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Waverly, Nebraska

15 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1897 and the latest in 1986. It stands in Waverly precinct. It lies in ZIP code area 68462. The Survey maps it on the Waverly quadrangle. 4,279 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,122 feet above sea level.

Waverly within Lancaster County

Population over time

2 figures

Waverly grew from 3,277 to 4,279 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
20103,277
20204,279+1,002 (+31%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

6 surveys from 15 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

3 since 2007

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 3 fires within 5 miles of Waverly between 2007 and 2018, burning about 8 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/undetermined2
Recreation and ceremony1

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
3 July 2015Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresNebraska Forest Servicenot named
13 May 2018Recreation and ceremony6.0 acresNebraska Forest Servicenot named
8 October 2007Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresNebraska Forest Servicenot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Lancaster County

Storms near this place

59 since 1998

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Waverly in 59 storm reports between 1998 and 2026: 34 hail, 16 thunderstorm wind, 4 flash flood, 3 tornado. 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
October 2014FloodWaverly$100,000Heavy rainfall at the end of September caused the Salt Creek and many of it's tributaries to go into flood. The flooding included the main stem of the Salt Creek, Little Salt Creek, and Stevens Creek. The creek is a fast response creek and rose above flood stage early in the morning on the 1st, crested in most locations during the early morning hours and fell below flood stage by afternoon or early evening. Most of the flooding along the system was minor, but the flooding along the main stem of the Salt Creek at Greenwood reached major stage. The flooding along the system was at a return interval of 100 years, and in some spots it was a 200 year flood. Numerous roads were closed due to flooding.
May 2015Flash FloodWaverly$50,000The heavy rainfall continued across Lancaster County and allowed for flash flooding to continue well into the night. The flash flooding included along the Beal Slough Creek and continued street flooding.
April 2010Thunderstorm WindWaverly$10,000Thunderstorm wind gusts estimated at over 60 mph partially destroyed a 3000 square foot storage shed that was under construction. This same cell went on to cause further damage a little farther east/northeast of the area.
April 2026HailWaverly-Trained spotter report of hail measured up to 1 inch in diameter in Waverly, NE.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindWaverly-Personal weather station measured wind gust of 63 mph.
April 2025HailWaverly-Public report of hail estimated up to 1 in diameter. Report received via mPING.
May 2024HailWaverly-The office received a public report of quarter sized hail from mPING.
April 2024Tornado (EF1)Waverly-This tornado developed immediately prior to the dissipation of the Lincoln EF-3 tornado to its southeast. The tornado traveled northeast for nearly 3 miles, doing most of its damage to trees and powerlines, but also destroying two large outbuildings and causing window damage to a home. This tornado dissipated in a field as a new tornado developed quickly to its north according to video and satellite evidence. Peak estimated winds in this tornado were at 107 miles per hour, with a peak width of 150 yards and an average track width estimated at 100 yards.
April 2024Tornado (EF0)Waverly-A storm chaser with time and location stamps on their video tracked a tornado through mainly open fields. A damage survey team did find evidence of some minor tree damage at a few locations, sufficient to rate this as an EF-0 tornado.
July 2024FloodWaverly-River flooding was noted along a small stretch of Rock Creek after excessive rainfall brought flash flooding to much of the surrounding areas the night prior. The creek crested at 1115 CST at a height of 25.32 feet.
April 2024Tornado (EF0)Waverly-A storm chaser with time and location stamps tracked a tornado through mainly open fields. A subsequent storm damage survey revealed that EF-0 damage had been done in the Lancaster County portion of this track. Beginning on Little Salt Road a quarter mile east of County Road 10, several large branches were observed to have been broken by the tornado. The tornado continued into Saunders County where it produced EF-1 damage to a farmstead on Emery Road between County Road 8 and County Road 7. Peak estimated winds from this tornado in Lancaster County were estimated to be around 75 miles per hour. The tornado was roughly 30 yards wide for its duration in the county before moving into southeastern Saunders County.
