April 2006 | Hail | Blackford | - | 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.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Derby | 1.9 miles | 13 | |
| Virginia | 2.5 miles | 13 | |
| West Wheatcroft | 4.3 miles | 12 | |
| Rock Spring | 4.4 miles | 13 | |
| Fairmont | 4.6 miles | 12 | |
| Wheatcroft | 4.8 miles | 12 | |
| Clay | 6.4 miles | 12 | |
| Williams | 6.5 miles | 13 |
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 Blackford | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q4922870 | 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 487410. 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.
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.






