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Thorn Creek at Glenwood

Highest listed crest 11.14 ftFlood stage 8.5 ft62 crests since 1949

The Thorn Creek at Glenwood crested above flood stage 55 times among the 62 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1949 to 2020. The highest, 11.14 ft on July 13, 1957, was moderate flooding, 2.64 feet above flood stage. 1 other gauge on the Thorn Creek crested above flood stage within a week of it.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
11.14 ft
July 13, 1957; 2,460 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
8.5 ft
Major flooding from 12.5 ft
Crests at major
0
55 above flood stage
Most recent flood crest
May 17, 2020
9.03 ft, minor flooding
Location
Cook County
Near Chicago Heights (1.5 mi), Homewood (2.8 mi), Hazel Crest (4.5 mi)

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Thorn Creek at Glenwood
Action stage7.07Apr 29, 2020The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)8.551May 17, 2020Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage11.04Sep 13, 2008Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage12.50—Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

62 crests from 1949 to 2020. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Thorn Creek at Glenwood, 1949 to 2020 68101214ft Flood stage 8.5 ftMajor 12.5 ft Dec 22, 1949: 9.11 ft, minor flooding; 780 cubic feet per secondMay 10, 1951: 9.35 ft, minor flooding; 831 cubic feet per secondJun 14, 1952: 9.12 ft, minor flooding; 780 cubic feet per secondJun 10, 1953: 9.63 ft, minor flooding; 848 cubic feet per secondMar 25, 1954: 8.83 ft, minor flooding; 729 cubic feet per secondOct 10, 1954: 9.88 ft, minor flooding; 1,180 cubic feet per secondApr 29, 1956: 9.21 ft, minor flooding; 830 cubic feet per secondJul 13, 1957: 11.14 ft, moderate flooding; 2,460 cubic feet per secondAug 15, 1958: 9.52 ft, minor flooding; 950 cubic feet per secondApr 28, 1959: 9.71 ft, minor flooding; 1,060 cubic feet per secondJan 12, 1960: 8.44 ft, action stage; 661 cubic feet per secondSep 23, 1961: 9.97 ft, minor flooding; 1,220 cubic feet per secondMay 7, 1962: 8.13 ft, action stage; 610 cubic feet per secondJul 19, 1963: 8.31 ft, action stage; 528 cubic feet per secondSep 20, 1964: 7.92 ft, action stage; 464 cubic feet per secondSep 14, 1965: 8.95 ft, minor flooding; 756 cubic feet per secondDec 24, 1965: 10.49 ft, minor flooding; 1,690 cubic feet per secondApr 1, 1967: 9.46 ft, minor flooding; 920 cubic feet per secondJul 30, 1969: 8.82 ft, minor flooding; 636 cubic feet per secondMay 14, 1970: 9.73 ft, minor flooding; 1,080 cubic feet per secondDec 10, 1971: 9.43 ft, minor flooding; 905 cubic feet per secondJun 7, 1974: 11.03 ft, moderate flooding; 2,300 cubic feet per secondMay 30, 1975: 9.06 ft, minor flooding; 715 cubic feet per secondMay 6, 1976: 9.75 ft, minor flooding; 1,200 cubic feet per secondSep 18, 1977: 9.69 ft, minor flooding; 1,180 cubic feet per secondMay 13, 1978: 9.72 ft, minor flooding; 1,190 cubic feet per secondMar 4, 1979: 10.17 ft, minor flooding; 1,420 cubic feet per secondJun 1, 1980: 9.66 ft, minor flooding; 1,180 cubic feet per secondJun 13, 1981: 11.07 ft, moderate flooding; 2,310 cubic feet per secondMay 22, 1982: 10.90 ft, minor flooding; 2,120 cubic feet per secondDec 3, 1982: 10.98 ft, minor flooding; 2,210 cubic feet per secondMar 15, 1984: 10.29 ft, minor flooding; 1,530 cubic feet per secondFeb 23, 1985: 9.50 ft, minor flooding; 957 cubic feet per secondNov 18, 1985: 9.94 ft, minor flooding; 1,250 cubic feet per secondJun 1, 1987: 9.71 ft, minor flooding; 1,090 cubic feet per secondAug 10, 1988: 8.08 ft, action stage; 517 cubic feet per secondJun 1, 1989: 10.49 