Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.
“The Watts Free Library is a historic library located on Third Street in Leonard, North Dakota. It was built in 1911 and dedicated in 1913 with funding from Edgerton Watts.”
Wikipedia article Watts Free Library, CC BY-SA 4.0.
One of 38 National Register listings published here for Cass County · listed in 1990 · category: Building.
Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 2 fires within 5 miles of Watts Free Library between 2012 and 2017, burning about 11 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/undetermined | 2 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 September 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | North Dakota State Forest Service | RAILROAD AVE SOUTH |
| 13 May 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 10 acres | North Dakota State Forest Service | WOODS FIRE |
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Leonard, the town this property stands in, in 32 storm reports between 1997 and 2025: 14 hail, 12 thunderstorm wind, 4 tornado, 1 flash flood. 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 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leonard | $20,000 | The wind knocked down several five to seven inch diameter tree branches in the shelter belts. |
| July 1999 | Flash Flood | Leonard | $10,000 | Fields were flooded north of Leonard. |
| June 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leonard | $1,000 | A tree fell on a power line at a farmstead southeast of Leonard. |
| July 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leonard | $1,000 | Trees were blown down. |
| June 2025 | Hail | Leonard | - | Report relayed from mping. |
| June 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leonard | - | Storm chaser reported 90 mph winds, possibly associated with a nearby tornado. |
| July 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leonard | - | Large Tree branches down, estimated gust of 60 mph. |
| July 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leonard | - | A one to 1.5 mile swath of corn was shredded by wind driven hail. Several large branches were also blown down. |
| June 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leonard | - | The winds gusted up to 60 mph. |
| August 2017 | Hail | Leonard | - | A few quarter sized hail fell near the intersection of highway 46 and county road 18. A shelf cloud was also observed, but the wind did not get very strong. |
| September 2014 | Tornado (EF1) | Leonard | - | A tornado wrapped in downburst winds and heavy rain tracked intermittently for about eleven miles. Brick facing and roofing material were torn off a building in Leonard. Numerous large two foot diameter cottonwood and oak trees were blown over or snapped at farmsteads and shelterbelts along and north of highway 46. Peak winds were estimated at 100 mph. |
| July 2011 | Hail | Leonard | - | Dime to quarter sized hail was reported along with brief heavy rain. |
| July 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leonard | - | Trees were blown down in Leonard. |
| July 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leonard | - | Peak gust measured at the NDAWN winds sensor near ND Highway 46. Numerous large tree limbs were blown down in shelter belts along Highway 46 and in farmsteads and communities near the highway. |
| July 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leonard | - | Several large 4 to 6 inch diameter tree branches were blown down in a shelterbelt. |
| June 2007 | Tornado (EF0) | Leonard | - | A weak tornado touched down about one mile northwest of Enderlin (in Cass County) and tracked east-southeast into Ransom County. In Ransom County, the tornado continued to track for another mile, across the north edge of the city airport and the north side of Enderlin. The total track length was about 2 miles. No damage was reported in Cass County, but some roof and tree damage occurred in Ransom County. |
| June 2006 | Tornado (F0) | Leonard | - | A deputy reported a tornado along the Cass and Ransom county line. |
| August 2006 | Tornado (F1) | Leonard | - | This weak tornado tracked southeast for about a half mile and then crossed into Richland County, where it continued for another 2.5 miles. The tornado knocked down or uprooted several trees in shelterbelts along the track. Peak winds were estimated at 90 mph. |
| September 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leonard | - | Large branches were blown down. |
| July 2020 | Hail | Leonard | - | no account filed |
| July 2018 | Hail | Leonard | - | no account filed |
| June 2014 | Hail | Leonard | - | no account filed |
| September 2007 | Hail | Leonard | - | no account filed |
| July 2007 | Funnel Cloud | Leonard | - | no account filed |
| August 2006 | Hail | Leonard | - | no account filed |
| July 2002 | Hail | Leonard | - | no account filed |
| July 2001 | Hail | Leonard | - | no account filed |
| July 2000 | Hail | Leonard | - | no account filed |
| July 1999 | Hail | Leonard | - | no account filed |
| July 1999 | Hail | Leonard | - | no account filed |
| September 1998 | Hail | Leonard | - | no account filed |
| August 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Leonard | - | no account filed |
No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.
| National Archives record | The nomination case file for reference 89002304 in Record Group 79. |
| Wikipedia article | Community-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA. |
| Cass County | All 38 listed properties in this county. |
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