BlockBefore

Tonkawa, Oklahoma

11 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1955 and the latest in 1985. It stands in the Tonkawa census division. It lies in ZIP code area 74653. The Survey maps it on the Tonkawa quadrangle. 3,015 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 984 feet above sea level.

Tonkawa within Kay County

On record in Tonkawa

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 4 records

Population over time

2 figures

Tonkawa fell from 3,216 to 3,015 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
20103,216
20203,015-201 (-6%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

4 surveys from 11 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 2006

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 1 fire within 5 miles of Tonkawa in 2006, burning under an acre 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
10 February 2006Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acrePawnee Agency60 WEST

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Kay County

Mines and quarries near this place

9 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 9 workings within 5 miles of Tonkawa: 9 past producers. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Clay. 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 Shale PitClayPast Producer
Unknown Shale PitClayPast Producer
Unknown Shale PitClayPast Producer
Unknown Sand PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Unknown Sand PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Unknown Sand PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Unknown Sand PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Unknown Sand PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Unknown Sand PitsSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

Every working recorded in Kay County

Storms near this place

60 of 90 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Tonkawa in 90 storm reports between 1993 and 2026: 51 hail, 24 thunderstorm wind, 9 flash flood, 5 tornado. The reports record 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
August 2016Thunderstorm WindTonkawa1 hurt, $20,000Two semi-trailers were blown over. One injury was reported.
May 2001Thunderstorm WindTonkawa$35,000The roof of a trailer home was blown off, and pontoon boats were blown over.
June 1997HailTonkawa$25,000A combination of hail as large as golf balls and strong winds caused widespread damage in Tonkawa, particularly over an 11-block area on the north side of town. Roofs were severely damaged and windows were broken in both vehicles and houses. Large tree limbs were downed and trees were uprooted by winds estimated at up to 70 mph.
July 1999Thunderstorm WindTonkawa$5,000no account filed
May 1993Thunderstorm WindTonkawa$5,000no account filed
June 2004Thunderstorm WindTonkawa$2,500Four power poles were downed.
September 2002Thunderstorm WindTonkawa$1,000A shed was blown over.
July 2004Thunderstorm WindTonkawa$500A tree was downed.
September 2002Thunderstorm WindTonkawa$500Highway signs were blown down on Interstate 35.
June 1999Thunderstorm WindTonkawa$500no account filed
May 1998Thunderstorm WindTonkawa$500no account filed
September 2002Thunderstorm WindTonkawa$10Tree limbs were blown down on Highway 60.
April 2026HailTonkawa-Hailfall near the junction of Interstate 35 and U.S. Highway 60. The report was relayed by emergency management.
April 2026HailTonkawa-The report was relayed through mPING.
April 2025HailTonkawa-The report was relayed through mPING.
May 2025HailTonkawa-The report was relayed through mPING.
June 2025HailTonkawa-The report was relayed through mPING.
April 2024HailTonkawa-MPing report. Time is radar estimated.
April 2024HailTonkawa-MPing report.
April 2024Flash FloodTonkawa-Flooding across all lanes of Interstate 35 near mile marker 217. Event time is approximate.
June 2024HailTonkawa-Social media image.
May 2024HailTonkawa-Hail was noted to be slightly smaller than golf ball size.
February 2023Thunderstorm WindTonkawa-Reports of widespread power outages in Tonkawa. Time estimated via radar.
May 2023Tornado (EF0)Tonkawa-A number of spotters and chasers observed this tornado estimated to be about 2 miles southwest of Tonkawa. Some light tree damage was reported.
April 2020HailTonkawa-Ping pong sized hail at Bird Creek Rd, 3 miles south on HWY 77.
May 2019Flash FloodTonkawa-OHP closed US Hwy 77 from Tonkawa south to Noble county line due to flash flooding.
August 2015Flash FloodTonkawa-Roads were flooded with water 3 to 4 feet deep around Tonkawa. Emergency manager measured 5.25 inches of rain.
August 2015Flash FloodTonkawa-County roads flooded resulting in travel difficulties.
November 2015Thunderstorm WindTonkawa-No damage reported.
June 2013Thunderstorm WindTonkawa-Reported on I-35.
February 2012HailTonkawa-The hail report was relayed via Twitter.
April 2012Thunderstorm WindTonkawa-Several power poles and associated lines were blown down.
April 2011HailTonkawa-The hail occurred on Highway 60 at the Chikaskia River.
May 2010HailTonkawa-The hail occurred near the intersection of 10th Street and Rence Avenue.
May 2009HailTonkawa-Quarter- to half-dollar-size hail was reported.
September 2008Tornado (EF0)Tonkawa-A brief tornado developed on the east side of Tonkawa. The most significant damage occurred to an open air carport that was destroyed and thrown 200 yards from the residence it was attached to. Other minor damage was reported to trees and a couple of roofs. Monetary damages were unavailable.
April 2006HailTonkawa-Hail was observed on Highway 60.
June 2005HailTonkawa-Hail was reported on Interstate 35.
May 2001Thunderstorm WindTonkawa-Wind was reported near Highway 60 and Interstate 35.
April 1999HailTonkawa-Hail was reported on Interstate 35 on the Kay/Noble County line.
July 1998Flash FloodTonkawa-Numerous thunderstorms developed over Kay County during the early morning of the 1st resulting in water flowing over many roadways in Tonkawa, Blackwell, Ponca City, and Newkirk. The water department in Blackwell measured 3.5 inches of rain for a 5 hour period before flooding started.
July 1997Flash FloodTonkawa-Due to high water, 13th Street was closed near Stink Creek.
June 1997HailTonkawa-Golfball-sized hail covered the ground.
July 1997Flash FloodTonkawa-Water to a depth of up to three feet covered parts of town.
June 2024HailTonkawa-no account filed
June 2024HailTonkawa-no account filed
May 2024HailTonkawa-no account filed
May 2023HailTonkawa-no account filed
May 2023HailTonkawa-no account filed
April 2020HailTonkawa-no account filed
April 2020HailTonkawa-no account filed
May 2016HailTonkawa-no account filed
November 2011HailTonkawa-no account filed
May 2010Funnel CloudTonkawa-no account filed
April 2009HailTonkawa-no account filed
April 2009HailTonkawa-no account filed
May 2009HailTonkawa-no account filed
June 2009HailTonkawa-no account filed
April 2006HailTonkawa-no account filed
May 2004HailTonkawa-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Kay 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
Tyner4.3 miles11
Autwine5.2 miles11
Alcorn6.3 miles11
Eddy8.7 miles10
Blackwell8.8 miles11
Polk9.0 miles11
Nardin11.4 miles10
Grainville12.0 miles10

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 TonkawaAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q2091202The 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 1098940. 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.