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Washburn, North Dakota

9 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1949 and the latest in 1961. It stands in Washburn City. It lies in ZIP code area 58577. The Survey maps it on the Washburn quadrangle. 1,300 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,755 feet above sea level.

Washburn within McLean County

On record in Washburn

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 3 records

Population over time

3 figures

Washburn grew from 657 to 1,300 between 1910 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
1910657
20101,246
20201,300+54 (+4%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

4 surveys from 9 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

4 since 2017

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 4 fires within 5 miles of Washburn between 2017 and 2020, burning about 5 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
Equipment and vehicle use3
Fireworks1

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
4 July 2017Fireworks1.0 acresNorth Dakota State Forest ServiceWASHBURN RR FIRE
11 July 2019Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreNorth Dakota State Forest ServiceWINN FIRE
24 June 2020Equipment and vehicle use3.0 acresNorth Dakota State Forest ServiceHENSLER HAY FIRE
12 April 2017Equipment and vehicle use1.0 acresNorth Dakota State Forest ServiceHWY 83 MM 123

Every fire recorded in McLean 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 Washburn: 1 past producer, 1 unknown. 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 SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Fisher Sand & Gravel WasSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown
Van Oosting Pit and PlantSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

Every working recorded in McLean County

Storms near this place

47 since 1998

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Washburn in 47 storm reports between 1998 and 2025: 24 hail, 17 thunderstorm wind, 3 tornado, 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
August 2006Thunderstorm WindWashburn$675,000Significant damage to a grain elevator, one home, and a few vehicles in Falkirk, ND.
July 2020Thunderstorm WindWashburn$150,000Many trees were blown down in the park along the river in Washburn, at the 4-H camp, and throughout the city. The concession stand and outhouses were blown over at the baseball park. Some buildings were damaged.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindWashburn$50,000Multiple trees and power lines were down.
August 2008Thunderstorm WindWashburn$6,000Severe thunderstorm winds blew down three large cotton wood trees at Fort Mandan.
August 2010LightningWashburn$4,000Electrical appliances in a home were damaged due to a lightning strike on a tree near the home. Also damaged was a vehicle which had its side window blown out.
June 2025Tornado (EFU)Washburn-The tornado touched down in an open field east-southeast of Washburn and impacted no structures. There was no damage to evaluate. By National Weather Service policy the tornado is rated EF-U (Unknown).
August 2023Thunderstorm WindWashburn-Multiple sunflower fields between Washburn and Wilton were damaged by the strong winds.
September 2023Thunderstorm WindWashburn-Thunderstorm wind gusts were estimated by a trained spotter.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindWashburn-Law Enforcement estimated thunderstorm wind gusts of 60 mph.
July 2017Thunderstorm WindWashburn-A trained spotter estimated thunderstorm wind gusts of 65 mph.
July 2016Thunderstorm WindWashburn-The public estimated thunderstorm wind gusts of 60 mph.
August 2013Thunderstorm WindWashburn-Heavy rain and small hail accompanied the strong winds.
June 2008HailWashburn-Penny to quarter size hail fell for several minutes in Washburn.
August 2006HailWashburn-Report from McLean County Sheriff dispatch.
July 2003Thunderstorm WindWashburn-A few trees down.
July 2001Thunderstorm WindWashburn-Reports of large branches down and storage tank rolled.
June 2000Tornado (F0)Washburn-Tornado originated in Oliver county. Tornado stayed in open fields.
August 2000Thunderstorm WindWashburn-Semi-tractor rig blown off highway 83 and flipped over.
November 2000Tornado (F0)Washburn-Tornado originated in Burleigh county before moving into southeast McLean county. The tornado skipped across the country side damaging several power poles.
June 1998Funnel CloudWashburn-County 911 lines were jammed after the warning sirens in Washburn were turned on.
July 2024HailWashburn-no account filed
June 2023HailWashburn-no account filed
August 2023HailWashburn-no account filed
August 2023HailWashburn-no account filed
September 2023HailWashburn-no account filed
June 2018Thunderstorm WindWashburn-no account filed
June 2017Thunderstorm WindWashburn-no account filed
July 2017HailWashburn-no account filed
April 2016Thunderstorm WindWashburn-no account filed
July 2016HailWashburn-no account filed
July 2016HailWashburn-no account filed
July 2015HailWashburn-no account filed
August 2012HailWashburn-no account filed
July 2011HailWashburn-no account filed
July 2008HailWashburn-no account filed
June 2008HailWashburn-no account filed
May 2007HailWashburn-no account filed
May 2006HailWashburn-no account filed
August 2006Thunderstorm WindWashburn-no account filed
June 2005HailWashburn-no account filed
May 2005Flash FloodWashburn-no account filed
July 2005HailWashburn-no account filed
June 2004HailWashburn-no account filed
June 2004HailWashburn-no account filed
August 2002HailWashburn-no account filed
June 2001HailWashburn-no account filed
June 2000HailWashburn-no account filed

Every storm recorded in McLean 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
Falkirk6.1 miles9
Merida6.2 miles8
Underwood12.9 miles8
Wilton15.8 miles8
Riverdale Junction16.4 miles8
Turtle Lake17.5 miles8
Coleharbor20.4 miles9
Mercer21.8 miles6

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 WashburnAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q2018717The 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 1032690. 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.