BlockBefore

Ava, Missouri

13 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1936 and the latest in 1985. It stands in Benton Township. It lies in ZIP code area 65608. The Survey maps it on the Ava quadrangle. 2,894 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,283 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Ava within Douglas County

On record in Ava

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 1 record

Population over time

2 figures

Ava fell from 2,993 to 2,894 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
20102,993
20202,894-99 (-3%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

11 surveys from 13 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

62 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 62 fires within 5 miles of Ava between 1992 and 2020, burning about 446 acres in total. None started naturally. 14 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 burning34
Arson/incendiarism14
Missing data/not specified/undetermined10
Equipment and vehicle use4

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
18 September 2000Debris and open burning5.0 acresMissouri Department of Conservationnot named
18 September 2000Missing data/not specified/undetermined2.0 acresMissouri Department of Conservationnot named
14 September 1999Debris and open burning1.0 acresMissouri Department of Conservationnot named
5 August 2020Debris and open burning7.1 acresMissouri Department of Conservation220621-03401-08052020-1645
17 August 2020Debris and open burning1.7 acresMissouri Department of Conservation230875-03401-08172020-1315
13 August 2020Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMissouri Department of Conservation220622-03401-08132020-2108
12 August 2019Debris and open burning5.2 acresMissouri Department of Conservation179174-03401-08122019-2052
24 July 2020Missing data/not specified/undetermined3.2 acresMissouri Department of Conservation220620-03401-07242020-1122

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Douglas County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 11 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 11 workings within 5 miles of Ava: 9 past producers, 2 producers. 2 still produce. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Iron. 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
Browning LandIronPast Producer
Sanders & Son PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Unknown - S+GSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Welton Sand and Gravel PitsSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Ava QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Barnes QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Hart QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Silvey QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Singleton QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Unknown - LsStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer

Every working recorded in Douglas County

Storms near this place

60 of 237 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Ava in 237 storm reports between 1993 and 2026: 87 thunderstorm wind, 49 hail, 45 flash flood, 41 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 2015Flash FloodAva$1,000,000The city park in Ava flooded as well as Highway 5 and Highway Y. There was flooding into driveways of homes along Highway 14 at Hutchinson Street and at 10th Street. This storm report will contain the overall flood damage estimates across Douglas County for this storm event. There were several episodes and heavy rainfall events which led to a compound affect to the flooding damage. Numerous roads, bridges, and low water crossings were heavily damaged.
May 2008Thunderstorm WindAva$500,000A National Weather Service storm survey revealed that straight line winds damaged areas of southwest and central sections of Ava. These straight line winds caused damage to several businesses located on the square. Power poles and trees were also heavily damaged. This same storm eventually produced a tornado on the northern section of Ava.
April 2014Thunderstorm WindAva$100,000Numerous power poles were snapped or down in the town of Ava. Minor to moderate damage was reported to several buildings in the downtown area. A strong microburst caused 70 t 80 mph winds.
May 2008Tornado (EF0)Ava$100,000A National Weather Service storm survey revealed that an EF-0 tornado touched down in the northeast section of Ava. Wind speeds were estimated at 80 mph. Damage was limited to trees and minor house damage.
April 2021Thunderstorm WindAva$75,000A NWS storm survey concluded that three large outbuildings were slightly to heavily damaged from high winds.
May 2002HailAva$75,000no account filed
May 2025HailAva$60,000Report of baseball size hail.
September 2006HailAva$50,000A severe thunderstorm produced baseball size hail breaking 70 skylights at a Walmart supercenter.
May 2021LightningAva$37,000Lightning struck the Ava High School damaging seven network switches.
May 2025HailAva$25,000Report of golf ball size hail.
April 2014Thunderstorm WindAva$25,000A sturdy 30 feet by 50 feet garage was removed from the foundation and blown 200 yards to the east.
May 2009LightningAva$20,000A barn caught on fire and burned to the ground from a lightning strike.
May 2024Thunderstorm WindAva$10,000Multiple trees down on County Road 401 south of Ava, and a section of a barn was damaged.
August 2020Thunderstorm WindAva$10,000A large tree was blown over onto a parked car.
May 2017LightningAva$10,000Lightning struck a home. The owner indicated sparks from appliances when the lightning hit the house.
May 2017Thunderstorm WindAva$10,000Several trees were blown down around the Ava area. One tree fell on a car.
October 2014Thunderstorm WindAva$10,000Several trees were down at the intersection of Highway 14 and Highway 5. A flag pole was blown down. Several power lines were also blown down.
April 2014Thunderstorm WindAva$10,000Several power poles snapped and trees blown down.
September 2006Thunderstorm WindAva$10,000Severe thunderstorm wind gusts damaged a mobile home and downed several trees.
September 2001LightningAva$10,000no account filed
September 2000Thunderstorm WindAva$10,000no account filed
May 2020Thunderstorm WindAva$8,000Several large tree limbs were reported down on power lines.
July 1999Thunderstorm WindAva$7,000no account filed
March 2015Thunderstorm WindAva$6,000Three telephone polls were blown down near Highway 14 and County Road 305.
March 2023Thunderstorm WindAva$5,000A trailer suffered minor damage.
September 2023Thunderstorm WindAva$5,000A large limb was reported down on the roof of a home causing minor damage.
May 2019Thunderstorm WindAva$5,000A large tree was reported down on a home. Minor damage to the home occurred.
June 2013Thunderstorm WindAva$5,000Several tree limbs were blown down onto phone lines.
December 2008Thunderstorm WindAva$5,000Numerous trees and power poles were knocked over from severe thunderstorm wind gusts.
June 2006Thunderstorm WindAva$5,000Severe thunderstorm wind gusts downed powerlines in the Sweden area.
July 1995Thunderstorm WindAva$5,000Thunderstorm winds downed trees and power lines.
April 1993HailAva$5,000Several roofs received minor damage.
May 2002Thunderstorm WindAva$5,000no account filed
March 2026Thunderstorm WindAva$3,000Thunderstorm winds downed a few trees on County Road 206 east of Ava.
May 2011Thunderstorm WindAva$2,000Several large limbs were blown down around town along with isolated power outages.
June 1999Thunderstorm WindAva$2,000no account filed
September 2006HailAva$1,500Baseball sized hail knocked out two windshields at the ambulance station.
May 2025Thunderstorm WindAva$1,000Report of a tree down.
May 2025Thunderstorm WindAva$1,000Report of a tree down.
March 2024Thunderstorm WindAva$1,000A large tree was uprooted on east Highway 14 in Ava.
March 2023Flash FloodAva$1,000Street flooding from heavy rainfall caused water to enter the Town and County Supermarket.
August 2018Thunderstorm WindAva$1,000An uprooted tree was lying against the high school in Ava. Only very minor damage occurred.
October 2014Thunderstorm WindAva$1,000Siding was ripped off a mobile home in Ava.
August 2012Thunderstorm WindAva$1,000A tree was blown down onto power lines.
July 2009Thunderstorm WindAva$1,000Severe thunderstorm winds downed a tree across Highway Y east of Ava.
December 2008Flash FloodAva$1,000Excessive rainfall caused several city streets to flood. This urban flooding led to water running into one home.
March 1998Thunderstorm WindAva$1,000Thunderstorm winds downed large trees.
May 1994HailAva$50Reported by the police on the east side of town.
April 2026Thunderstorm WindAva-Several large limbs were reported down.
April 2026HailAva-Quarter sized hail was reported.
April 2026FloodAva-State Highway FF at Hunter Creek was flooded and impassable.
April 2025HailAva-Quarter sized hail was reported by multiple spotters in the area.
April 2025Flash FloodAva-Route FF at Hunter Creek was closed due to flooding.
April 2025Flash FloodAva-Route FF at Hunter Creek was flooded and impassable.
April 2025FloodAva-State Highway FF at Hunter Creek was flooded and impassable.
April 2025Thunderstorm WindAva-A large tree was reported down.
May 2025Heavy RainAva-Storm total rainfall amount of 7.89 inches from May 23 through May 27.
June 2024Flash FloodAva-Route FF was flooded at Hunter Creek.
March 2024FloodAva-State Highway FF was closed at Hunter Creek east of Ava due to flooding.
May 2024HailAva-Report of golf ball size hail.

Every storm recorded in Douglas 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
Hest4.0 miles13
Basher4.2 miles13
Mount Zion4.2 miles15
Larissa4.7 miles13
Arno4.7 miles13
Zenda4.9 miles15
Midway6.4 miles13
Bryant6.6 miles13

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 AvaAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q957407The 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 735491. 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.