Giddings, Texas
8 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1919 and the latest in 1993. It stands in the Giddings census division. It lies in ZIP code area 78942. The Survey maps it on the Giddings quadrangle. 4,969 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 505 feet above sea level.
On record in Giddings
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
Droemer Brickyard Sitelisted 1979
Lee County Courthouselisted 1975
Schubert Houselisted 1970
Population over time
3 figuresGiddings grew from 624 to 4,969 between 1880 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.
| Year | People | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1880 | 624 | |
| 2010 | 4,881 | |
| 2020 | 4,969 | +88 (+2%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
4 surveys from 8 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.
- 1919 USGS Giddings quadrangle1:62500
- 1954 USGS Austin quadrangle1:250000, 4 printings
- 1958 USGS Giddings quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1993 USGS Brenham quadrangle1:100000
Fires near this place
249 since 1996Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 249 fires within 5 miles of Giddings between 1996 and 2020, burning about 550 acres in total. 1 started naturally. 2 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 | 98 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 61 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 56 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 18 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 4 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 4 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 4 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 2 |
| Smoking | 1 |
| Natural | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 September 2019 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | HWY 290 W. # 2 |
| 9 September 2017 | Debris and open burning | 2.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | MIKE |
| 9 September 2012 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | TOWER |
| 9 September 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | MILLER |
| 8 September 2011 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | SCHADE |
| 7 September 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | HWY 77 S 2 |
| 7 September 2015 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | SCHNEIDER WELDING |
| 7 September 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | 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 Giddings: 1 unknown. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Bentonite. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mitschke | Bentonite | Unknown |
Storms near this place
45 since 1993Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Giddings in 45 storm reports between 1993 and 2024: 22 hail, 14 thunderstorm wind, 6 flash flood, 3 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.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2015 | Tornado (EF0) | Giddings | 1 hurt, $10,000 | A high end EF-0 tornado touched down damaging a Ramada Hotel on Highway 290 east of the city of Giddings. Most of the damage consisted of uprooted trees rooted in wet soils while other damage included a destroyed outbuilding, whose debris were lofted into the Ramada Hotel causing window and roof damage to the hotel. |
| March 2000 | Hail | Giddings | $500,000 | The extremely large hail damaged hundreds of cars windows and bodies and dented and damaged the roofs of dozens of homes. Many consider this to be the most devastating hail storm in the city of Giddings in over 50 years. |
| March 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Giddings | $200,000 | Severe thunderstorm winds destroyed severely damaged a large barn northeast of Giddings along FM141. The winds destroyed the roof of the barn. |
| March 2000 | Hail | Giddings | $100,000 | Large, very dense hail, propelled by winds estimated at 30 to 40 mph caused widespread damage to vehicles from northeast of Giddings to near Dime Box. |
| September 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Giddings | $90,000 | Severe thunderstorm winds blew the roofs off several businesses in Giddings. |
| January 1998 | Tornado (F1) | Giddings | $80,000 | The tornado developed just south of Giddings, moving toward the northeast as it destroyed a barn and a mobile home. The tornado crossed SH 290 and damaged a nursery along with several small sheds before dissipating. |
| December 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Giddings | $80,000 | no account filed |
| September 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Giddings | $80,000 | no account filed |
| December 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | Giddings | $50,000 | Trees were knocked down and damage was reported to outbuildings between Giddings and Lexington as a result of severe thunderstorm winds. |
| January 1998 | Tornado (F1) | Giddings | $50,000 | A second tornado was spotted just northeast of Giddings by a Deputy Sheriff. It also moved briefly northeastward, destroying a barn and fence. |
| June 1994 | Thunderstorm Wind | Giddings | $50,000 | Severe thunderstorm blew over a metal barn near Loebau. The storm then headed northeastward and destroyed the roof of a farm house. |
