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Rugby, North Dakota

7 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1953 and the latest in 1985. It stands in Rugby City. It lies in ZIP code area 58368. The Survey maps it on the Rugby quadrangle. 2,509 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,549 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Rugby within Pierce County

On record in Rugby

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 4 records

Population over time

2 figures

Rugby fell from 2,876 to 2,509 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
20102,876
20202,509-367 (-13%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

4 surveys from 7 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

26 since 2005

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 26 fires within 5 miles of Rugby between 2005 and 2019, burning about 628 acres in total. None 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
Missing data/not specified/undetermined15
Debris and open burning8
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
5 September 2019Debris and open burning1.0 acresNorth Dakota State Forest ServiceHIGHWAY 3 MM217
26 September 2005Missing data/not specified/undetermined2.0 acresNorth Dakota State Forest Servicenot named
20 September 2019Missing data/not specified/undetermined5.0 acresNorth Dakota State Forest ServiceMM207 HIGHWAY 2
8 August 2018Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresNorth Dakota State Forest Service2018-31
14 August 2018Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresNorth Dakota State Forest Service2018-32
4 July 2019Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresNorth Dakota State Forest Service7/4/2019
9 June 2017Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresNorth Dakota State Forest Service201-24
7 June 2019Railroad operations and maintenance1.0 acresNorth Dakota State Forest ServiceALONG TRACKS AT PLEASANT LAKE

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Pierce County

Mines and quarries near this place

2 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 2 workings within 5 miles of Rugby: 2 producers. All of them still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction. 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
Orville Miller PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Pierce County PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer

