Alpha, Wisconsin
12 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1950 and the latest in 1985. It stands in Wood River town. It lies in ZIP code area 54840. The Survey maps it on the Falun quadrangle.
Topographic sheets covering this place
9 surveys from 12 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.
- 1950 USGS Grantsburg quadrangle1:48000
- 1953 USGS Stillwater quadrangle1:250000
- 1955 USGS Stillwater quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS Stillwater quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1962 USGS Grantsburg quadrangle1:62500
- 1965 USGS Stillwater quadrangle1:250000
- 1975 USGS Stillwater quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1982 USGS Falun quadrangle1:24000
- 1985 USGS Grantsburg quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
96 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 96 fires within 5 miles of Alpha between 1992 and 2020, burning about 139 acres in total. 10 started naturally. 11 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 | 32 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 19 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 14 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 11 |
| Natural | 10 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 3 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 2 |
| Other causes | 2 |
| Fireworks | 1 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 1 |
| Smoking | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 September 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | HAY WAGON FIRE |
| 29 September 2012 | Debris and open burning | 1.1 acres | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | DEER STAND FIRE |
| 14 September 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | WHISKEY CREEK |
| 3 August 2008 | Natural | under an acre | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 22 August 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | 2.0 acres | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | FALUN MEADOWS |
| 22 August 2013 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 18 August 1996 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 15 August 2007 | Natural | 2.1 acres | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
5 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 5 workings within 5 miles of Alpha: 3 past producers, 2 occurrences. None of them still produces. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mud Hen Lake Pit #3 | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Occurrence | ||
| North Rice Lake Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Occurrence | ||
| Peterson Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Spirit Lake Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| William Soderbeck Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer |
Storms near this place
4 since 1997Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Alpha in 4 storm reports between 1997 and 2025: 3 thunderstorm wind, 1 hail. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alpha | - | County dispatch reported the power company had 15 power poles down along Crosstown Road east-southeast of Grantsburg. |
| July 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alpha | - | Numerous trees were blown down. |
| June 2003 | Hail | Alpha | - | no account filed |
| August 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alpha | - | 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.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Falun | 2.8 miles | 12 | |
| Grantsburg | 5.5 miles | 12 | |
| Trade Lake | 5.8 miles | 16 | |
| Branstad | 6.0 miles | 16 | |
| Four Corners | 7.0 miles | 16 | |
| Pole Cat Crossing | 9.4 miles | 16 | |
| Trade River | 9.9 miles | 16 | |
| Siren | 10.6 miles | 14 |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1560802. 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.








