BlockBefore

De Soto, Missouri

20 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1901 and the latest in 1985. It stands in Valle Township. It lies in ZIP code area 63020. It stands on Tanyard Branch. The Survey maps it on the De Soto quadrangle. 6,449 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 502 feet above sea level.

De Soto within Jefferson County

On record in De Soto

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

De Soto grew from 6,400 to 6,449 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
20106,400
20206,449+49 (+1%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

13 surveys from 20 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

91 since 2003

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 91 fires within 5 miles of De Soto between 2003 and 2019, burning about 168 acres in total. None started naturally. 4 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/undetermined54
Debris and open burning18
Equipment and vehicle use8
Recreation and ceremony4
Arson/incendiarism4
Railroad operations and maintenance2
Smoking1

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
9 September 2018Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMissouri Department of Conservation178414-05008-09092018-1315
5 September 2015Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMissouri Department of Conservation127970-05007-09052015-2018
3 September 2013Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresMissouri Department of Conservationnot named
28 September 2013Equipment and vehicle use5.0 acresMissouri Department of Conservationnot named
12 September 2015Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMissouri Department of Conservation128390-05007-09122015-1411
26 August 2011Debris and open burning1.0 acresMissouri Department of Conservationnot named
30 July 2017Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresMissouri Department of Conservationnot named
8 June 2016Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresMissouri Department of Conservation137371-05007-06082016-1639

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Jefferson County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 18 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 18 workings within 5 miles of De Soto: 18 past producers. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Lead, Stone, Crushed/Broken, Copper, 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
Unknown - BariteBarium-BaritePast Producer
Unknown - Lead + ZincLead, ZincPast Producer
Prentiss MineIronPast Producer
Vineland Tunnel & Hill ShaftIronPast Producer
Skewe's & Valle's Copper MinesCopperPast Producer
Unknown - CopperCopperPast Producer
Unknown - CopperCopperPast Producer
Frech QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Unknown - LsStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Unknown - LsStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer

Every working recorded in Jefferson County

Storms near this place

54 since 1993

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names De Soto in 54 storm reports between 1993 and 2025: 27 hail, 22 thunderstorm wind, 2 tornado, 2 lightning. The reports record 1 death. 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
May 2003Flash FloodDe Soto1 killedno account filed
June 1997Thunderstorm WindDe Soto$100,000County sheriff reported numerous trees and power lines down. About a dozen homes were damaged mainly from the falling trees. About 10 vehicles were also damaged by the falling trees.
April 1993Thunderstorm WindDe Soto$50,000A local newspaper reported wind damage to trees and a mobile home southeast of De Soto. Part of the roof was blown some distance from the original spot. A storm spotter reported wind gusts to 60 mph.
July 2002Thunderstorm WindDe Soto$10,000no account filed
August 2022Thunderstorm WindDe Soto$5,000Thunderstorm winds blew down numerous large tree limbs in DeSoto. Also, a large tree was blown over onto Highway V just northwest of Valles Mines.
August 2021Thunderstorm WindDe Soto$2,000Thunderstorm winds blew down a tree onto power lines.
August 2006LightningDe Soto$2,000At least three homes were reported struck by lighting. Only minor damage was reported.
April 1995Tornado (F0)De Soto$200A spotter reported a brief touchdown in a wooded area near the Jefferson-St.Francois county line.
April 2025Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-Thunderstorm winds downed power lines in De Soto.
July 2023Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-Thunderstorm winds blew down numerous tree limbs between DeSoto and Olympian Village.
July 2016Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-Thunderstorm winds blew down numerous large tree limbs and power lines around town.
April 2012HailDe Soto-Large hail fell across De Soto with the biggest stones being tennis ball size.
June 2011Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-Thunderstorm winds uprooted a large tree.
August 2010Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-Thunderstorm winds blew down numerous large tree limbs around town.
April 2007HailDe Soto-Penny size hail was reported at Olympian Village.
May 2006HailDe Soto-The hail fell in the Timber Creek Resort.
July 2006Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-Thunderstorms winds blew down numerous large trees, tree limbs and power lines. Several of the trees landed on homes and cars causing minor to moderate damage. The roof of a business in De Soto was blown off.
August 2006Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-Amateur radio spotters reported some large tree limbs down.
August 2006Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-The local police department reported several large tree limbs blown down.
May 2004HailDe Soto-Storm spotters reported 3/4 inch hail.
May 2004Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-Amateur radio spotters reported 60 mph wind gusts and a few trees blown down.
October 2004HailDe Soto-Storm spotters reported nickel size hail in the Olympian Village area northeast of De Soto.
August 2003Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-A local radio station reported trees down in De Soto.
May 2003Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-The second of 2 severe thunderstorms roared through De Soto with wind gusts approaching 100 mph. Widespread trees and power lines were down knocking power out to the entire town. Damage assessment of the area conducted by the State Emergency Management Agency and the Red Cross revealed the following:. Single family homes: 6 destroyed, 27 with major damage, and 111 with minor damage. Mobile homes: 1 destroyed, 2 with major damage, and 2 with minor damage. At the De Soto Senior and Junior High Complex, the Junior High gymnasium roof collapsed and the Senior High suffered roof damage. Teachers and students returning from a track meet wisely took refuge in a room beneath the gymnasium floor and escaped injury. Windows were also broken and virtually all trees on campus were downed. The scoreboard and the press box at the football field were also destroyed. Two businesses in town suffered major roof damage and the Parkview Baptist Church in the southeast part of town lost its entire roof. There was also significant tree and some house damage to the west and southwest of De Soto. On Dodson Road, one home was destroyed and another suffered major roof damage. Both homes sat on a ridge with a clear view to the west. In both cases, the garage doors blew in resulting in one home losing its entire roof and the other home part of its roof. Witnesses reported seeing a black and green mass covering the entire west horizon. At the home that lost its entire roof, there were nine people inside. Everyone went to the basement and escaped injury.
May 2003Tornado (F0)De Soto-A small tornado formed along a bowing thunderstorm causing tree damage just south of the High School Complex.
May 2003Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-The first of 2 severe thunderstorms roared through De Soto causing widespread tree and power line damage. The bulk of the damage occurred from the middle to south part of town.
June 2001HailDe Soto-The De Soto Police reported 3/4 inch hail.
May 1997Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-De Soto police reported trees and power lines down.
May 1997HailDe Soto-Skywarn spotters reported 3/4 inch hail.
April 1995HailDe Soto-Dime-size hail was reported by a spotter in the De Soto area.
April 1993Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-A local newspaper reported wind damage to trees and a mobile home southeast of De Soto. Part of the roof was blown some distance from the original spot. A storm spotter reported wind gusts to 60 mph.
May 2016HailDe Soto-no account filed
October 2012Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-no account filed
May 2011HailDe Soto-no account filed
June 2010HailDe Soto-no account filed
March 2006HailDe Soto-no account filed
February 2006HailDe Soto-no account filed
February 2006HailDe Soto-no account filed
April 2006HailDe Soto-no account filed
April 2006HailDe Soto-no account filed
June 2006HailDe Soto-no account filed
November 2005HailDe Soto-no account filed
November 2005Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-no account filed
November 2005Thunderstorm WindDe Soto-no account filed
July 2002LightningDe Soto-no account filed
April 2001HailDe Soto-no account filed
April 2000HailDe Soto-no account filed
April 2000HailDe Soto-no account filed
February 1999HailDe Soto-no account filed
April 1998HailDe Soto-no account filed
June 1998HailDe Soto-no account filed
April 1997HailDe Soto-no account filed
April 1996HailDe Soto-no account filed
March 1996HailDe Soto-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Jefferson 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
Briarwood Estates1.9 miles20
Victoria3.1 miles20
Summer Set3.4 miles21
Vineland4.3 miles21
Olympian Village5.2 miles17
Hematite5.8 miles17
Oakvale6.0 miles17
Knorpp6.0 miles17

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 De SotoAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q952961The 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 716761. 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.