ft, minor flooding; 1,710 cubic feet per secondMay 10, 1990: 9.78 ft, minor flooding; 1,130 cubic feet per secondSep 9, 1992: 9.42 ft, minor flooding; 908 cubic feet per secondJul 2, 1993: 10.22 ft, minor flooding; 1,470 cubic feet per secondJul 18, 1996: 10.29 ft, minor flooding; 2,700 cubic feet per secondFeb 21, 1997: 10.08 ft, minor flooding; 1,370 cubic feet per secondMay 7, 1998: 9.82 ft, minor flooding; 1,180 cubic feet per secondApr 27, 1999: 9.69 ft, minor flooding; 1,100 cubic feet per secondJun 20, 2000: 9.62 ft, minor flooding; 1,050 cubic feet per secondNov 18, 2003: 9.07 ft, minor flooding; 867 cubic feet per secondJan 13, 2005: 9.94 ft, minor flooding; 1,270 cubic feet per secondApr 17, 2006: 10.29 ft, minor flooding; 1,700 cubic feet per secondAug 24, 2007: 9.67 ft, minor flooding; 1,080 cubic feet per secondSep 13, 2008: 11.00 ft, moderate flooding; 2,240 cubic feet per secondDec 27, 2008: 8.76 ft, minor flooding; 817 cubic feet per secondOct 30, 2009: 8.67 ft, minor flooding; 805 cubic feet per secondJun 9, 2011: 10.08 ft, minor flooding; 1,380 cubic feet per secondApr 18, 2013: 10.34 ft, minor flooding; 2,320 cubic feet per secondJun 15, 2015: 8.76 ft, minor flooding; 1,200 cubic feet per secondFeb 20, 2018: 10.56 ft, minor flooding; 2,560 cubic feet per secondMay 1, 2019: 9.21 ft, minor flooding; 1,300 cubic feet per secondJun 27, 2019: 9.64 ft, minor flooding; 1,650 cubic feet per secondOct 26, 2019: 7.50 ft, action stage; 915 cubic feet per secondJan 11, 2020: 8.52 ft, minor flooding; 1,150 cubic feet per secondApr 29, 2020: 7.59 ft, action stage; 936 cubic feet per secondMay 17, 2020: 9.03 ft, minor flooding; 1,280 cubic feet per second Highest, 11.14 ft, Jul 13, 1957 19501960197019801990200020102020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Thorn Creek at Glenwood 1940s: 1 1950s: 9 9 1960s: 5 1970s: 8 1980s: 9 1990s: 7 2000s: 8 2010s: 6 2020s: 2 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 62 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Thorn Creek at Glenwood
1Jul 13, 195711.14+2.64Moderate2,460
2Jun 13, 198111.07+2.57Moderate2,310
3Jun 7, 197411.03+2.53Moderate2,300
4Sep 13, 200811.00+2.50Moderate2,240
5Dec 3, 198210.98+2.48Minor2,210
6May 22, 198210.90+2.40Minor2,120
7Feb 20, 201810.56+2.06Minor2,560
8Dec 24, 196510.49+1.99Minor1,690
9Jun 1, 198910.49+1.99Minor1,710
10Apr 18, 201310.34+1.84Minor2,320
11Mar 15, 198410.29+1.79Minor1,530
12Jul 18, 199610.29+1.79Minor2,700
13Apr 17, 200610.29+1.79Minor1,700
14Jul 2, 199310.22+1.72Minor1,470
15Mar 4, 197910.17+1.67Minor1,420
16Feb 21, 199710.08+1.58Minor1,370
17Jun 9, 201110.08+1.58Minor1,380
18Sep 23, 19619.97+1.47Minor1,220
19Nov 18, 19859.94+1.44Minor1,250
20Jan 13, 20059.94+1.44Minor1,270
21Oct 10, 19549.88+1.38Minor1,180
22May 7, 19989.82+1.32Minor1,180
23May 10, 19909.78+1.28Minor1,130
24May 6, 19769.75+1.25Minor1,200
25May 14, 19709.73+1.23Minor1,080
26May 13, 19789.72+1.22Minor1,190
27Apr 28, 19599.71+1.21Minor1,060
28Jun 1, 19879.71+1.21Minor1,090
29Sep 18, 19779.69+1.19Minor1,180
30Apr 27, 19999.69+1.19Minor1,100
31Aug 24, 20079.67+1.17Minor1,080
32Jun 1, 19809.66+1.16Minor1,180
33Jun 27, 20199.64+1.14Minor1,650
34Jun 10, 19539.63+1.13Minor848
35Jun 20, 20009.62+1.12Minor1,050
36Aug 15, 19589.52+1.02Minor950
37Feb 23, 19859.50+1.00Minor957
38Apr 1, 19679.46+0.96Minor920
39Dec 10, 19719.43+0.93Minor905
40Sep 9, 19929.42+0.92Minor908
41May 10, 19519.35+0.85Minor831
42Apr 29, 19569.21+0.71Minor830
43May 1, 20199.21+0.71Minor1,300
44Jun 14, 19529.12+0.62Minor780
45Dec 22, 19499.11+0.61Minor780
46Nov 18, 20039.07+0.57Minor867
47May 30, 19759.06+0.56Minor715
48May 17, 20209.03+0.53Minor1,280
49Sep 14, 19658.95+0.45Minor756
50Mar 25, 19548.83+0.33Minor729

