Valley City, North Dakota

11 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1897 and the latest in 1986. It stands in Valley City City. It lies in ZIP code area 58072. The Survey maps it on the Valley City West quadrangle. 6,575 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,217 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Valley City within Barnes County

On record in Valley City

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 11 records

All Saints' Episcopal Churchlisted 1992
Amphitheater and Fieldstone WPA Features at Valley City Pioneer Parklisted 2011
Barnes County Courthouselisted 1985
Green Consolidated Schoollisted 2011
Rudolf Hotellisted 1983
State Normal School at Valley City Historic Districtlisted 1995
US Post Office-Valley Citylisted 1989
Valley City Carnegie Librarylisted 1979
Valley City Municipal Auditoriumlisted 2008
West Park Bridgelisted 1997
Alderman School District No. 78listed 2013

Population over time

2 figures

Valley City fell from 6,585 to 6,575 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.

Year	People	Change
2010	6,585
2020	6,575	-10 (-0%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

5 surveys from 11 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.

1897 USGS Eckelson quadrangle1:125000, 3 printings
1953 USGS Jamestown quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
1956 USGS Jamestown quadrangle1:250000
1961 USGS Valley City West quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
1986 USGS Jamestown quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings

Fires near this place

30 since 2005

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 30 fires within 5 miles of Valley City between 2005 and 2020, burning about 336 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
Debris and open burning	14
Equipment and vehicle use	8
Smoking	4
Railroad operations and maintenance	3
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
30 September 2006	Debris and open burning	40 acres	Valley City Wetland Management District	GETCHELL
3 September 2016	Equipment and vehicle use	4.0 acres	North Dakota State Forest Service	DWIGHT KIEFERT
8 August 2005	Equipment and vehicle use	1.0 acres	North Dakota State Forest Service	not named
4 August 2020	Smoking	under an acre	North Dakota State Forest Service	DITCH FIRE
15 August 2015	Equipment and vehicle use	100 acres	North Dakota State Forest Service	GAME & FISH
11 August 2015	Debris and open burning	1.0 acres	North Dakota State Forest Service	DANA DIDIER
31 July 2015	Equipment and vehicle use	3.0 acres	North Dakota State Forest Service	MAJERUS
3 July 2020	Smoking	under an acre	North Dakota State Forest Service	GRASS FIRE

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Barnes County

Mines and quarries near this place

1 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 1 working within 5 miles of Valley City: 1 past producer. None of them still produces. 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	Site	Commodity	Status	Recorded
	Valley City State Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer

