Wheatland County

Population 2,100 (2025) 1,423 sq mi

Large wildfires have burned 7,934 acres of Wheatland County since 1984, 47th most of 56 counties in Montana; the largest was the Two Dot Fire in 1988.

Hazard fingerprint for Wheatland County Tornado: 11th percentile. Tropical: 0th percentile. Wildfire: 34th percentile. Flood: 12th percentile. Hail & wind: 31th percentile. Heat: 0th percentile. Cold: 0th percentile. Winter: 91th percentile. TORTROPFIREFLOODSEVEREHEATCOLDWINTER

Hazard fingerprint Each spoke is this county’s percentile among U.S. counties where that hazard occurs. How it is computed

2026
  • Tornado damage paths since 19507
  • Wildfire burn scars since 19843

At a glance

The record for Wheatland County in eight numbers. Each links to its section below.

Acres burned since 1984

7,934

47th of 56 in Montana

3 large fires; the largest was Two Dot, 1988

Details

Flood insurance claims

19

18th of 56 in Montana

$38,000 paid since 1979

Details

Tornadoes since 1950

7

24th of 56 in Montana

About as many as the typical Montana county

Details

Strongest tornado

F0

August 14, 1999, 5.0 mile path

Largest earthquake within 50 mi

5.4magnitude

December 12, 1926, 44.7 miles away

Details

Federal disaster declarations

10

Most recent: Severe Winter Storm and Straight-Line Winds, 2026

Details

Record high

106°F

July 12, 2026

Details

Record low

−41°F

January 12, 2024

Details

Tornadoes

About one every 11 years since 1950, none rated F3/EF3 or stronger.

Strongest

August 14, 1999

F0, 5.0 mile path

0 yards wide.

Most recent

Thursday, June 27, 2019

EF0, 0.4 mile path

7 years ago.

Tornadoes by decade Doppler radar era² 1950s: 0 1960s: 0 1970s: 2 2 1980s: 1 1 1990s: 2 2 2000s: 0 2010s: 2 2 2020s: 0 1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
Recorded tornadoes per decade. The 2020s are incomplete.
Tornadoes by month J: 0 F: 0 M: 0 A: 0 M: 0 J: 4 4 J: 0 A: 2 S: 1 O: 0 N: 0 D: 0 JFMAMJJASOND
By month of occurrence, all years.

Every recorded tornado

Tornadoes in Wheatland County since 1950
Jun 27, 2019EF00.45000
Sep 9, 2010EF00.21000
Aug 14, 1999F05.0000
Jun 5, 1997F00.11000
Jun 15, 1989F00.21000
Aug 22, 1978F00.11000
Jun 24, 1978F00.11000
  1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Wheatland County: 0.
  2. Weak tornadoes were under-recorded before Doppler radar coverage became national in the early 1990s, so earlier decades read low. Ratings use the Fujita scale before February 2007 and the Enhanced Fujita scale after.

Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.

Hurricanes and tropical storms

No tropical storm or hurricane has tracked within 100 miles since records began in 1851.

Wildfire and smoke

7,934 acres burned in 3 large fires since 1984, equal to 0.9% of the land.

Largest

August 30, 1988

Two Dot Fire, 5,096 acres

3,013 acres inside Wheatland County.

Most recent

February 2, 2020

Lode Road Fire

2,731 acres in total.

Acres burned since 1984, cumulative 1988: 3,0132017: 2,1912020: 2,730 7,934 acres 198519901995200020052010201520202025
Running total of acres burned inside the county (line) and each year’s acres (bars).

Every large fire

Large wildfires since 1984
Lode Road20202,7292,731
Blacktail20172,1904,027
Two Dot19883,0135,096
  1. Large fires mapped by the Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity program since 1984: 1,000 acres or more in the West, 500 or more in the East. Prescribed burns are excluded. Acres here are the part of each perimeter inside this place.

Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (USGS and U.S. Forest Service), 1984 to 2026.

Smoke overhead

Smokiest year

2021: 60 days

Heavy smoke on 40 days in 2021, the most of any year.

Last 10 years

28.1 days a year

Medium or heavy smoke, 2016 to 2025.

2025

19 days

Medium or heavy smoke. 36 so far in 2026.

