Otter, Montana
8 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1954 and the latest in 1995. It stands in the Otter census division. It lies in ZIP code area 59003. It stands on Tooley Creek. The Survey maps it on the Otter quadrangle. It stands 3,484 feet above sea level.
Topographic sheets covering this place
6 surveys from 8 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 Hardin quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1957 USGS Hardin quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS Hardin quadrangle1:250000
- 1972 USGS Otter quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1980 USGS Birney quadrangle1:100000
- 1995 USGS Otter quadrangle1:24000
Fires near this place
77 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 77 fires within 5 miles of Otter between 1992 and 2019, burning about 46,154 acres in total. 73 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 |
|---|---|
| Natural | 73 |
| Debris and open burning | 2 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 1 |
| 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 September 2009 | Natural | under an acre | Miles City Field Office | BEAR CREEK |
| 8 September 2009 | Natural | under an acre | Custer Gallatin National Forest | OTTER |
| 6 September 2009 | Natural | under an acre | Custer Gallatin National Forest | HORSE CREEK 1 |
| 3 September 2014 | Natural | 137 acres | Miles City Field Office | CREEK |
| 14 September 2010 | Natural | under an acre | Miles City Field Office | LITTLE BRADSHAW |
| 9 August 2016 | Natural | under an acre | Miles City Field Office | BEAR |
| 8 August 2007 | Natural | under an acre | Custer Gallatin National Forest | ROCKY DRAW |
| 5 August 1994 | Natural | 1.0 acres | Miles City Field Office | HARRY |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
8 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 8 workings within 5 miles of Otter: 8 past producers. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, 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 | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gravel Pit | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Scoria Pit | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer |
Storms near this place
43 since 1994Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Otter in 43 storm reports between 1994 and 2022: 22 hail, 16 thunderstorm wind, 2 flash flood, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 2010 | Tornado (EF1) | Otter | $107,000 | The Otter Tornado was on the ground for approximately one mile with a 200 yard wide path of damage. Numerous trees were snapped off and uprooted. The Otter Post Office and an adjacent home received partial roof damage. |
| July 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | A wind gust of 59 mph was recorded 7 miles northeast of Otter. |
| July 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | An outbuilding on Fletcher Ranch was destroyed. |
| June 2019 | Hail | Otter | - | Some windows on a home were broken. |
| June 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | Several large trees were blown down and part of a barn roof was blown off. |
| July 2019 | Flash Flood | Otter | - | Rainfall amounts around 3.30 occurred 5 miles north/northwest of Sayle. Lyon Creek and Gate Creek were reported out of their banks. In addition, some basements flooded around Fort Howes. |
| March 2014 | Flood | Otter | - | County officials and the Montana Department of Transportation reported small stream and low land flooding. Numerous roads and some highways were reported to have water flowing across them. |
| June 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | A wind gust of 60 mph was estimated just southwest of Otter. |
| June 2010 | Funnel Cloud | Otter | - | A funnel cloud was visible just to the south. |
| June 2010 | Hail | Otter | - | A funnel cloud was visible just to the south. |
| August 2009 | Hail | Otter | - | Firefighters reported golfball size hail that broke windows on several vehicles. |
| July 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | A wind gust of 74 mph was recorded 7 miles north/northeast of Otter. |
| July 2008 | Hail | Otter | - | Heavy rain occurred with 1.4 inches in forty minutes resulting in localized flooding. A telephone pole was blown down. |
| July 2008 | Hail | Otter | - | Very heavy rain and nickel size hail was reported 2 miles south of Otter. |
| June 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | 8 to 10 inch diameter tree limbs blown down |
| July 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | Fort Howes RAWS |
| August 2002 | Flash Flood | Otter | - | Spotters reported flooding of small creeks. |
| June 1999 | Hail | Otter | - | Spotter report of nickel size hail. |
| July 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | no account filed |
| July 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | no account filed |
| July 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | no account filed |
| June 2019 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| August 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | no account filed |
| June 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | no account filed |
| June 2018 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| July 2016 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| July 2016 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| June 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | no account filed |
| June 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | no account filed |
| September 2015 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | no account filed |
| June 2010 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| June 2006 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| June 2006 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| June 2006 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| June 2006 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| June 2002 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| July 2001 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| July 2001 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| July 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Otter | - | no account filed |
| June 1996 | Hail | Otter | - | no account filed |
| May 1994 | Hail | Otter | - | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sayle | 11.0 miles | 10 | |
| Moorhead | 20.1 miles | 8 | |
| Willow Crossing | 22.1 miles | 9 | |
| Sonnette | 24.2 miles | 10 | |
| Moores (historical) | 32.3 miles | 8 | |
| Epsie | 35.1 miles | 8 | |
| Bay Horse | 35.5 miles | 8 | |
| Stacey | 39.0 miles | 9 |
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 Otter | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q7109344 | 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 788508. 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.





