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Prairie Dog Creek near Clayton 4E

Highest listed crest 16.81 ftFlood stage 11.0 ft61 crests since 1963

The Prairie Dog Creek near Clayton 4E crested at major flood stage 3 times among the 61 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1963 to 2025. The highest, 16.81 ft on September 6, 1972, was major flooding, 5.81 feet above flood stage.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
16.81 ft
September 6, 1972; 8,880 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
11.0 ft
Major flooding from 14.0 ft
Crests at major
3
18th of 171 gauges in Kansas
Most recent flood crest
May 27, 2019
12.66 ft, moderate flooding
Location
Norton County
Kansas

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Prairie Dog Creek near Clayton 4E
Action stage9.05May 13, 2023The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)11.01Jul 9, 1988Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage12.011May 27, 2019Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage14.03Sep 4, 2016Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

61 crests from 1963 to 2025. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Prairie Dog Creek near Clayton 4E, 1963 to 2025 05101520ft Flood stage 11.0 ftMajor 14.0 ft Sep 22, 1963: 7.27 ft, below flood stage; 619 cubic feet per secondJul 11, 1964: 8.87 ft, below flood stage; 827 cubic feet per secondJun 13, 1965: 12.06 ft, moderate flooding; 4,680 cubic feet per secondOct 18, 1966: 9.58 ft, action stage; 1,280 cubic feet per secondJun 14, 1967: 10.81 ft, action stage; 2,020 cubic feet per secondJul 27, 1968: 7.21 ft, below flood stage; 678 cubic feet per secondMay 8, 1969: 7.08 ft, below flood stage; 726 cubic feet per secondJun 20, 1970: 8.03 ft, below flood stage; 908 cubic feet per secondMay 29, 1971: 8.04 ft, below flood stage; 910 cubic feet per secondSep 6, 1972: 16.81 ft, major flooding; 8,880 cubic feet per secondJul 14, 1973: 7.37 ft, below flood stage; 770 cubic feet per secondJun 11, 1974: 6.53 ft, below flood stage; 354 cubic feet per secondJun 8, 1975: 12.10 ft, moderate flooding; 970 cubic feet per secondMay 22, 1976: 6.40 ft, below flood stage; 264 cubic feet per secondAug 24, 1977: 13.15 ft, moderate flooding; 1,590 cubic feet per secondJul 22, 1978: 6.68 ft, below flood stage; 299 cubic feet per secondAug 26, 1979: 8.28 ft, below flood stage; 449 cubic feet per secondApr 4, 1980: 3.91 ft, below flood stage; 13 cubic feet per secondJul 26, 1981: 4.39 ft, below flood stage; 41 cubic feet per secondJul 1, 1982: 7.42 ft, below flood stage; 373 cubic feet per secondMay 19, 1983: 5.49 ft, below flood stage; 163 cubic feet per secondApr 3, 1984: 4.28 ft, below flood stage; 30 cubic feet per secondJul 29, 1985: 5.61 ft, below flood stage; 183 cubic feet per secondMay 8, 1986: 12.34 ft, moderate flooding; 1,490 cubic feet per secondJul 8, 1987: 12.10 ft, moderate flooding; 821 cubic feet per secondJul 9, 1988: 11.27 ft, minor flooding; 808 cubic feet per secondJul 1, 1989: 8.76 ft, below flood stage; 487 cubic feet per secondJul 27, 1990: 8.52 ft, below flood stage; 459 cubic feet per secondJun 8, 1991: 8.40 ft, below flood stage; 445 cubic feet per secondAug 7, 1992: 12.60 ft, moderate flooding; 1,750 cubic feet per secondMar 8, 1993: 12.34 