| March 1993 | Hail | Giddings | $50,000 | Up to dime-size hail was reported in Giddings by a TV-36 Stormtracker. Two auto dealerships in Giddings reported significant damage to their stock. Several cars in town had windshields broken out and several homes had roof damage. |
| December 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | Giddings | $20,000 | High winds blew down trees in the Giddings area. |
| July 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Giddings | $20,000 | Severe thunderstorm winds struck the Northrup area near Giddings, knocking down trees and taking the roofs off mobile homes and small sheds. |
| May 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Giddings | $10,000 | A thunderstorm produced wind gusts estimated at 70 mph that snapped large Oak trees on the south side of Giddings. |
| July 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Giddings | $10,000 | A farmer in Ledbetter reported damage to his barn along with trees blown down. |
| June 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Giddings | $10,000 | The Lee County Sheriff's Department reported that severe thunderstorm winds blew down trees in the Giddings area. |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Giddings | $2,000 | A thunderstorm produced wind gusts estimated at 60 mph. A dead tree was knocked down and the winds lifted a trampoline onto the roof of a house. The trampoline had been staked to the ground with two feet of rebar. |
| May 2024 | Hail | Giddings | - | A thunderstorm produced hail up to two inches in diameter in Giddings. |
| April 2023 | Hail | Giddings | - | A thunderstorm produced quarter size hail in Giddings. |
| May 2020 | Hail | Giddings | - | A thunderstorm produced quarter size hail just west of Giddings. |
| March 2018 | Hail | Giddings | - | A thunderstorm produced golf ball size hail in Giddings. |
| May 2017 | Hail | Giddings | - | A thunderstorm produced half dollar size hail in Giddings. |
| May 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Giddings | - | A thunderstorm produced wind gusts measured at 75 mph in Giddings. The gusty winds were accompanied with quarter size hail. |
| May 2017 | Hail | Giddings | - | A thunderstorm produced quarter size hail in Giddings. The hail was accompanied by winds gusts estimated at 75 mph. |
| May 2016 | Flash Flood | Giddings | - | Thunderstorms produced heavy rain that caused flash flooding closing numerous roads across the county. The CO-OP observer in Giddings reported 5.95 inches of rain since 3:30 PM. |
| January 2013 | Hail | Giddings | - | Hail size estimated at one inch. |
| April 2009 | Hail | Giddings | - | The Lee County Sheriff reported hail up to quarter size near the town of Northrup. |
| April 2009 | Flash Flood | Giddings | - | FM2440 was closed due to water covering the road northwest of Giddings. |
| May 2007 | Flash Flood | Giddings | - | Scattered showers and thunderstorms produced general 1 to 3 inch rain amounts with up to 6 inches near Northrup. Flash flooding closed many rural roads, including FM141 and FM448. |
| June 2007 | Flash Flood | Giddings | - | Thunderstorms produced a general 1 to 2 inch rain over southern Lee County. Highest totals were 4 inches just east of Giddings. FM141 and FM180 were closed due to flash flooding. |
| October 2006 | Flash Flood | Giddings | - | The thunderstorms dropped between 3 and 4 inches over Lee County, with totals of up to 8 inches near Mainheim as well as just west of Giddings. Many rural roads in northern Lee County were closed. Nearly all roads were reported to have been closed around Blue in northwest Lee County. |
| July 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Giddings | - | The thunderstorms that formed along the northern Texas Hill Country in the late afternoon moved into Lee County by late evening. The storms blew down trees and power lines between Giddings and Lexington. |
| August 2005 | Flash Flood | Giddings | - | Evening thunderstorms over southern Lee County produced general 1 inch totals with highest amounts between 2 and 3 inches in the Giddings area. Flash flooding blocked roads in and around Giddings during the late night hours. Water briefly flooded several homes in Giddings. |
| May 2000 | Hail | Giddings | - | The combination of strong thunderstorm winds estimated at 40 to 50 mph and hail up to an inch in diameter destroyed crops just east of Giddings. |
| April 2019 | Hail | Giddings | - | no account filed |
| May 2017 | Hail | Giddings | - | no account filed |
| April 2014 | Hail | Giddings | - | no account filed |
| April 2014 | Hail | Giddings | - | no account filed |
| April 2014 | Hail | Giddings | - | no account filed |
| May 2011 | Hail | Giddings | - | no account filed |
| January 1999 | Hail | Giddings | - | no account filed |
| January 1998 | Hail | Giddings | - | no account filed |
| October 1995 | Hail | Giddings | - | no account filed |
| December 1995 | Hail | Giddings | - | no account filed |
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.
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 Giddings | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q732349 | The 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 1336515. 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.



