Gowanda, New York
15 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1923 and the latest in 1986. It stands in Persia town. It lies in ZIP code area 14070. It stands on Thatcher Brook. The Survey maps it on the Gowanda quadrangle.
Then and now
1923 to 1986The same ground, surveyed 63 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.


On record in Gowanda
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
Bank of Gowandalisted 2001
Gowanda Village Historic Districtlisted 1986- Kimble-Nellé Houselisted 2021
Topographic sheets covering this place
9 surveys from 15 printed sheetsMatched 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.
- 1923 USGS Cattaraugus quadrangle1:62500, 4 printings
- 1938 USGS Cattaraugus quadrangle1:62500
- 1941 USGS Cattaraugus quadrangle1:62500
- 1960 USGS Buffalo quadrangle1:250000
- 1962 USGS Buffalo quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1963 USGS Gowanda quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1967 USGS Buffalo quadrangle1:250000
- 1973 USGS Buffalo quadrangle1:250000
- 1986 USGS Olean quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
93 since 2000Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 93 fires within 5 miles of Gowanda between 2000 and 2019, burning about 56 acres in total. 8 started naturally. 16 were 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 | 55 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 16 |
| Natural | 8 |
| Debris and open burning | 7 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 3 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 2 |
| Smoking | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 September 2005 | Natural | under an acre | Fire Department of New York | not named |
| 11 September 2019 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | New York Forest Rangers | SOUTH BRANCH FIRE |
| 3 August 2018 | Natural | under an acre | Fire Department of New York | N/A |
| 3 August 2016 | Natural | under an acre | Fire Department of New York | N/A |
| 27 August 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Fire Department of New York | not named |
| 25 August 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Fire Department of New York | not named |
| 14 August 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Fire Department of New York | not named |
| 1 August 2008 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | Fire Department of New York | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
3 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 3 workings within 5 miles of Gowanda: 2 producers, 1 past producer. 2 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 | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gernatt Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | Sedimentary | |
| Gernatt Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Vogtlis Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer |
Storms near this place
21 since 1998Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Gowanda in 21 storm reports between 1998 and 2026: 11 thunderstorm wind, 6 flash flood, 3 flood, 1 hail. The reports record 1 death and 1 injury. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 2009 | Flash Flood | Gowanda | 1 killed, 1 hurt, $45,000,000 | no account filed |
| May 2014 | Flash Flood | Gowanda | $5,000,000 | no account filed |
| June 1998 | Flash Flood | Gowanda | $2,500,000 | no account filed |
| July 2015 | Flash Flood | Gowanda | $750,000 | no account filed |
| June 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Gowanda | $25,000 | no account filed |
| July 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Gowanda | $25,000 | no account filed |
| January 2017 | Flood | Gowanda | $20,000 | Cattaraugus Creek at Gowanda crested at 10.70' at 6:00 PM EST on January 12. Flood stage is 10 feet. |
| December 2013 | Flood | Gowanda | $20,000 | Cattaraugus Creek at Gowanda crested at 11.54 feet at 17:00 EST on 12/21/2013. Flood Stage is 10 feet. |
| July 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Gowanda | $15,000 | Law enforcement reported trees and wires down. |
| January 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | Gowanda | $12,000 | Law enforcement reported trees and power lines down. |
| July 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Gowanda | $10,000 | Multiple reports of trees down around Gowanda. |
| October 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Gowanda | $10,000 | Law enforcement reported trees and wires downed by thunderstorm winds. |
| November 2017 | Flood | Gowanda | $10,000 | Cattaraugus Creek at Gowanda crested at 11.0 feet at 12:30 AM on the 6th (Flood Stage is 10 feet). |
| September 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Gowanda | $10,000 | Law enforcement reported trees downed by thunderstorm winds. |
| July 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Gowanda | $5,000 | A tree was downed on a house and car. |
| May 2000 | Hail | Gowanda | $5,000 | no account filed |
| July 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Gowanda | $1,000 | Trees and wires were reported down. |
| July 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Gowanda | $500 | A tree was downed across Broadway Road. |
| March 2026 | Thunderstorm Wind | Gowanda | - | Report from Facebook of tree falling on a house. |
| June 2025 | Flash Flood | Gowanda | - | Report of numerous streets in Gowanda with flooding, including Route 39. |
| September 2022 | Flash Flood | Gowanda | - | Flooding was reported on Route 39. |
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 | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Perrysburg | 3.5 miles | 18 | |
| Dayton | 3.9 miles | 15 | |
| Versailles | 5.0 miles | 16 | |
| Persia | 5.4 miles | 15 | |
| Markhams | 5.7 miles | 18 | |
| West Perrysburg | 6.0 miles | 18 | |
| Wesley | 6.3 miles | 15 | |
| Cottage | 6.3 miles | 18 |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 951430. 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.








