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Buffalo, Minnesota

12 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1953 and the latest in 1991. It stands in Buffalo City. It lies in ZIP code area 55313. The Survey maps it on the Buffalo East quadrangle. 16,168 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 928 feet above sea level.

Buffalo within Wright County

Population over time

2 figures

Buffalo grew from 15,453 to 16,168 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
201015,453
202016,168+715 (+5%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

9 surveys from 12 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.

In the county-history sources

5,026 words on this township

History of Wright County, Minnesota Volume II, published 1915 has no passage naming this settlement, which was common for smaller places. Its township is covered in full.

The chapter on Buffalo City covers the township.

Read the chapter on Buffalo City - 5,026 words.

Fires near this place

2 since 2001

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 2 fires within 5 miles of Buffalo between 2001 and 2004, burning about 66 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 burning1
Missing data/not specified/undetermined1

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
10 April 2004Missing data/not specified/undetermined2.0 acresMinnesota Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
4 November 2001Debris and open burning64 acresMinnesota Department of Natural Resourcesnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Wright County

Mines and quarries near this place

3 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 3 workings within 5 miles of Buffalo: 2 producers, 1 past producer. 2 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Morris Nebtz PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Munsterteiger Pit and MillSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Varner Pit and MillSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer

Every working recorded in Wright County

Storms near this place

43 since 1997

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Buffalo in 43 storm reports between 1997 and 2025: 25 hail, 14 thunderstorm wind, 2 funnel cloud, 1 tornado. 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
August 2020HailBuffalo$100,000There were numerous reports of large hail, the largest measured at 2 inches in diameter, occurred across Wright County. Based on radar, and observations, there was a swath of hail between Buffalo, and Montrose, including the towns, that moved eastward toward the Hennepin County line near Rockford. There was also likely large hail west of Buffalo but due to the time of night and the rural area, there were no reports and is not included here.
June 2013Thunderstorm WindBuffalo$25,000A 63 knot wind gust was measured on a home weather station.
June 2025FloodBuffalo-MnDOT Camera located in Buffalo showed flooded roadway at Hwy 55 and 25 intersection.
August 2020HailBuffalo-There were several reports of large hail in the city of Buffalo, with the largest hailstone measured at 2 inches.
August 2020HailBuffalo-Most hail was smaller.
July 2020Thunderstorm WindBuffalo-A large tree limb was snapped off northwest of Buffalo.
May 2011HailBuffalo-Located at Highway 55 and County Road 12.
July 2011Thunderstorm WindBuffalo-Several large trees were blown down around Buffalo.
June 2010Tornado (EF1)Buffalo-Isolated tree damage was noted near the initial touchdown location, but the damage became more concentrated and more intense as the storm approached Constance Lake. Low end EF-1 tornado damage was noted, as the trunks of several trees were snapped at locations on both sides of the lake. An intermittent damage path continued further north, with damage to trees and a small lean-to shelter. The tornado dissipated near the intersection of 85th St NE and Cahill Ave.
September 2007Thunderstorm WindBuffalo-Large tree toppled across the street from Buffalo hospital. Information provided by the Wright County Journal Press.
September 2007HailBuffalo-At Highway 55 and County Road 14.
July 2007Thunderstorm WindBuffalo-Tree toppled, large branches felled, light pole down.
July 2007Thunderstorm WindBuffalo-Six to eight inch tree limbs severed. Few power lines down.
July 2005Thunderstorm WindBuffalo-A tree was downed at the law enforcement center.
September 2005Thunderstorm WindBuffalo-Thirty foot trees were blown down in scattered locations across town and a garage door was blown in. Signs were blown down near Buffalo High School. A tree was downed onto County Road 134 in Buffalo Township.
September 2005HailBuffalo-Dime to nickel sized hail was reported.
June 2004Thunderstorm WindBuffalo-Large branches were downed and a railroad crossing arm was damaged. A wind gust of 46 MPH was measured.
July 2003Thunderstorm WindBuffalo-Scattered trees down, including one across a road 3 S Buffalo.
June 2003Thunderstorm WindBuffalo-Several eight inch branches down in northern part of Buffalo.
June 1998Thunderstorm WindBuffalo-Large tree blown down. Estimated windspeed.
May 1998Thunderstorm WindBuffalo-Airplane flipped over. Trees knocked down. Estimated windspeed.
July 1997Thunderstorm WindBuffalo-Mobile home cut in half by fallen tree. One aircraft overturned at local airport. High school gymnasium lost part of its roof. Estimated windspeed.
May 2022HailBuffalo-no account filed
September 2022HailBuffalo-no account filed
July 2011HailBuffalo-no account filed
July 2011HailBuffalo-no account filed
July 2011HailBuffalo-no account filed
August 2010Funnel CloudBuffalo-no account filed
July 2009HailBuffalo-no account filed
May 2008HailBuffalo-no account filed
May 2008HailBuffalo-no account filed
August 2007HailBuffalo-no account filed
August 2007HailBuffalo-no account filed
September 2007HailBuffalo-no account filed
September 2005HailBuffalo-no account filed
September 2005HailBuffalo-no account filed
September 2005HailBuffalo-no account filed
June 2004HailBuffalo-no account filed
April 2002HailBuffalo-no account filed
April 2002HailBuffalo-no account filed
May 2002HailBuffalo-no account filed
June 2001Funnel CloudBuffalo-no account filed
July 1999HailBuffalo-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Wright 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
Bufflao Manor0.8 miles12
Buffalo Manor East0.9 miles12
Rassat6.4 miles12
Montrose7.6 miles12
Maple Lake7.8 miles10
Waverly8.7 miles12
Highland9.0 miles10
Rockford Riverview Estates9.3 miles15

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 BuffaloAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q987142The 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 640603. 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.