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Chariton River near Chariton

Highest listed crest 29.32 ftFlood stage 19.5 ft66 crests since 1947

The Chariton River near Chariton crested at major flood stage 1 time among the 66 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1947 to 2025. The highest, 29.32 ft on September 15, 1992, was major flooding, 9.82 feet above flood stage.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
29.32 ft
September 15, 1992; 37,700 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
19.5 ft
Major flooding from 29.0 ft
Crests at major
1
93rd of 203 gauges in Iowa
Most recent flood crest
May 29, 2019
19.89 ft, minor flooding
Location
Lucas County
Iowa

Flood stages

The thresholds the National Weather Service uses for this gauge today, and how many listed crests reached each.

Flood categories, Chariton River near Chariton
Action stage16.039Jul 21, 2025The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)19.520May 29, 2019Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage26.00—Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage29.01Sep 15, 1992Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

66 crests from 1947 to 2025. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Chariton River near Chariton, 1947 to 2025 1015202530ft Flood stage 19.5 ftMajor 29.0 ft Jun 5, 1947: 21.65 ft, minor flooding; 11,000 cubic feet per secondMar 1, 1960: 23.00 ft, minor flooding; 15,000 cubic feet per secondFeb 9, 1966: 15.90 ft, below flood stage; 1,360 cubic feet per secondJun 21, 1967: 19.53 ft, minor flooding; 4,930 cubic feet per secondApr 23, 1968: 19.90 ft, minor flooding; 5,660 cubic feet per secondJul 13, 1969: 16.77 ft, action stage; 1,640 cubic feet per secondAug 8, 1970: 20.15 ft, minor flooding; 6,320 cubic feet per secondOct 9, 1970: 17.28 ft, action stage; 2,080 cubic feet per secondFeb 19, 1971: 17.60 ft, action stageSep 14, 1972: 18.08 ft, action stage; 2,820 cubic feet per secondApr 16, 1973: 18.02 ft, action stage; 2,740 cubic feet per secondOct 12, 1973: 20.20 ft, minor flooding; 6,300 cubic feet per secondJun 28, 1975: 16.82 ft, action stage; 1,670 cubic feet per secondJun 14, 1976: 20.35 ft, minor flooding; 5,460 cubic feet per secondAug 27, 1977: 17.27 ft, action stage; 1,490 cubic feet per secondSep 21, 1978: 19.79 ft, minor flooding; 3,660 cubic feet per secondMar 4, 1979: 18.24 ft, action stageMar 24, 1979: 17.75 ft, action stage; 1,890 cubic feet per secondJun 2, 1980: 20.84 ft, minor flooding; 7,000 cubic feet per secondJul 4, 1981: 23.14 ft, minor flooding; 16,600 cubic feet per secondJul 16, 1982: 19.85 ft, minor flooding; 4,650 cubic feet per secondOct 9, 1982: 20.74 ft, minor flooding; 6,530 cubic feet per secondApr 30, 1984: 17.07 ft, action stage; 1,970 cubic feet per secondJun 8, 1984: 17.17 ft, action stageJul 31, 1985: 19.01 ft, action stage; 5,120 cubic feet per secondMay 17, 1986: 19.04 ft, action stage; 3,460 cubic feet per secondAug 26, 1987: 19.62 ft, minor flooding; 6,720 cubic feet per secondNov 29, 1987: 16.40 ft, action stage; 1,840 cubic feet per secondSep 9, 1989: 15.01 ft, below flood stage; 1,200 cubic feet per secondMay 25, 1990: 18.31 ft, action stage; 3,730 cubic feet per secondApr 19, 1991: 19.07 ft, action stage; 6,010 cubic feet per secondSep 15, 1992: 29.32 ft, major flooding; 37,700 cubic feet per secondJul 5, 1993: 22.60 ft, minor flooding; 14,900 cubic feet per secondMar 5, 1994: 16.10 ft, action stage; 1,660 cubic feet per secondMay 8, 1995: 18.22 ft, action stage; 4,120 cubic feet per secondMay 10, 1996: 18.30 ft, action stage; 5,040 cubic feet per secondFeb 21, 1997: 17.46 ft, action stage; 3,620 cubic feet per secondMay 7, 1998: 17.83 ft, action stage; 4,240 cubic feet per secondOct 18, 1998: 17.41 ft, action stage; 2,460 cubic feet per secondJun 26, 2000: 16.26 ft, action stage; 1,490 cubic feet per secondMay 14, 2001: 17.70 ft, action stage; 3,030 cubic feet per secondMay 11, 2002: 17.98 ft, action stage; 2,880 cubic feet per secondMay 5, 2003: 12.61 ft, below flood stage; 748 cubic feet per secondAug 28, 2004: 17.78 ft, action stage; 3,050 cubic feet per secondApr 12, 2005: 17.31 ft, action stage; 2,950 cubic feet per secondMay 1, 2006: 10.34 ft, below flood stage; 479 cubic feet per secondMay 8, 2007: 19.28 ft, action stage; 6,340 cubic feet per secondJul 28, 2008: 20.33 ft, minor flooding; 6,410 cubic feet per secondAug 27, 2009: 18.65 ft, action stage; 3,670 cubic feet per secondJul 20, 2010: 20.23 ft, minor flooding; 6,250 cubic feet per secondJun 27, 2011: 18.13 ft, action stage; 3,550 cubic feet per secondMay 2, 2012: 16.86 ft, action stage; 2,410 cubic feet per secondApr 18, 2013: 20.98 ft, minor flooding; 10,000 cubic feet per secondSep 10, 2014: 18.99 ft, action stage; 4,640 cubic feet per secondJun 25, 2015: 20.79 ft, minor flooding; 7,180 cubic feet per secondDec 14, 2015: 18.30 ft, action stage; 3,720 cubic feet per secondApr 6, 2017: 18.10 ft, action stage; 2,580 cubic feet per secondSep 6, 2018: 15.27 ft, below flood stage; 1,550 cubic feet per secondOct 9, 2018: 19.98 ft, minor floodingMay 29, 2019: 19.89 ft, minor flooding; 6,900 cubic feet per secondMay 15, 2020: 17.86 ft, action stage; 3,680 cubic feet per secondJul 15, 2021: 18.10 ft, action stage; 4,240 cubic feet per secondNov 11, 2021: 17.68 ft, action stage; 3,790 cubic feet per secondFeb 27, 2023: 12.94 ft, below flood stage; 1,010 cubic feet per secondMay 3, 2024: 17.63 ft, action stage; 3,600 cubic feet per secondJul 21, 2025: 18.60 ft, action stage; 4,550 cubic feet per second Highest, 29.32 ft, Sep 15, 1992 19501960197019801990200020102020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Chariton River near Chariton 1940s: 1 1950s: 0 1960s: 3 1970s: 4 1980s: 5 5 1990s: 2 2000s: 1 2010s: 5 2020s: 0 1940s1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
  1. These are the crests the local National Weather Service office lists for the gauge: the highest on record and recent crests. Lesser floods between them may be missing, so counts by decade are a floor.
  2. Categories use today's flood stages. Levees, dams and channel changes since a crest can make old and new stages not directly comparable.

