BlockWhetstone, South Carolina
20 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1886 and the latest in 1997. It stands in the Mountain Rest census division. It lies in ZIP code area 29664. It stands on Grapevine Branch. The Survey maps it on the Whetstone quadrangle.
Topographic sheets covering this place
8 surveys from 20 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.
- 1886 USGS Walhalla quadrangle1:125000
- 1892 USGS Walhalla quadrangle1:125000, 7 printings
- 1896 USGS Walhalla quadrangle1:125000
- 1954 USGS Greenville quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1958 USGS Greenville quadrangle1:250000
- 1961 USGS Whetstone quadrangle1:24000, 4 printings
- 1981 USGS Toccoa quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
- 1997 USGS Whetstone quadrangle1:24000
Fires near this place
111 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 111 fires within 5 miles of Whetstone between 1992 and 2019, burning about 879 acres in total. 11 started naturally. 20 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 |
|---|---|
| Debris and open burning | 25 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 22 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 20 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 13 |
| Natural | 11 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 11 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 3 |
| Smoking | 3 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 1 |
| Fireworks | 1 |
| Other causes | 1 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 September 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.5 acres | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 21 September 1999 | Natural | under an acre | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 2 September 2019 | Arson/incendiarism | 3.0 acres | Francis Marion & Sumter National Forests | DOUBLE SPRINGS |
| 19 September 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
| 17 September 1998 | Equipment and vehicle use | 12 acres | Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest | JOE BLECKLEY |
| 15 September 2010 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | FY2011-DADE-009 |
| 14 September 2010 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | FY2011-DADE-008 |
| 14 September 1998 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | South Carolina Forestry Commission | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
1 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 1 working within 5 miles of Whetstone: 1 prospect. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Marble, Dimension. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marble Prospect | Marble, Dimension | Prospect |
Storms near this place
6 since 2009Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Whetstone in 6 storm reports between 2009 and 2025: 4 thunderstorm wind, 1 flood, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| February 2020 | Flash Flood | Whetstone | $400,000 | Media and EM reported flash flooding developed across central and northern Oconee County after 5.5 to 7 inches of rain fell throughout the area in about 24 hours, with much of that falling during the morning of the 6th. Multiple small streams overflowed their banks and flooded/washed out adjacent roads, including Richland Creek in Seneca, Coneross Creek, and Cane Creek, which inundated Rocky Noll Rd, Lusk Rd, and Tulip Dr in the Walhalla area. Roads washed out included Cobb Bridge Rd, Busch Creek Rd, and Conley Rd. Flooding of several streets also occurred in downtown Walhalla due to poor drainage, including Main St and S College St.Media reported flash flooding developed across central Oconee County after 5.5 to 7 inches of rain fell throughout the area in about 24 hours, with much of that falling during the morning of the 6th. Multiple small streams overflowed their banks and flooded/washed out adjacent roads, including Richland Creek in Seneca, Coneross Creek, and Cane Creek, which inundated Rocky Noll Rd, Lusk Rd, and Tulip Dr in the Walhalla area. Flooding of several streets also occurred in downtown Walhalla due to poor drainage, including Main St and S College St. |
| February 2020 | Flood | Whetstone | $40,000 | Although heavy rain tapered of across Oconee County throughout the afternoon, high water conditions persisted due to runoff from the earlier rainfall. Many roads remained closed through the evening. |
| June 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Whetstone | - | County comms reported trees blown down at Whetstone Rd and Cassidy Ridge Rd and power lines down on nearby Land Bridge Rd. |
| June 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Whetstone | - | Public reported multiple trees blown down across roads west of Mountain Rest. |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Whetstone | - | Numerous trees were blown down along the highway 28 corridor near Mountain Rest. |
| April 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Whetstone | - | Trees were blown down on Whetstone Rd and Lex Road. |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Long Bottom Ford | 4.0 miles | 18 | |
| Russell (historical) | 4.8 miles | 18 | |
| Longcreek | 5.9 miles | 20 | |
| Brasstown | 7.1 miles | 17 | |
| Picket Post | 7.6 miles | 20 | |
| Forest Acres | 7.6 miles | 20 | |
| Battle Creek | 8.3 miles | 20 | |
| Camp Oak | 8.4 miles | 20 |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1227998. 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.