Every working recorded in Pierce County

Storms near this place

60 of 64 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Rugby in 64 storm reports between 1994 and 2025: 29 hail, 27 thunderstorm wind, 3 tornado, 3 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
August 2016HailRugby$450,000Large hail occurred in the city of Rugby, with the largest hail falling near the intersection of US Highway 2 and ND Highway 3 on the south end of town. Damage occurred to structures and automobiles, and south of town to crops.
July 2011Tornado (EF1)Rugby$325,000A brief tornado touched down five miles south of Rugby on the leading edge of a linear severe thunderstorm. This tornado was within a larger area of straight line thunderstorm winds which also caused damage. Several buildings sustained damage or were destroyed by this tornado, along with trees, and three power poles were snapped along North Dakota Highway 3 where the tornado crossed. A semi truck was picked up along Highway 3 and thrown into the ditch. There were no injuries or deaths reported with this tornado. The tornado damage corresponded to EF1 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. From that it was determined that wind speeds with this tornado were on the order of 100 miles per hour.
June 2017Thunderstorm WindRugby$75,000Very strong straight line winds occurred with a thunderstorm that moved from west of Rugby into Rugby. The strongest wind gust reported was an instantaneous, non-averaged measurement of 104 mph taken three miles west of Rugby by a research team from the National Severe Storms Laboratory, which would correlate to an estimated 87 mph 5-second average gust based upon past published research. Four miles west-northwest of Rugby a large, older barn collapsed. In Rugby, large evergreen trees were uprooted at the cemetery at the northwest end of town.
July 2011Thunderstorm WindRugby$75,000Several reports of high wind and damage were received from the Rugby area. Trees were uprooted, including a 60 foot tall spruce, numerous branches were broken, and a large shop was damaged around five miles south of Rugby. There was a tornado within the high wind area. See the tornado entry for Pierce County.
July 2011Thunderstorm WindRugby$35,000Tree branches were blown down throughout the city of Rugby.
July 2020Thunderstorm WindRugby$25,000Multiple power poles were snapped.
June 2023Thunderstorm WindRugby$15,000Multiple large tree branches were broken off, with a few broken trees.
August 2005Thunderstorm WindRugby$15,00060 mph wind at 735 PM CDT increased to 71 mph at 739 PM CDT and maxed out at 95 mph at 742 PM CDT. Rugby also had one inch of rain from the storm and pea sized hail that covered the ground. Numerous tree branches down in the city.
July 1997LightningRugby$12,000lightning struck 5 N of Rugby. 19 head of cattle took shelter from the storm under a tree. The tree got struck by lightning, killing all cattle huddled under the tree
August 1994HailRugby$5,000no account filed
May 1998HailRugby$4,000Damage to car windows and house siding.
May 1998HailRugby$1,000no account filed
July 2017Funnel CloudRugby-A brief funnel cloud was reported.
June 2008Thunderstorm WindRugby-Strong thunderstorm winds were reported from KZZJ radio in Rugby.
June 2008HailRugby-Trained spotters reported 20 minutes of quarter size hail from ten miles northwest to seven miles northwest of Rugby.
June 2008HailRugby-Nickel to ping pong ball size hail was reported in the city of Rugby, and lasted for around 20 minutes. No report of damage was received from this event.
May 2007Thunderstorm WindRugby-Storm total rain was 1.57 inches.
August 2007HailRugby-Hail up to nickel size lasted 20 minutes.
July 2007Thunderstorm WindRugby-A report from the public in Rugby also included peak winds of around 70 mph during this time.
July 2006Thunderstorm WindRugby-Trees up to 3 feet in diameter snapped in half.
July 2005Thunderstorm WindRugby-Street signs and trees knocked over in Rugby. Roofs were damaged and some torn from buildings. Also had 1.75 inches of rain from the storm.
August 2004Thunderstorm WindRugby-A few trees blown down from the strong winds.
June 2001Thunderstorm WindRugby-Numerous small tree's reported down and fence knocked over at a golf course.
July 2000Tornado (F1)Rugby-Barns and half of the farm house destroyed. Uprooted trees and up to 20 hay bales moved a half mile away.
July 1999Thunderstorm WindRugby-Minor damage to buildings in the city of Rugby. Damage to shelter belts of 40K. 5 percent yield loss.
May 1998Tornado (F0)Rugby-Reported by North Dakota Highway Patrol.
May 1998HailRugby-Reported by law enforcement at Red Lake.
July 1997HailRugby-hail fell 5 W Rugby
July 1997HailRugby-hail fell 3 W of Rugby
July 1997HailRugby-hail fell 7 NW Rugby
July 2025Thunderstorm WindRugby-no account filed
July 2024Thunderstorm WindRugby-no account filed
July 2024HailRugby-no account filed
June 2023Thunderstorm WindRugby-no account filed
July 2022Thunderstorm WindRugby-no account filed
July 2022Thunderstorm WindRugby-no account filed
June 2021Thunderstorm WindRugby-no account filed
July 2020HailRugby-no account filed
July 2020HailRugby-no account filed
July 2020Thunderstorm WindRugby-no account filed
July 2018HailRugby-no account filed
July 2017HailRugby-no account filed
June 2016Thunderstorm WindRugby-no account filed
July 2016HailRugby-no account filed
June 2013HailRugby-no account filed
June 2012HailRugby-no account filed
May 2007HailRugby-no account filed
August 2007HailRugby-no account filed
May 2006HailRugby-no account filed
July 2006Thunderstorm WindRugby-no account filed
June 2003HailRugby-no account filed
June 2003HailRugby-no account filed
July 2003Thunderstorm WindRugby-no account filed
July 2002HailRugby-no account filed
July 2002HailRugby-no account filed
July 2002HailRugby-no account filed
June 2001Funnel CloudRugby-no account filed
July 2001Funnel CloudRugby-no account filed
August 1999FloodRugby-no account filed
July 1999Thunderstorm WindRugby-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Pierce 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
Tunbridge5.8 miles7
Leverich6.7 miles6
Barton13.5 miles7
Balta14.1 miles7
Silva14.4 miles6
Wolford17.9 miles6
Orrin21.1 miles6
Aylmer31.8 miles9

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 RugbyAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q168420The 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 1031031. 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.