Days with medium or heavy smoke overhead, by year 2011: 3 2012: 21 2013: 15 2014: 10 2015: 17 2016: 3 2017: 31 2018: 26 2019: 10 2020: 24 2021: 60 60 2022: 22 2023: 39 2024: 47 2025: 19 201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Days each year on which a satellite-traced plume of medium or heavy smoke covered the county’s population centre, 2011 to 2025.
  1. A smoke day is a date on which a smoke plume traced by NOAA Hazard Mapping System analysts from satellite imagery covered this place's point (the county's population centre or the city centre). Counts here are of medium or heavy smoke. Since 2018 analysts have often drawn light smoke as one area over most of the continent, so light-smoke counts are not comparable from year to year. The plumes show smoke anywhere in the air above, not air quality at the ground, and smoke hidden by cloud is missed.

NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, 2011 to 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Floods and flood insurance

19 federal flood insurance claims since 1979, with $38,000 paid.

Federal flood insurance claims by year 1979: 11 11 1979
Claims per year since 1979. Years with fewer than five claims are not shown.

Most claims in one year

1979: 11 claims

$11,000 paid.

Claims by ZIP code

Flood insurance claims by ZIP code
5903616$33,000

Flood events since 1996

  • Flood5
  • Flash Flood4
  • Heavy Rain2

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026. NOAA Storm Events through 2026.

River crests

Most severe crest

May 25, 2011

Musselshell River near Harlowton, 10.25 ft

3.25 feet above the 7.0 ft flood stage; minor flooding by today’s categories.

Highest river crests above flood stage
May 25, 2011Musselshell River near Harlowton10.25+3.25Minor
Mar 7, 2014Musselshell River near Harlowton9.84+2.84Minor
Jun 20, 1979Musselshell River near Harlowton9.14+2.14Minor
May 26, 2011Musselshell River near Shawmut9.27+1.27Minor
Jun 12, 1997Musselshell River near Harlowton8.25+1.25Minor
May 11, 2018Musselshell River near Harlowton7.55+0.55Minor
Jun 15, 1967Musselshell River near Harlowton7.52+0.52Minor
Jun 20, 2018Musselshell River near Shawmut8.39+0.39Minor
Jun 6, 1991Musselshell River near Harlowton7.26+0.26Minor
May 24, 1981Musselshell River near Harlowton7.19+0.19Minor
Jun 6, 2023Musselshell River near Shawmut7.95−0.05Below flood stage
Jun 5, 2023Musselshell River near Harlowton6.90−0.10Below flood stage
Jan 27, 2015Musselshell River near Harlowton6.76−0.24Below flood stage
Mar 8, 2014Musselshell River near Shawmut7.47−0.53Below flood stage
May 28, 2019Musselshell River near Shawmut7.43−0.57Below flood stage
May 28, 1962Musselshell River near Harlowton6.26−0.74Below flood stage
May 27, 2019Musselshell River near Harlowton6.24−0.76Below flood stage
Jun 20, 2010Musselshell River near Harlowton6.14−0.86Below flood stage
Jun 18, 1992Musselshell River near Harlowton6.11−0.89Below flood stage
Jun 11, 1964Musselshell River near Harlowton6.07−0.93Below flood stage
May 16, 1976Musselshell River near Harlowton6.01−0.99Below flood stage
Jun 4, 2015Musselshell River near Shawmut7.01−0.99Below flood stage
May 24, 1978Musselshell River near Harlowton5.90−1.10Below flood stage
May 23, 1970Musselshell River near Harlowton5.85−1.15Below flood stage
Jun 17, 1980Musselshell River near Harlowton5.78−1.22Below flood stage

River gauges

River gauges and their highest listed crests
Musselshell River near Harlowton7.010.25 ftMay 25, 20110
Musselshell River near Shawmut8.09.27 ftMay 26, 20110
  1. Crests are the highest and the recent crests the National Weather Service lists for each river gauge in the county that has a flood stage, not every flood. Flood categories use each gauge's current flood stages; crests from before levees, dams or channel changes may not be comparable. Crests measured on an old datum are left out of the rankings.

