Ellendale, Minnesota
7 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1954 and the latest in 1985. It stands in Ellendale City. It lies in ZIP code area 56026. The Survey maps it on the Ellendale quadrangle. 676 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,280 feet above sea level.
Population over time
2 figuresEllendale fell from 691 to 676 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 | 691 | |
| 2020 | 676 | -15 (-2%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
5 surveys from 7 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.
- 1954 USGS Mason City quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1957 USGS Mason City quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS Mason City quadrangle1:250000
- 1967 USGS Ellendale quadrangle1:24000
- 1985 USGS Albert Lea quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
1 since 2012Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 1 fire within 5 miles of Ellendale in 2012, burning about 27 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 |
|---|---|
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 October 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 27 acres | Minnesota Department of Natural Resources | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Storms near this place
23 since 1998Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Ellendale in 23 storm reports between 1998 and 2025: 11 thunderstorm wind, 5 hail, 3 tornado, 1 funnel cloud. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2010 | Flood | Ellendale | $28,400,000 | Numerous roads were closed due to excessive rainfall that fell on September 22nd and 23th. The major areal flooding didn't recede until late Saturday when most of the small streams and creeks had crested and only mainstem rivers remained flooded. Residents in Owatonna, Minnesota, were fighting to save their homes along the flooded Maple Creek. 70 homes were evacuated in Owatonna due to the rising flood waters. Friday morning was the first time that I-35 was closed due to flood waters south of Owatonna. It re-opened during the afternoon as waters started to recede. |
| August 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ellendale | $50,000 | A roof was blown off a grainery and a large tree was uprooted west of Ellendale, Minnesota. |
| August 2025 | Flash Flood | Ellendale | - | The city of Ellendale conducted emergency pumping for their sewer treatment plant over night Saturday into Sunday. One house was barricaded with sandbags due to rising flood waters. |
| August 2025 | Heavy Rain | Ellendale | - | Cocorahs station MN-SE-3 Ellendale 0.3 SW. 72 hour storm total of 5.31 inches. |
| July 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ellendale | - | A large tree was snapped at its base in Ellendale. |
| August 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ellendale | - | Large tree limbs were blown down in the town of Ellendale. |
| March 2017 | Tornado (EF0) | Ellendale | - | This is a continuation of the Freeborn County tornado that moved into Steele County for approximately 2.2 miles before lifting. In Freeborn County, it was rated EF-1, but in Steele County, it produced EF-0 damage to trees and farm outbuildings. Peak winds in Steele County were estimated at 80 mph. |
| May 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ellendale | - | Several trees were damaged along with a railroad crossing guard blown over in Ellendale. In addition, the city of Ellendale lost power due to downed power lines. |
| June 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ellendale | - | Several trees were blown down along I-35 near Ellendale. |
| July 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ellendale | - | A large tree was uprooted northwest of Beaver Lake, or west of Ellendale, Minnesota. |
| June 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ellendale | - | Numerous trees were knocked down associated with the rear flank downdraft that accompanied the tornado that entered Steele County at 1833 LST. |
| June 2010 | Tornado (EF1) | Ellendale | - | This tornado originated in Freeborn County, near Clark's Grove and producing minor damage in Geneva. It entered Steele County near County Road 45 and 168th Street SW and moved north-northeast for most of the time it existed, but at about (43.9154, -93.2159), it turned and began moving to the north-northwest, and dissipated while on its north-northwest track. Thus, the overall path length was 12.93 miles when accounting for the change in direction. In Steele County, several outbuildings were destroyed, the roof was taken off a barn, and numerous large trees were downed. |
| June 2010 | Tornado (EF2) | Ellendale | - | This tornado moved from Freeborn County and into Steele County and began moving to the north-northwest, thereby missing the city of Ellendale. At about (43.9255, -93.3453), it began moving toward the northwest, and at about (43.9407, -93.3627), it actually turned some more and moved toward the west-northwest until it finally dissipated. Accounting for the change in direction, the tornado had an actual path length of 7.7 miles in Steele County. Along the way, several homes experienced significant structural damage, with one house completely destroyed and the roof removed from two others. Many outbuildings were destroyed, and hundreds of trees were uprooted and snapped. |
| May 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ellendale | - | One 10 inch diameter tree limb severed. Several two inch diameter tree limbs or less also observed downed across town. |
| July 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ellendale | - | Trees up to 20 inches in diameter blown down. Some trees toppled over homes. Minor structural damage. |
| June 2004 | Funnel Cloud | Ellendale | - | A funnel cloud was relayed by HAM Radio operators near Ellendale. |
| October 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ellendale | - | Trees and power lines were downed. |
| June 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ellendale | - | Trees and power lines down. |
| May 2022 | Hail | Ellendale | - | no account filed |
| September 2014 | Hail | Ellendale | - | no account filed |
| May 2014 | Hail | Ellendale | - | no account filed |
| May 2011 | Hail | Ellendale | - | no account filed |
| May 2011 | Hail | Ellendale | - | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| River Point | 5.5 miles | 7 | |
| Hope | 6.3 miles | 7 | |
| Summit | 7.0 miles | 7 | |
| Litomysl | 8.0 miles | 7 | |
| Lemond | 8.6 miles | 7 | |
| Steele Center | 9.0 miles | 7 | |
| Saco | 9.3 miles | 10 | |
| Union | 9.4 miles | 7 |
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 Ellendale | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q2231784 | 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 643279. 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.