Every working recorded in Barnes County

Storms near this place

60 of 81 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Valley City in 81 storm reports between 1996 and 2025: 41 hail, 28 thunderstorm wind, 7 flash flood, 2 lightning. 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 2003	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	$1,400,000	Eighteen 80 foot tall 345 kV high voltage power transmission towers were blown down in several sections to the Cass county line. A section of Highway 32 north of Oriska was briefly closed where the wires fell on the road.
June 2007	Flood	Valley City	$500,000	Several rural roads were closed due to high water levels. There were 38 of 42 townships which reported damage to culverts, roadbeds, and driveways. Standing or flowing water through fields led to extreme crop stress and direct crop loss on about 5000 acres.
June 1998	Flash Flood	Valley City	$250,000	no account filed
June 2013	Flash Flood	Valley City	$200,000	Very heavy rains produced widespread street flooding around Valley City. Power outages and rapid runoff also combined to produce flooding of storm drains and sewer backup issues. At least four homes had partially collapsed basement walls. About 6.30 inches of rain fell over a two to three hour period.
July 2001	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	$150,000	Large trees were uprooted around Lake Ashtabula, falling on cars, decks, and houses. Boats, pontoons, jet skis, and boat lifts were also damaged.
August 2001	Lightning	Valley City	$75,000	A lightning strike caused a fire which destroyed a home.
July 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	$50,000	A camper and several tents were overturned at Bald Hill Dam Campground. One tent, with the 2 occupants inside, was picked up by the wind and carried a short distance away. Several docks were destroyed and several boats were pushed on shore.
August 2001	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	$15,000	The strong wind blew trees and powerlines down, knocking out power to 25 percent of the city. The most wind damage was near Valley City State University.
September 2008	Lightning	Valley City	$10,000	Lightning struck an office building and started a fire in the attic.
July 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	$10,000	A mobile home was overturned at Martin's Landing.
May 1996	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	$10,000	no account filed
September 1997	Flash Flood	Valley City	$3,000	Heavy rain fell west of Valley City, closing the westbound lane of Interstate 94 at Hobart Lake. Prior to the closure, several cars stalled in the water.
July 2001	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	$2,000	Trees were blown down.
June 2002	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	$1,000	Trees were blown down north of Valley City.
July 2001	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	$500	Large branches were blown down.
June 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	$500	Several trees were blown down.
July 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	$500	Trees were blown down.
August 2025	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	Measured on Valley City airport AWOS.
June 2025	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	Tree branches 6 inches to 10 inches in diameter were reported down in Valley City. Wind gusts estimated at 80 mph.
July 2025	Hail	Valley City	-	Spotter report of quarter size hail. Time estimated by radar.
July 2024	Hail	Valley City	-	Public reports one inch hail in Valley City.
June 2018	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	Tree limbs and several power poles were broken.
August 2016	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	The wind gust was measured at the Valley City airport.
August 2015	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	The wind gust was measured at the Valley City airport.
June 2013	Hail	Valley City	-	The hail fell at Valley City State University.
June 2013	Hail	Valley City	-	The hail fell with winds of 50 to 60 mph.
July 2011	Heavy Rain	Valley City	-	Some minor street flooding occurred in Valley City.
July 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	Many tree branches and power lines were blown down.
May 2010	Tornado (EF0)	Valley City	-	A persistent funnel tracked just to the east of Valley City. A brief touchdown and debris cloud were viewed by employees at a city business while the funnel was still south of Interstate 94. No damage was reported as the touchdown occurred over an open field. Peak winds were estimated at 75 mph.
June 2010	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	Large tree limbs were blown down in the northern part of town.
June 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	The winds were estimated to gust from sixty to seventy miles per hour.
June 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	Large trees and branches were blown down. Some of the trees fell on powerlines, causing power outages.
June 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	Big trees were torn up and many shingles were ripped off a roof.
June 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	Large branches were blown down.
June 2005	Flash Flood	Valley City	-	4 to 7 inches of rain fell in a four hour period. Water flowed across two county roads and cut them down to the culverts.
July 2004	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	Several large tree limbs were blown down in Valley City.
July 2004	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	Several large tree limbs were blown down in Valley City.
June 2003	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	Trees and large tree limbs were blown down causing some power outages.
June 2003	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	A 112 mph wind gust was measured at a Minnkota Power Company wind turbine site.
June 2003	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	Numerous large branches and trees were blown down. Many power lines were also blown down with scattered power outages.
August 2002	Hail	Valley City	-	The hail fell at Hobart Lake.
June 2001	Hail	Valley City	-	Hail was reported to be 2 to 3 inches deep.
August 2001	Flash Flood	Valley City	-	Street flooding was reported and several cars stalled in the high water.
July 2000	Flash Flood	Valley City	-	Crops were flattened by the heavy rain and several roads were under water. Two and a half inches of rain fell in a short period of time.
June 1997	Flash Flood	Valley City	-	Over 3 inches of rain fell in Barnes county, causing some basements to fill with 4 feet of water. The westbound lane of Interstate 94 was closed west of Valley City due to water across the roadway.
August 2020	Hail	Valley City	-	no account filed
May 2019	Hail	Valley City	-	no account filed
August 2018	Hail	Valley City	-	no account filed
July 2016	Hail	Valley City	-	no account filed
July 2012	Hail	Valley City	-	no account filed
June 2010	Thunderstorm Wind	Valley City	-	no account filed
June 2008	Hail	Valley City	-	no account filed
August 2007	Hail	Valley City	-	no account filed
September 2007	Hail	Valley City	-	no account filed
May 2005	Hail	Valley City	-	no account filed
May 2005	Hail	Valley City	-	no account filed
September 2005	Hail	Valley City	-	no account filed
August 2004	Hail	Valley City	-	no account filed
September 2003	Hail	Valley City	-	no account filed
August 2002	Hail	Valley City	-	no account filed

Every storm recorded in Barnes 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.

Place	Distance	Sheets
North Valley City	1.6 miles	10
Peak	4.8 miles	10
Berea	4.9 miles	11
Nobart (historical)	7.7 miles	10
Cuba	10.2 miles	10
Oriska	11.4 miles	11
Sanborn	11.8 miles	10
Odell (historical)	14.2 miles	8

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 Valley City	An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q1407484	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 1032618. 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.