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Towner County, North Dakota

19 topographic sheets cover 12 settlements here, and 2 properties are on the National Register of Historic Places.

Research this county

From the record

2 National Register listings published here.

Sources: the National Register database, National Park Service

North Dakota within the United States
Towner County within North Dakota

What the record shows

  • 84 topographic sheet readings cover the county's settlements.
  • 2 properties here are on the National Register of Historic Places: 2 buildings.
  • The Geographic Names Information System records 12 populated places in this county; 12 are covered by at least one topographic sheet.

Places on the National Register

2

Every property in this county listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with the year it was listed and the federal nomination document.

Photograph PropertyType ListedReference
Towner County Courthousebuilding198585002996
Towner County Fairgrounds Pavilionbuilding2024100010912

Wildfire, 1992 to 2020

63 fires

Every wildfire the federal occurrence database records inside this county: 63 of them, burning about 3,646 acres. 1 started naturally and 10 were recorded as arson. Each settlement page carries the fires within five miles of it.

Reported cause Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined24
Debris and open burning20
Arson/incendiarism10
Equipment and vehicle use4
Fireworks2
Natural1
Misuse of fire by a minor1
Other causes1

The five largest, by the area the report gives. One of them was set deliberately.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
5 May 2016Missing data/not specified/undetermined500 acresNorth Dakota State Forest ServiceGRASS FIRE
18 May 2016Debris and open burning400 acresNorth Dakota State Forest ServiceBROMBERG FIRE
24 October 2007Arson/incendiarism373 acresDevil's Lake Wetland Management DistrictNORTH ROCK LAKE
6 June 2002Missing data/not specified/undetermined350 acresTurtle Mountain AgencyJUMBO
22 October 2015Missing data/not specified/undetermined350 acresNorth Dakota State Forest ServiceWEST DARREL MANNING
24 May 2002Debris and open burning340 acresDevil's Lake Wetland Management DistrictKOCH
13 April 2016Debris and open burning227 acresDevil's Lake Wetland Management DistrictNIKOLIASON
16 April 2012Debris and open burning140 acresDevil's Lake Wetland Management DistrictAMBLE

Every settlement page carries the fires within five miles of it - see the settlement index below.

Storms, 1964 to 2025

60 of 281 shown

The NOAA Storm Events Database holds 281 reports for this county, causing no deaths, no injuries and about $1,043,700 in recorded property damage. Each settlement page carries the reports that name it.

Kind of event Reports
Hail154
Thunderstorm Wind68
Tornado32
Flood9
Flash Flood8
Funnel Cloud7
Heavy Rain3