NOAA National Water Prediction Service gauge records, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Drought

In severe drought or worse for 197 of 1,581 months since 1895 (12%); the longest spell lasted 33 months.

197

Months in severe drought or worse since 1895

106

Months in extreme drought

12%

Share of all months, severe or worse

4

Drought reports to the Weather Service since 1996

Lowest reading

August 1937

−6.41, extreme drought

Longest severe spell

33 months

May 2000 to January 2003.

Latest month

September 2026

−3.81, severe drought

Months in severe drought or worse, by year 1895: 0 1896: 0 1897: 0 1898: 0 1899: 0 1900: 0 1901: 0 1902: 0 1903: 0 1904: 0 1905: 0 1906: 0 1907: 0 1908: 0 1909: 0 1910: 2 1911: 0 1912: 0 1913: 0 1914: 0 1915: 0 1916: 0 1917: 0 1918: 0 1919: 4 1920: 0 1921: 0 1922: 0 1923: 0 1924: 0 1925: 0 1926: 0 1927: 0 1928: 0 1929: 0 1930: 3 1931: 8 1932: 2 1933: 0 1934: 8 1935: 8 1936: 9 1937: 10 1938: 0 1939: 0 1940: 6 1941: 4 1942: 0 1943: 0 1944: 0 1945: 0 1946: 0 1947: 0 1948: 0 1949: 0 1950: 0 1951: 0 1952: 0 1953: 2 1954: 7 1955: 11 1956: 4 1957: 2 1958: 0 1959: 0 1960: 0 1961: 7 1962: 1 1963: 0 1964: 0 1965: 0 1966: 0 1967: 0 1968: 0 1969: 0 1970: 0 1971: 0 1972: 0 1973: 0 1974: 0 1975: 0 1976: 0 1977: 2 1978: 0 1979: 0 1980: 0 1981: 0 1982: 0 1983: 0 1984: 0 1985: 3 1986: 0 1987: 0 1988: 6 1989: 0 1990: 0 1991: 0 1992: 0 1993: 0 1994: 0 1995: 0 1996: 0 1997: 0 1998: 0 1999: 0 2000: 8 2001: 12 12 2002: 12 2003: 5 2004: 10 2005: 4 2006: 0 2007: 0 2008: 1 2009: 0 2010: 0 2011: 0 2012: 6 2013: 8 2014: 0 2015: 0 2016: 1 2017: 2 2018: 0 2019: 0 2020: 0 2021: 6 2022: 9 2023: 0 2024: 0 2025: 0 18951905191519251935194519551965197519851995200520152025
Months each year with a Palmer index of −3 or lower, 1895 to 2025. Twelve means the whole year.
  1. The Palmer Drought Severity Index is computed by NOAA each month from the county's average temperature and precipitation, relative to the county's own climate. Zero is normal; -3 or lower is severe drought and -4 or lower extreme drought. It describes the long-term balance of moisture, not water supply or crop losses.

NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1895 to September 2026, issued October 6, 2026.

Earthquakes

5 earthquakes of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles since 1900; the largest was magnitude 5.4 in 1926.

0

Magnitude 2.5+ inside the county since 1973

12

Magnitude 3+ within 50 miles since 1973

5

Magnitude 4+ within 50 miles since 1900

1

Magnitude 5+ within 50 miles since 1900

Largest within 50 miles

December 12, 1926

Magnitude 5.4

Clarkston Valley, Montana (Aftershock); 44.7 miles away.

Most recent, magnitude 3 or more

January 30, 2023

Magnitude 3.8

9 km NNW of Livingston, Montana; 36.2 miles away.

Earthquakes of magnitude 3 or more within 50 miles, by year 1973: 0 1974: 0 1975: 0 1976: 0 1977: 0 1978: 0 1979: 0 1980: 0 1981: 0 1982: 0 1983: 0 1984: 1 1985: 1 1986: 0 1987: 0 1988: 0 1989: 0 1990: 0 1991: 0 1992: 0 1993: 0 1994: 0 1995: 0 1996: 0 1997: 2 2 1998: 0 1999: 2 2000: 0 2001: 0 2002: 0 2003: 1 2004: 0 2005: 0 2006: 1 2007: 1 2008: 1 2009: 0 2010: 0 2011: 1 2012: 0 2013: 0 2014: 0 2015: 0 2016: 0 2017: 0 2018: 0 2019: 0 2020: 0 2021: 0 2022: 0 2023: 1 2024: 0 2025: 0 19731978198319881993199820032008201320182023
Per year, 1973 to 2025.