June 2024Thunderstorm WindWaverly-The office received a delayed report of a tree blown down near 84th Street and Waverly Road. The trunk was measured to be 35 inches in diameter.
June 2022HailWaverly-Public reported 1.5 inch hail.
June 2022Thunderstorm WindWaverly-Emergency management reported a measured peak wind gust of 61 mph.
June 2022Thunderstorm WindWaverly-Trained spotter reported estimated wind gusts at 70 mph and a tree blown into a fence.
June 2022HailWaverly-Emergency management reported 1 inch hail.
June 2022Thunderstorm WindWaverly-Public reported a 30 ft by 75 ft section of roof blown off of building with a 350 lb cover blown off the roof. 4 garage doors were blown in. Two north facing walls flexed in. Lots of siding, fencing, and roof damage in the area. A center pivot was overturned nearby. Also reported 1.5 inch hail.
June 2022HailWaverly-Public reported 1.5 inch hail.
August 2021Flash FloodWaverly-Public reported street flooding up to the curb.
August 2020Thunderstorm WindWaverly-Trained spotter reported large tree limbs down and power out near Waverly.
April 2020HailWaverly-Trained spotter reported 1.5 inch hail 5 miles north of Waverly.
May 2017HailWaverly-Golf ball size hail and 50 mph winds were reported.
May 2014Thunderstorm WindWaverly-A spotter estimated that thunderstorm wind gusts reached around 60 mph. The storm was accompanied by pea-size hail.
May 2014Flash FloodWaverly-Heavy rain caused flash flooding along Rock Creek in northeast Lancaster county. The flooding impacted county roads and farm fields along the creek.
June 2014Thunderstorm WindWaverly-Spotters estimated wind gusts to 70 mph.
October 2013HailWaverly-Hail quarter-size and perhaps slightly larger fell in the Waverly area.
May 2013HailWaverly-Hail up to 1.5 inches in diameter fell a few miles north of Waverly.
July 2010Thunderstorm WindWaverly-Thunderstorm winds estimated at around 60 mph downed large tree branches in Waverly.
July 2010Thunderstorm WindWaverly-A weather spotter measured a thunderstorm wind gust of 58 mph on home weather equipment.
April 2010HailWaverly-Accompanied by 50 mph gusts.
May 2007HailWaverly-Hail up to nickel size fell in the Waverly area.
July 2005Thunderstorm WindWaverly-Thunderstorm wind gusts estimated at 60 mph downed a 12 inch in diameter tree limb in northeast Lancaster county northeast of Lincoln.
September 2004Thunderstorm WindWaverly-Thunderstorm wind gusts estimated at 70 mph destroyed a shed and two turkey barns and killed almost 2000 turkeys just south of Waverly.
August 2003Thunderstorm WindWaverly-A trained weather spotter estimated thunderstorm wind gusts of 60 mph just northeast of Waverly.
October 2002Thunderstorm WindWaverly-Thunderstorm winds blew 2 large grain bins across 176th Street at least 100 yards from their foundations. One of them was an 8000 bushel model which was blown one-fourth of a mile causing tree and house damage to the farmstead it hit. Other farms around the area sustained tree and outbuilding damage due to the strong winds including three antique railroad cars that were blown over at a local show ground. The winds also downed 6 miles of power lines and broke large tree limbs which damaged a car and 2 houses near Waverly.
July 1999Flash FloodWaverly-County roads flooded at 148th and Mckelvy and southeast of Waverly.
September 2018HailWaverly-no account filed
August 2016HailWaverly-no account filed
September 2015HailWaverly-no account filed
June 2014HailWaverly-no account filed
June 2014HailWaverly-no account filed
April 2010HailWaverly-no account filed
July 2006HailWaverly-no account filed
July 2006HailWaverly-no account filed
April 2005HailWaverly-no account filed
May 2005HailWaverly-no account filed
May 2004HailWaverly-no account filed
June 2004HailWaverly-no account filed
June 2003HailWaverly-no account filed
May 2002HailWaverly-no account filed
August 2002Thunderstorm WindWaverly-no account filed
August 2002HailWaverly-no account filed
September 2002HailWaverly-no account filed
June 2000HailWaverly-no account filed
October 2000HailWaverly-no account filed
June 1998HailWaverly-no account filed
June 1998HailWaverly-no account filed
July 1998HailWaverly-no account filed
May 1998HailWaverly-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Lancaster 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
Marian Center3.2 miles15
Prairie Home3.7 miles16
Havelock7.3 miles16
Arbor7.8 miles15
Bethany8.1 miles16
Walton8.4 miles16
University Place8.6 miles16
Davey8.8 miles15

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 WaverlyAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q965100The 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 834510. 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.

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.