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Kansas River at Lawrence

Highest listed crest 29.90 ftFlood stage 18.0 ft58 crests since 1844

The Kansas River at Lawrence crested at major flood stage 2 times among the 58 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1844 to 2019. The highest, 29.90 ft on July 1, 1844, was major flooding, 11.90 feet above flood stage.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
29.90 ft
July 1, 1844
Flood stage
18.0 ft
Major flooding from 29.0 ft
Crests at major
2
29th of 171 gauges in Kansas
Most recent flood crest
August 31, 2019
18.17 ft, minor flooding
Location
Douglas County
Near Lawrence (1.9 mi)

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Kansas River at Lawrence
Action stage15.00—The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)18.032Aug 31, 2019Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage20.024Jun 24, 2019Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage29.02Jul 13, 1951Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

58 crests from 1844 to 2019. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Kansas River at Lawrence, 1844 to 2019 18202224262830ft Flood stage 18.0 ftMajor 29.0 ft Jul 1, 1844: 29.90 ft, major floodingMay 31, 1903: 28.00 ft, moderate floodingJul 1, 1904: 22.00 ft, moderate floodingJun 9, 1908: 24.80 ft, moderate floodingJun 20, 1915: 20.50 ft, moderate floodingMar 17, 1919: 18.10 ft, minor floodingApr 20, 1929: 18.50 ft, minor floodingMay 8, 1930: 18.00 ft, minor floodingMay 28, 1935: 19.00 ft, minor floodingJun 6, 1935: 21.60 ft, moderate floodingJun 11, 1941: 21.00 ft, moderate floodingOct 11, 1941: 20.80 ft, moderate floodingOct 21, 1941: 19.70 ft, minor floodingJun 21, 1942: 18.80 ft, minor floodingJun 11, 1943: 21.00 ft, moderate floodingJun 18, 1943: 23.40 ft, moderate floodingApr 24, 1944: 22.80 ft, moderate floodingMay 4, 1944: 20.50 ft, moderate floodingAug 28, 1944: 19.50 ft, minor floodingApr 17, 1945: 22.00 ft, moderate floodingMay 17, 1945: 18.50 ft, minor floodingMay 25, 1945: 19.30 ft, minor floodingJun 17, 1945: 19.60 ft, minor floodingJul 1, 1945: 18.50 ft, minor floodingJul 20, 1950: 21.50 ft, moderate floodingMay 2, 1951: 20.10 ft, moderate floodingJun 23, 1951: 25.10 ft, moderate floodingJun 30, 1951: 24.00 ft, moderate floodingJul 7, 1951: 18.50 ft, minor floodingJul 13, 1951: 29.90 ft, major floodingSep 6, 1951: 21.30 ft, moderate floodingMar 29, 1960: 18.80 ft, minor floodingFeb 1, 1962: 18.50 ft, minor floodingJun 23, 1965: 18.30 ft, minor floodingJun 12, 1967: 18.00 ft, minor floodingJun 21, 1967: 19.50 ft, minor floodingSep 28, 1973: 18.90 ft, minor floodingOct 12, 1973: 22.20 ft, moderate floodingJul 27, 1993: 26.80 ft, moderate floodingMay 18, 1995: 19.75 ft, minor floodingMay 24, 1995: 21.05 ft, moderate floodingMay 28, 1995: 18.68 ft, minor floodingApr 11, 1997: 18.30 ft, minor floodingNov 3, 1998: 19.35 ft, minor floodingApr 16, 1999: 18.40 ft, minor floodingApr 28, 1999: 18.85 ft, minor floodingJun 29, 1999: 18.82 ft, minor floodingMay 8, 2007: 20.15 ft, moderate floodingJun 3, 2012: 18.62 ft, minor floodingJun 6, 2015: 20.29 ft, moderate floodingApr 28, 2016: 18.62 ft, minor floodingMay 28, 2016: 20.43 ft, moderate floodingMay 9, 2019: 19.06 ft, minor floodingMay 22, 2019: 18.79 ft, minor floodingMay 27, 2019: 18.57 ft, minor floodingMay 31, 2019: 18.42 ft, minor floodingJun 24, 2019: 20.74 ft, moderate floodingAug 31, 2019: 18.17 ft, minor flooding Highest, 29.90 ft, Jul 1, 1844 1880192019602000