Every earthquake of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles

Earthquakes of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles
Nov 25, 20074.129.11.112 km SSW of Grass Range, Montana
Nov 6, 19974.047.53.04 km WSW of Springhill, Montana
Feb 15, 19634.535.420.5Western Montana
Feb 15, 19294.749.4—Northeast of Three Forks, Montana
Dec 12, 19265.444.7—Clarkston Valley, Montana (Aftershock)
  1. Earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Catalog since 1900. Within 50 miles means the epicentre lies within 50 miles of the county boundary (or inside the county).
  2. Small earthquakes were under-recorded before the modern seismic networks of the 1970s and are still missed in remote areas, so early decades read low. Magnitudes are as the catalogue reports them and mix scales (moment, local and body-wave).

USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog, 1900 to present, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Severe weather and other events

687 events in the National Weather Service record, 671 of them since 1996.

68

Hail reports, 1 inch or larger

7

Hail, 2 inches or larger

31

Damaging gusts, 58 mph+

217

Winter weather events since 1996

0

Heat events since 1996

0

Cold events since 1996

Largest hail

July 8, 2013

2.75 inches

Strongest measured or estimated gust

July 6, 2009

81 mph

More event types since 1996

Other Storm Events types since 1996
Avalanches100Apr 1, 2025
  1. Storm Events records before 1996 cover only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail. Damage figures are as reported by the National Weather Service at the time, not adjusted for inflation.

NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1950 to 2026, issued October 26, 2026.

Weather records

From Harlowton, 1.3 miles from the county’s population centre, with records from 1948.

All-time high
106°FJul 12, 2026
All-time low
−41°FJan 12, 2024
Warmest night
67°F4 times, most recently Jul 16, 1997
Coldest day
−20°F2 times, most recently Jan 12, 2024
Wettest day
2.44 inJun 6, 1997
Snowiest day
24.0 inApr 28, 1950
Hottest year
1987mean 47.3°F
Coldest year
1951mean 38.5°F
Wettest year
199721.60 in
Driest year
20124.86 in
Snowiest season
78.4 in1988-89
Average monthly high and low temperature and precipitation, last 30 years, Harlowton 32°F 37° 15° 0.2 Jan 39° 14° 0.3 Feb 48° 21° 0.4 Mar 56° 28° 1.0 Apr 65° 37° 1.4 May 74° 45° 2.0 Jun 86° 50° 1.0 Jul 84° 48° 0.8 Aug 75° 40° 0.8 Sep 59° 30° 0.5 Oct 46° 22° 0.3 Nov 37° 15° 0.3 Dec Precipitation, inches
Average daily high and low by month, and average monthly precipitation, over the last 30 years.
Days reaching 95°F per year 1976: 1 1977: 0 1978: 0 1979: 2 1980: 1 1981: 2 1982: 0 1983: 4 1984: 3 1985: 8 1986: 2 1987: 0 1988: 10 1989: 5 1990: 6 1991: 4 1992: 2 1993: 0 1994: 4 1995: 4 1996: 5 1997: 0 1998: 8 1999: 4 2000: 9 2001: 6 2002: 6 2004: 3 2012: 17 17 2013: 1 2014: 0 2015: 1 2016: 2 2017: 11 2018: 3 2019: 0 2022: 11 2023: 5 2024: 7 2025: 3 1976198619962014
Days reaching 95°F each complete year, last 50 years. Thirty-year average: 5.1.
Snowfall by winter 1976: 18.3 in 1978: 51.2 in 1979: 39.0 in 1980: 35.9 in 1981: 54.4 in 1982: 38.5 in 1983: 41.5 in 1984: 45.7 in 1985: 46.6 in 1986: 33.1 in 1987: 41.6 in 1988: 78.4 in 78.4 1989: 41.3 in 1990: 14.6 in 1991: 19.5 in 1992: 23.0 in 1995: 54.8 in 1996: 63.0 in 1997: 18.0 in 1998: 18.0 in 1999: 11.0 in 2000: 31.8 in 2001: 25.0 in 2003: 22.0 in 2004: 32.0 in 2006: 21.6 in 2007: 7.6 in 2008: 35.4 in 2014: 9.8 in 2015: 10.6 in 2021: 30.7 in 2022: 29.9 in 2023: 52.7 in 2024: 50.0 in 2025: 32.2 in 1976198719992021
Total snowfall each winter (July to June), last 50 winters.