The worst floods along the Thorn Creek

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

July 13, 1957: 11.14 ft here, moderate flooding

  • ThorntonIL · Jul 13, 1957 · 16.00 ft · Major

June 13, 1981: 11.07 ft here, moderate flooding

  • ThorntonIL · Jun 14, 1981 · 17.06 ft · Major · its highest

June 7, 1974: 11.03 ft here, moderate flooding

  • ThorntonIL · Jun 7, 1974 · 14.36 ft · Moderate

Gauges on the Thorn Creek

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

Flood gauges on the Thorn Creek
Glenwood this gaugeIL8.511.14 ft, Jul 13, 19570
ThorntonIL9.017.06 ft, Jun 14, 19816

Other gauges in Cook County

Flood gauges in Cook County
Bellwood9.013.57 ft, Jul 24, 20104
Wheeling5.08.46 ft, Jun 26, 20136
Flossmoor9.013.08 ft, Apr 17, 20060
Markham10.012.00 ft, Oct 11, 19542
Chicago (Columbus Dr)3.05.50 ft, Oct 10, 19542
Chicago (Western Ave)4.05.26 ft, May 17, 20200
Chicago Heights10.012.87 ft, Sep 15, 20080
Des Plaines (Algonquin Road)13.021.00 ft, Sep 14, 20082
Lyons18.022.87 ft, Apr 18, 20132
River Forest16.018.98 ft, Apr 19, 20131
Riverside7.511.28 ft, Apr 18, 20137
Des Plaines15.020.92 ft, Apr 19, 20135
Lemont10.013.24 ft, May 18, 20200
Willow Springs10.010.57 ft, Apr 18, 20130
Lake Michigan at Calumet Harbor5.06.07 ft, Aug 11, 20200
Lake Michigan at Chicago (Chicago Lock)4.05.98 ft, Apr 29, 20200
Lansing7.010.18 ft, Oct 11, 19540
South Holland16.020.50 ft, Nov 28, 19905
Lemont6.011.10 ft, Jul 18, 19961
Mount Prospect5.08.08 ft, Aug 14, 19872
Oak Forest6.09.50 ft, Apr 5, 19472
Midlothian8.59.98 ft, Feb 2, 20160
Chicago (Grand Ave)3.05.70 ft, Oct 10, 19543
Chicago (Pulaski Rd)18.022.50 ft, Aug 14, 19871
Niles10.012.13 ft, Sep 14, 20082
Elgin5.57.69 ft, Sep 13, 20080
Elk Grove Village17.020.80 ft, May 18, 20200
Rolling Meadows8.514.03 ft, Aug 14, 19870
Western Springs7.510.65 ft, Apr 18, 20130
Worth31.036.50 ft, Oct 11, 19542
Thornton9.017.06 ft, Jun 14, 19816
Palos Park9.010.30 ft, Oct 10, 19540
Des Plaines9.015.09 ft, Jun 10, 19677
Northbrook7.010.10 ft, Aug 14, 19877

Cook County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Illinois

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge GLWI2, 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.