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Rosston, Oklahoma

8 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1955 and the latest in 1985. It stands in the Laverne census division. It lies in ZIP code area 73855. The Survey maps it on the Rosston quadrangle. 52 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 2,139 feet above sea level.

Rosston within Harper County

On record in Rosston

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 1 record

Population over time

2 figures

Rosston grew from 31 to 52 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
201031
202052+21 (+68%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

4 surveys from 8 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

1 since 2016

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 1 fire within 5 miles of Rosston in 2016, burning about 3,213 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/undetermined1

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
18 November 2016Missing data/not specified/undetermined3,213 acresOklahoma Division of ForestryROSSTON

Every fire recorded in Harper 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 Rosston: 1 producer, 1 past producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Limestone, General, 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
Unknown Caliche PitLimestone, GeneralProducer
Unknown Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

Every working recorded in Harper County

Storms near this place

43 since 1993

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Rosston in 43 storm reports between 1993 and 2025: 29 hail, 11 thunderstorm wind, 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
June 2023Tornado (EF1)Rosston$40,000This tornado moved into Harper County from Beaver County OK (see report from the Oklahoma panhandle from NWS Amarillo). At the Beaver County-Harper County line, the tornado caused roof damage to a home as well as tree damage. It continued to damage trees and power poles as the tornado moved to just northeast of Laverne. A barn was damaged along US-283 just north of Laverne before the tornado dissipated. In addition to the tornado, a large area of wind damage was observed south of the tornado creating areas of wind damage in the town of Laverne.
September 2021Thunderstorm WindRosston$3,000Back window blown out of a vehicle and multiple power lines downed.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindRosston$1,000Utility pole was downed on an angle.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindRosston$1,000Utility pole was snapped.
May 2025HailRosston-The report was relayed by emergency management. The event time is estimated from radar observations.
May 2025HailRosston-The report was relayed through mPING.
May 2025HailRosston-The report was relayed through mPING.
May 2025HailRosston-The report was relayed through mPING. The event time is adjusted based on radar observations.
September 2025Tornado (EFU)Rosston-A spotter reported a brief tornado touchdown in northern Harper County. No damage was reported and the location is estimated.
September 2025HailRosston-The location is approximate, and the event time is estimated from radar observations.
September 2025HailRosston-The location is approximate, and the event time is estimated from radar observations.
July 2022Thunderstorm WindRosston-Estimated severe wind gust.
September 2021Thunderstorm WindRosston-Estimated severe wind gust.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindRosston-Wind speed estimated with tree debris on road.
June 2014Thunderstorm WindRosston-The Amarillo forecast office relayed a second hand report of 60 to 70 mph wind gusts. No damage information was provided.
April 2009HailRosston-The hail covered the ground.
March 1995HailRosston-On the evening of the 25th, thunderstorms developed along a dryline in southwest Oklahoma. One of these storms became severe and produced hail up to three-quarters inch in Harper County.
September 1993HailRosston-Severe thunderstorms developed in the Oklahoma panhandle during the late afternoon and evening hours on the 18th and moved eastward into extreme northwest Oklahoma. The storms produced one tornado, hail up to 3.00 inches in diameter and strong winds. The tornado developed 6 miles east-southeast of Elmwood at 1814 CST. The tornado traveled 0.5 miles before dissipating at 1818 CST. This F0 tornado damaged several power poles and broke out some windows. Large hail broke out windows in Hardesty and Bryans Corner.
May 2022HailRosston-no account filed
May 2022HailRosston-no account filed
September 2021HailRosston-no account filed
September 2021Thunderstorm WindRosston-no account filed
June 2018HailRosston-no account filed
June 2018HailRosston-no account filed
May 2007HailRosston-no account filed
May 2007HailRosston-no account filed
May 2007HailRosston-no account filed
May 2006HailRosston-no account filed
June 2005HailRosston-no account filed
June 2005HailRosston-no account filed
June 2005HailRosston-no account filed
February 2000HailRosston-no account filed
May 1997HailRosston-no account filed
June 1995Thunderstorm WindRosston-no account filed
June 1994HailRosston-no account filed
June 1994HailRosston-no account filed
September 1994Thunderstorm WindRosston-no account filed
June 1994HailRosston-no account filed
April 1993HailRosston-no account filed
April 1993Tornado (F0)Rosston-no account filed
April 1993HailRosston-no account filed
April 1993Thunderstorm WindRosston-no account filed
April 1993HailRosston-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Harper 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
Laverne7.5 miles8
Willard15.6 miles9
Buffalo16.2 miles8
May16.8 miles8
Dunlap19.8 miles8
Selman23.5 miles8
Charleston (historical)26.4 miles8

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 RosstonAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q784626The 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 1097468. 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.