Median first snow

October 23

Earliest: September 8, 1962

Median last snow

April 23

Latest: June 12, 1969

0 of 61 winters had no measurable snow.

Station Harlowton (USC00243939), 4,222 ft elevation, 1.3 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1948 to September 30, 2026; 85.5% of days in the last 30 years are complete. Records at a single station can differ from a city’s official threaded record, which may combine several stations.

NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily.

Federal disaster declarations

10 since 1953. The most recent: Severe Winter Storm and Straight-Line Winds, April 7, 2026.

Federal disaster declarations
Apr 7, 2026Straight-Line WindsSevere Winter Storm and Straight-Line WindsMajor disasterDR-4902-MT
Jul 18, 2024Severe StormSevere Winter Storm and FloodingMajor disasterDR-4801-MT
Mar 31, 2020BiologicalCovid-19 PandemicMajor disasterDR-4508-MT
Mar 13, 2020BiologicalCovid-19EmergencyEM-3476-MT
Apr 17, 2014FloodIce Jams and FloodingMajor disasterDR-4172-MT
Jun 17, 2011Severe StormSevere Storms and FloodingMajor disasterDR-1996-MT
Sep 13, 2005HurricaneHurricane Katrina EvacuationEmergencyEM-3253-MT
Aug 30, 2000FireWildfiresMajor disasterDR-1340-MT
Jul 25, 1997Severe StormSevere Storms,Ice Jams, Snow Melt, FloodingMajor disasterDR-1183-MT
Jun 28, 1975FloodRains, Showmelt, Storms & FloodingMajor disasterDR-472-MT

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, retrieved October 30, 2026. Statewide declarations are not listed.

How this compares

Where Wheatland County stands among 56 counties in Montana and 3,143 in the United States.

Ranks
Tornadoes since 1950724 / 562,459 / 3,143
Tornadoes rated F3/EF3 or stronger0——
Tropical cyclones within 50 mi0——
Hurricane-strength passes within 50 mi0——
Wildfire acres since 19847,93447 / 56857 / 3,143
Flood insurance claims1918 / 562,080 / 3,143
Flood insurance paid$38,00029 / 562,541 / 3,143
Disaster declarations1027 / 562,788 / 3,143
Flood events since 19961149 / 562,869 / 3,143
Hail and wind events since 199643024 / 56634 / 3,143
Winter storm events since 199621719 / 56281 / 3,143
Reported damage since 1996$0——
River crests at major flood stage0——
High tide flooding days a year, last 10 years0.0——
Months in severe drought since 189519715 / 56325 / 3,143
Medium or heavy smoke days a year, last 10 years28.141 / 56343 / 3,143
Earthquakes M4+ within 50 mi since 1900528 / 56678 / 3,143
Earthquakes M2.5+ in the county since 19730——

Neighbouring counties

Neighbouring counties
Fergus County28061,47127
Golden Valley County0011,6040
Judith Basin County18052,9290
Meagher County3061,8456
Sweet Grass County20208,83510

Sources and vintage

Every number on this page comes from these public records.

  • Tornadoes NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, through 2025.
  • Tropical cyclones NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 (Atlantic; Northeast and Central Pacific), through 2025.
  • Wildfire USGS/USFS Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity, through 2026.
  • Storm events NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, through 2026.
  • Flood insurance OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026.
  • Declarations OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, retrieved October 30, 2026.
  • Weather records NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, station USC00243939.
  • River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
  • Drought NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, through September 2026.
  • Smoke NOAA NESDIS Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, retrieved October 30, 2026.
  • Earthquakes USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat), retrieved October 30, 2026.

Joins, thresholds and known limits are set out in the methodology. Found an error? Report it. Page built October 30, 2026.