Highest crests

The 50 highest of 66 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Chariton River near Chariton
1Sep 15, 199229.32+9.82Major37,700
2Jul 4, 198123.14+3.64Minor16,600
3Mar 1, 196023.00+3.50Minor15,000
4Jul 5, 199322.60+3.10Minor14,900
5Jun 5, 194721.65+2.15Minor11,000
6Apr 18, 201320.98+1.48Minor10,000
7Jun 2, 198020.84+1.34Minor7,000
8Jun 25, 201520.79+1.29Minor7,180
9Oct 9, 198220.74+1.24Minor6,530
10Jun 14, 197620.35+0.85Minor5,460
11Jul 28, 200820.33+0.83Minor6,410
12Jul 20, 201020.23+0.73Minor6,250
13Oct 12, 197320.20+0.70Minor6,300
14Aug 8, 197020.15+0.65Minor6,320
15Oct 9, 201819.98+0.48Minor—
16Apr 23, 196819.90+0.40Minor5,660
17May 29, 201919.89+0.39Minor6,900
18Jul 16, 198219.85+0.35Minor4,650
19Sep 21, 197819.79+0.29Minor3,660
20Aug 26, 198719.62+0.12Minor6,720
21Jun 21, 196719.53+0.03Minor4,930
22May 8, 200719.28−0.22Action6,340
23Apr 19, 199119.07−0.43Action6,010
24May 17, 198619.04−0.46Action3,460
25Jul 31, 198519.01−0.49Action5,120
26Sep 10, 201418.99−0.51Action4,640
27Aug 27, 200918.65−0.85Action3,670
28Jul 21, 202518.60−0.90Action4,550
29May 25, 199018.31−1.19Action3,730
30May 10, 199618.30−1.20Action5,040
31Dec 14, 201518.30−1.20Action3,720
32Mar 4, 197918.24−1.26Action—
33May 8, 199518.22−1.28Action4,120
34Jun 27, 201118.13−1.37Action3,550
35Apr 6, 201718.10−1.40Action2,580
36Jul 15, 202118.10−1.40Action4,240
37Sep 14, 197218.08−1.42Action2,820
38Apr 16, 197318.02−1.48Action2,740
39May 11, 200217.98−1.52Action2,880
40May 15, 202017.86−1.64Action3,680
41May 7, 199817.83−1.67Action4,240
42Aug 28, 200417.78−1.72Action3,050
43Mar 24, 197917.75−1.75Action1,890
44May 14, 200117.70−1.80Action3,030
45Nov 11, 202117.68−1.82Action3,790
46May 3, 202417.63−1.87Action3,600
47Feb 19, 197117.60−1.90Action—
48Feb 21, 199717.46−2.04Action3,620
49Oct 18, 199817.41−2.09Action2,460
50Apr 12, 200517.31−2.19Action2,950

The worst floods along the Chariton River

For this gauge's highest crests, the other gauges on the Chariton River that crested above flood stage within a week.

July 4, 1981: 23.14 ft here, minor flooding

  • NovingerMO · Jul 5, 1981 · 23.07 ft · Moderate
  • Prairie HillMO · Jul 6, 1981 · 20.77 ft · Moderate
  • MoultonIA · Jul 5, 1981 · 36.17 ft · Minor

July 5, 1993: 22.60 ft here, minor flooding

June 5, 1947: 21.65 ft here, minor flooding

  • MoultonIA · Jun 1, 1947 · 45.00 ft · Major · its highest
  • NovingerMO · Jun 7, 1947 · 28.50 ft · Major

Gauges on the Chariton River

In USGS station-number order, which runs downstream within a river basin.

Flood gauges on the Chariton River
Chariton this gaugeIA19.529.32 ft, Sep 15, 19921
Rathbun ReservoirIA926.0927.16 ft, Jul 28, 19930
MoultonIA36.045.00 ft, Jun 1, 19471
NovingerMO20.028.60 ft, Jun 1, 191712
Prairie HillMO15.024.26 ft, May 31, 201923

Lucas County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Iowa

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge CHTI4, retrieved October 30, 2026. Stages in feet on the gauge's own datum, not elevation. Crests are as the National Weather Service lists them; preliminary values may be revised.