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Kansas River at Lawrence 1840s: 1 1850s: 0 1860s: 0 1870s: 0 1880s: 0 1890s: 0 1900s: 3 1910s: 2 1920s: 1 1930s: 3 1940s: 14 14 1950s: 7 1960s: 5 1970s: 2 1980s: 0 1990s: 9 2000s: 1 2010s: 10 1840s1860s1880s1900s1920s1940s1960s1980s2000s
  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 58 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Kansas River at Lawrence
1Jul 1, 184429.90+11.90Major—
2Jul 13, 195129.90+11.90Major—
3May 31, 190328.00+10.00Moderate—
4Jul 27, 199326.80+8.80Moderate—
5Jun 23, 195125.10+7.10Moderate—
6Jun 9, 190824.80+6.80Moderate—
7Jun 30, 195124.00+6.00Moderate—
8Jun 18, 194323.40+5.40Moderate—
9Apr 24, 194422.80+4.80Moderate—
10Oct 12, 197322.20+4.20Moderate—
11Jul 1, 190422.00+4.00Moderate—
12Apr 17, 194522.00+4.00Moderate—
13Jun 6, 193521.60+3.60Moderate—
14Jul 20, 195021.50+3.50Moderate—
15Sep 6, 195121.30+3.30Moderate—
16May 24, 199521.05+3.05Moderate—
17Jun 11, 194121.00+3.00Moderate—
18Jun 11, 194321.00+3.00Moderate—
19Oct 11, 194120.80+2.80Moderate—
20Jun 24, 201920.74+2.74Moderate—
21Jun 20, 191520.50+2.50Moderate—
22May 4, 194420.50+2.50Moderate—
23May 28, 201620.43+2.43Moderate—
24Jun 6, 201520.29+2.29Moderate—
25May 8, 200720.15+2.15Moderate—
26May 2, 195120.10+2.10Moderate—
27May 18, 199519.75+1.75Minor—
28Oct 21, 194119.70+1.70Minor—
29Jun 17, 194519.60+1.60Minor—
30Aug 28, 194419.50+1.50Minor—
31Jun 21, 196719.50+1.50Minor—
32Nov 3, 199819.35+1.35Minor—
33May 25, 194519.30+1.30Minor—
34May 9, 201919.06+1.06Minor—
35May 28, 193519.00+1.00Minor—
36Sep 28, 197318.90+0.90Minor—
37Apr 28, 199918.85+0.85Minor—
38Jun 29, 199918.82+0.82Minor—
39Jun 21, 194218.80+0.80Minor—
40Mar 29, 196018.80+0.80Minor—
41May 22, 201918.79+0.79Minor—
42May 28, 199518.68+0.68Minor—
43Jun 3, 201218.62+0.62Minor—
44Apr 28, 201618.62+0.62Minor—
45May 27, 201918.57+0.57Minor—
46Apr 20, 192918.50+0.50Minor—
47May 17, 194518.50+0.50Minor—
48Jul 1, 194518.50+0.50Minor—
49Jul 7, 195118.50+0.50Minor—
50Feb 1, 196218.50+0.50Minor—

The worst floods along the Kansas River

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

July 13, 1951: 29.90 ft here, major flooding

  • 23rd Street - Kansas City - KSKS · Jul 14, 1951 · 61.30 ft · Major · its highest
  • De SotoKS · Jul 13, 1951 · 37.30 ft · Major · its highest
  • Ft. RileyKS · Jul 13, 1951 · 34.50 ft · Major
  • LecomptonKS · Jul 13, 1951 · 30.23 ft · Major · its highest
  • TopekaKS · Jul 13, 1951 · 40.80 ft · Moderate
  • ManhattanKS · Jul 13, 1951 · 33.39 ft · Moderate
  • WamegoKS · Jul 13, 1951 · 30.56 ft · Moderate · its highest

May 31, 1903: 28.00 ft here, moderate flooding

July 27, 1993: 26.80 ft here, moderate flooding

  • 23rd Street - Kansas City - KSKS · Jul 28, 1993 · 54.80 ft · Moderate
  • Turner BridgeKS · Jul 27, 1993 · 53.64 ft · Moderate · its highest
  • TopekaKS · Jul 24, 1993 · 34.97 ft · Moderate
  • ManhattanKS · Jul 25, 1993 · 29.92 ft · Moderate
  • Ft. RileyKS · Jul 26, 1993 · 27.93 ft · Moderate
  • WamegoKS · Jul 26, 1993 · 27.33 ft · Moderate
  • LecomptonKS · Jul 27, 1993 · 24.65 ft · Moderate
  • De SotoKS · Jul 27, 1993 · 26.91 ft · Minor
  • BelvueKS · Jul 26, 1993 · 26.00 ft · Minor · its highest

Gauges on the Kansas River

Flood gauges sharing the river's name, linked within 80 miles of one another.

Flood gauges on the Kansas River
23rd Street - Kansas City - KSKS33.061.30 ft, Jul 14, 19511
De SotoKS26.037.30 ft, Jul 13, 19511
Ft. RileyKS21.034.50 ft, Jul 1, 19512
Lawrence this gaugeKS18.029.90 ft, Jul 1, 18442
LecomptonKS17.030.23 ft, Jul 13, 19512
ManhattanKS18.040.00 ft, Jun 1, 18440
TopekaKS26.047.20 ft, Jun 1, 18441
Turner BridgeKS41.053.64 ft, Jul 27, 19930
WamegoKS19.030.56 ft, Jul 13, 19510
BelvueKS20.026.00 ft, Jul 26, 19930
Lake QuiviraKS26.028.14 ft, May 28, 20160

Other gauges in Douglas County

Flood gauges in Douglas County
Lawrence23.031.59 ft, Jul 12, 19510

Douglas County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Kansas

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge LWRK1, 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.