The most serious of them, by death, then injury, then recorded damage. The accounts are quoted exactly as the forecast office filed them.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
June 1996Thunderstorm WindRock Lake$300,000no account filed
April 2006FloodCountywide$294,000Due to the quick snowmelt, water quickly drained into low areas, damaging around 40 roads and 40 bridges around the county. State Highway 66 had water over the road east of Egeland. Towner County received a Presidential Disaster Declaration for damages caused by spring flooding.
July 2008Tornado (EF1)Crocus$150,000This tornado produced an intermittent damage path of nearly 11 total miles, and ended about one mile north-northeast of Munich in Cavalier County by 428 pm CDT. The tornado only traveled about 5 miles due east in Towner County and mainly damaged crops and power lines. The tornado crossed into Cavalier County around 418 pm CDT at a point about 4 miles north and 6 miles east of Egeland. Peak wind speeds were estimated at 100 mph.
June 2008HailHansboro$50,000Hail fell for nearly five minutes near the Cavalier County line along with strong winds. Several sections of crop land recieved damage in Dash and Lansing Townships.
March 2017FloodHansboro$50,000no account filed
April 2017FloodHansboro$50,000no account filed
June 1994Thunderstorm WindMinot$50,000no account filed
August 2016Flash FloodBisbee Lyster Arpt$15,000Highway 66 was closed due to water flowing across the road. Fields and ditches were flooded across Grainfield, Sorenson, New City, and Gerrard townships.
July 2008HailBisbee Lyster Arpt$15,000Hard rain with hail and strong winds lasted for about ten minutes.
July 2008HailRocklake$10,000The large hail fell near the Cavalier County line.
June 1996HailCando$10,000no account filed
August 2010Flash FloodEgeland$5,000Street flooding was reported in Egeland.
July 2008Tornado (EF3)Armourdale$5,000This tornado originated in Rolette County, where it produced EF3 damage near Rolla. It continued into Towner County for about 3 more miles and lifted about 11 miles west-northwest of Rock Lake. It produced mainly EF1 damage to scattered trees and fields in Towner County. Peak winds in Towner County were estimated at 90 mph.
August 2008Thunderstorm WindBisbee$5,000Several large 5 to 7 inch diameter branches were blown down in a shelterbelt.
August 2002Thunderstorm WindCando$5,000A 140x18.5 foot wall on the city newspaper building was blown down.
May 2013FloodHansboro$5,000no account filed
April 2013FloodHansboro$5,000no account filed
March 2009FloodHansboro$5,000no account filed
April 2009FloodHansboro$5,000no account filed
July 1965Tornado (F0)not stated$2,500no account filed
June 1965Tornadonot stated$2,500no account filed
August 2021Tornado (EF1)Newville$2,000This tornado tracked from northeast Coolin Township into east-central Klingstrup Township. It snapped or uprooted several large cottonwood trees at farmsteads and shelterbelts along its path.
June 2000Thunderstorm WindCando$1,000Trees were blown down in Cando.
August 2000Thunderstorm WindHansboro$1,000The door on a pole barn was torn off by the strong wind.
June 2001Thunderstorm WindCando$500Large tree branches were blown down.
August 2002Thunderstorm WindHansboro$200Branches were blown down.
August 2025HailHansboro-Hail estimated in size. Significant crop damage occurred in near mature wheat and soybeans.
July 2025Tornado (EF0)Newville-A large dusty tornado was reported near Calio ND with no damage conveyed from any sources who witnessed it. This tornado started in Towner County and traveled 0.50 miles to the Cavalier county line, where it traveled an additional 1.04 miles. It is suspected that this was spawned out of land spout processes which likely contributed to its dusty tubelike appearance as seen on social media. UPDATE 7/22/25: Adjusted track based on Sentinel-2 satellite imagery.
September 2025HailBisbee-Estimated hail size with a few stones up to one inch in size.
June 2023HailCando-Public reports quarter sized hail mixed in with smaller stones in Cando. Brief duration.
June 2023Thunderstorm WindRocklake-NDAWN measurement from 6 south-southwest Rocklake.
August 2022Thunderstorm WindRocklake-Peak wind measured at an NDAWN station at 10 meters.
August 2022HailCrocus-Large hail and strong gusty winds impacted portions of teddy and twin hill townships from 115 through 135 am.
August 2022HailRocklake-Large hail and strong gusting winds impacted portions of lansing township through 105 am. Some hailstones may have been as big as golf balls.
July 2022Thunderstorm WindRocklake-Peak wind was measured at an NDAWN station at the 10 meter height.
July 2022Thunderstorm WindRocklake-NDAWN measured a 10 meter wind gust to 70 mph, with a 3 meter gust to 60 mph.
July 2022Thunderstorm WindCando Muni Arpt-Peak wind was measured at the AWOS located at the Cando Airport /K9D7/.
June 2021Thunderstorm WindCando Muni Arpt-The wind gust was measured at the AWOS station K9D7 Cando Airport.
June 2021Thunderstorm WindRocklake-This gust was reported by an NDAWN station.
July 2021Thunderstorm WindRocklake-Peak wind of 67 mph was measured at an NDAWN station at 10 meters.
August 2021HailZion-Dime to quarter-sized hail nearly covered the ground across southeastern Zion Township.
July 2020HailNewville-Dime to quarter sized hail covered the ground in southeast Victor Township.
July 2020HailNewville-Quarter to golf ball sized hail decimated sections of cropland in central and northeast Victor Township.
July 2019HailRocklake-Large hail and strong winds damaged crops in east central Lansing Township.
July 2019Tornado (EF0)Newville-This tornado tracked for less than a quarter mile. Peak winds were estimated at 70 mph.
September 2019Tornado (EF0)Bisbee-A brief touchdown was noted in an open field east of Bisbee.
July 2018HailRocklake-Quarter to half dollar sized hail fell along with gusty winds.
September 2018HailZion-Pea to quarter sized hail covered the ground.
June 2018HailBisbee Lyster Arpt-Quarter to half dollar sized hail fell.
June 2018HailBisbee Lyster Arpt-Quarter to half dollar sized hail fell.
June 2018HailCrocus-Pea to golf ball sized hail fell.
June 2018HailEgeland-Pea to marble sized hail fell for around 25 minutes prior to the golf ball sized hail.
June 2018Tornado (EF1)Armourdale-A partially rain wrapped tornado tracked intermittently for about three miles. At least one power pole was cracked and power lines were torn down in central Mountain View Township. Peak winds were estimated at 95 mph.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindPasha-Two hopper bottomed grain bins and a grain dryer were blown at a site just west of the lake. A 5000 bushel steel grain bin was also dented in near the roof line.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindRocklake-Trees were blown down around town. Some steel siding was torn off the sides of a grain cleaning facility.
June 2018Tornado (EF1)Rocklake-A partially rain wrapped tornado tracked eastward for about four miles across southern Virginia Township. The tornado picked up and tossed a hopper bottom grain bin about 40 yards to the southwest, blew down cattle fencing at a farmstead, and broke down numerous large tree branches along its path. Peak winds were estimated at 90 mph.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindArndt-A poplar tree was snapped in a shelterbelt.
June 2018HailConsidine-Very heavy rain accompanied the large hail.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindCando Muni Arpt-The wind gust was measured at the Cando airport.
June 2017HailBisbee Lyster Arpt-The hail was accompanied by very heavy rain.

Mines and quarries

1 recorded

The Survey's mineral resources record lists 1 working inside this county. It still produces. Each settlement page carries the workings within five miles of it.

Commodity Workings
Sand and Gravel, Construction1

The least common of them first, because a county's hundredth gravel pit says nothing its first ten did not.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Miller Gravel & Ready MixSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer

Every populated place in the county

12

Named settlements recorded in the Geographic Names Information System, each with the topographic sheets covering it. Villages, hamlets and abandoned places alike. Each is shown with the nearest named watercourse or landform and the survey quadrangle it falls on.

Provenance

  • Topographic sheets. USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection, county index, measured from the bulk metadata.
  • Fire insurance maps. Library of Congress Sanborn collection, faceted to this county.
  • Photographs. Each place queried individually against the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs search.
  • 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.