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Fordland, Missouri

14 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1939 and the latest in 1983. It stands in Fordland Township. It lies in ZIP code area 65652. The Survey maps it on the Fordland quadrangle. 778 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,604 feet above sea level.

Fordland within Webster County

Population over time

2 figures

Fordland fell from 800 to 778 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
2010800
2020778-22 (-3%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

7 surveys from 14 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

51 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 51 fires within 5 miles of Fordland between 1992 and 2016, burning about 505 acres in total. None started naturally. 7 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 burning36
Missing data/not specified/undetermined7
Arson/incendiarism7
Equipment and vehicle use1

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
5 September 1999Debris and open burning2.0 acresMissouri Department of Conservationnot named
4 September 2016Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMissouri Department of Conservation140097-11207-09042016-1319
24 September 1999Debris and open burning170 acresMissouri Department of Conservationnot named
31 August 1999Debris and open burning1.0 acresMissouri Department of Conservationnot named
25 August 1999Debris and open burning1.0 acresMissouri Department of Conservationnot named
23 August 1995Debris and open burning2.0 acresMissouri Department of Conservationnot named
8 July 1997Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresMissouri Department of Conservationnot named
11 July 2003Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMissouri State Fire Marshal's Officenot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Webster County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 10 workings within 5 miles of Fordland: 10 past producers. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Lead, Zinc, Lead, Iron, Stone, Crushed/Broken. 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 - LsStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
White BankIronPast Producer
Jackson MineLeadPast Producer
Unknown - LeadLeadPast Producer
Unknown - LeadLeadPast Producer
Gates MineLead, ZincPast Producer
Harper MinesLead, ZincPast Producer
Unknown - Lead & ZincLead, ZincPast Producer
Unknown - Lead & ZincLead, ZincPast Producer
Unknown - Lead & ZincLead, ZincPast Producer

Every working recorded in Webster County

Storms near this place

52 since 1995

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Fordland in 52 storm reports between 1995 and 2025: 16 thunderstorm wind, 15 flash flood, 13 hail, 3 flood. The reports record 1 death and 13 injuries. 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 1995Thunderstorm WindFordland1 killed, $100,000Mobile homes in Rogersville, Fordland, and Seymour were destroyed by macrobursts. One macroburst to the northwest of Fordland produced an estimated 90 mph wind that destroyed a tied down mobile home and killed a 45 year old man. In Rogersville, 50 structures were heavily damaged. (M45M)
March 2006Tornado (F2)Fordland13 hurt, $700,000no account filed
April 2017Flash FloodFordland$1,000,000Numerous homes and business sustained flood damage across Webster County. Numerous roads and bridges were severely damaged or washed away across the county. This report will contain the total dollar estimate for flood damage to infrastructure, businesses, and homes across Webster County.
May 2009Tornado (EF1)Fordland$50,000A National Weather Service storm survey revealed that an EF-1 tornado touched down near Highway 60 approximately one mile east of Fordland, and tracked northeast to near Diggins Road. The tornado damaged a delivery truck, a roof off the Memory Lane Dairy Farm, several trees, and an outbuilding on Diggins Road.
April 1999Thunderstorm WindFordland$5,000no account filed
April 1996HailFordland$5,000no account filed
August 2025Thunderstorm WindFordland$1,500A car port was rolled and damaged, and large limbs up to 8 inches in diameter were reported down.
May 2025Flash FloodFordland-Route PP at the Dry Fork Rover was closed due to flooding.
June 2024Flash FloodFordland-Panther Creek Bridge was closed as water from Panther Creek was flowing over the bridge.
March 2023Flash FloodFordland-Route FF was closed at a low water crossing due to flooding.
April 2023HailFordland-Nickle to quarter sized hail was reported.
August 2022Thunderstorm WindFordland-A large tree was reported down across the road.
March 2020Flash FloodFordland-State Highway FF was closed due to flooding at Panther Creek.
May 2020Flash FloodFordland-Highway FF was closed due to flooding at the Panther Creek low water crossing.
February 2018FloodFordland-Highway FF was flooded and impassable.
April 2017Flash FloodFordland-Flood water up to 3 feet deep flowed over Highway FF near Panther Creek.
May 2015Flash FloodFordland-Highway PP was closed at Panther Creek just west of Fordland because of flooding.
June 2015Heavy RainFordland-In western Webster County near Highway 125 and Highway AD, 8.25 inches of rainfall was reported in the last 48 hours.
June 2015Flash FloodFordland-Route FF was flooded and closed north of Highway 60.
July 2015Heavy RainFordland-There was a report of 4.19 inches of rainfall measured in several hours.
July 2015Flash FloodFordland-Two feet of water was over the road at Panther Creek and Highway FF north of Fordland.
May 2015Flash FloodFordland-County Road FF had about a foot of water over the road near Panther Creek.
June 2015Flash FloodFordland-Route V along the James River was flooded and closed.
June 2013FloodFordland-Highway FF was flooded along Panther Creek.
August 2013Heavy RainFordland-Over a six and a half hour span 5.50 inches of rainfall was reported.
July 2012Thunderstorm WindFordland-Several trees were blown down.
February 2012Thunderstorm WindFordland-An amateur radio operator estimated wind gusts up to 75 mph.
March 2008FloodFordland-A section of Highway Z southeast of Fordland was flooded and impassable to motorists for several hours.
July 2008Thunderstorm WindFordland-Several large trees were snapped or uprooted by severe thunderstorm wind gusts.
August 2007Thunderstorm WindFordland-Severe thunderstorm wind gusts downed several trees along Highway FF.
June 2007Flash FloodFordland-A cluster of heavy rain fell over southwest sections of Webster County. Panther Creek, James River, and Finley River all experienced flash flooding due to this excessive rainfall.
March 2004Thunderstorm WindFordland-A large tree was downed and blocking a road from severe thunderstorm wind gusts.
May 2004Flash FloodFordland-Highway Z near Fordland was inundated with flash flooding.
March 1998Thunderstorm WindFordland-Nickel hail was also reported.
May 2018HailFordland-no account filed
April 2011Thunderstorm WindFordland-no account filed
April 2011HailFordland-no account filed
November 2010HailFordland-no account filed
May 2008Thunderstorm WindFordland-no account filed
April 2007HailFordland-no account filed
April 2006HailFordland-no account filed
April 2003HailFordland-no account filed
June 2003Thunderstorm WindFordland-no account filed
June 2003Thunderstorm WindFordland-no account filed
May 2003HailFordland-no account filed
August 2002Thunderstorm WindFordland-no account filed
August 2002HailFordland-no account filed
July 2001Thunderstorm WindFordland-no account filed
May 1998HailFordland-no account filed
May 1997Flash FloodFordland-no account filed
June 1996HailFordland-no account filed
June 1996HailFordland-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Webster 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
Zenar4.6 miles14
Panther Valley4.6 miles21
Diggins4.7 miles14
Olga5.1 miles14
All5.3 miles21
Finley Falls5.5 miles14
Henderson6.4 miles21
Sarvis Point6.5 miles14

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 FordlandAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q958350The 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 718069. 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.