ft, moderate flooding; 1,130 cubic feet per secondJul 8, 1994: 12.28 ft, moderate flooding; 962 cubic feet per secondMay 28, 1995: 6.72 ft, below flood stage; 170 cubic feet per secondJun 23, 1996: 13.90 ft, moderate flooding; 4,640 cubic feet per secondSep 8, 1997: 4.81 ft, below flood stage; 61 cubic feet per secondJul 30, 1998: 6.82 ft, below flood stage; 273 cubic feet per secondAug 2, 1999: 10.60 ft, action stage; 723 cubic feet per secondJun 30, 2000: 4.09 ft, below flood stage; 19 cubic feet per secondApr 23, 2003: 3.82 ft, below flood stage; 8 cubic feet per secondFeb 22, 2004: 3.76 ft, below flood stage; 7 cubic feet per secondSep 6, 2005: 8.66 ft, below flood stage; 438 cubic feet per secondJun 17, 2006: 4.83 ft, below flood stage; 88 cubic feet per secondFeb 24, 2007: 7.28 ft, below flood stage; 321 cubic feet per secondMay 24, 2008: 14.30 ft, major flooding; 1,840 cubic feet per secondAug 19, 2009: 5.82 ft, below flood stage; 153 cubic feet per secondJun 12, 2010: 13.04 ft, moderate flooding; 1,290 cubic feet per secondAug 10, 2011: 6.97 ft, below flood stage; 244 cubic feet per secondOct 8, 2012: 6.20 ft, below flood stage; 177 cubic feet per secondMar 6, 2013: 3.78 ft, below flood stage; 9 cubic feet per secondJun 9, 2014: 4.66 ft, below flood stage; 58 cubic feet per secondJun 15, 2015: 7.51 ft, below flood stage; 295 cubic feet per secondSep 4, 2016: 14.49 ft, major flooding; 2,140 cubic feet per secondAug 6, 2017: 4.98 ft, below flood stage; 100 cubic feet per secondJul 27, 2018: 9.30 ft, action stage; 488 cubic feet per secondMay 27, 2019: 12.66 ft, moderate flooding; 1,110 cubic feet per secondMay 25, 2020: 4.78 ft, below flood stage; 79 cubic feet per secondJul 8, 2021: 4.43 ft, below flood stage; 49 cubic feet per secondJun 8, 2022: 7.18 ft, below flood stage; 255 cubic feet per secondMay 13, 2023: 9.55 ft, action stage; 490 cubic feet per secondMay 20, 2024: 5.10 ft, below flood stage; 91 cubic feet per secondJul 5, 2025: 7.64 ft, below flood stage; 298 cubic feet per second Highest, 16.81 ft, Sep 6, 1972 197019801990200020102020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Prairie Dog Creek near Clayton 4E 1960s: 1 1970s: 3 1980s: 3 1990s: 4 4 2000s: 1 2010s: 3 2020s: 0 1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
  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 61 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Prairie Dog Creek near Clayton 4E
1Sep 6, 197216.81+5.81Major8,880
2Sep 4, 201614.49+3.49Major2,140
3May 24, 200814.30+3.30Major1,840
4Jun 23, 199613.90+2.90Moderate4,640
5Aug 24, 197713.15+2.15Moderate1,590
6Jun 12, 201013.04+2.04Moderate1,290
7May 27, 201912.66+1.66Moderate1,110
8Aug 7, 199212.60+1.60Moderate1,750
9May 8, 198612.34+1.34Moderate1,490
10Mar 8, 199312.34+1.34Moderate1,130
11Jul 8, 199412.28+1.28Moderate962
12Jun 8, 197512.10+1.10Moderate970
13Jul 8, 198712.10+1.10Moderate821
14Jun 13, 196512.06+1.06Moderate4,680
15Jul 9, 198811.27+0.27Minor808
16Jun 14, 196710.81−0.19Action2,020
17Aug 2, 199910.60−0.40Action723
18Oct 18, 19669.58−1.42Action1,280
19May 13, 20239.55−1.45Action490
20Jul 27, 20189.30−1.70Action488
21Jul 11, 19648.87−2.13Below flood stage827
22Jul 1, 19898.76−2.24Below flood stage487
23Sep 6, 20058.66−2.34Below flood stage438
24Jul 27, 19908.52−2.48Below flood stage459
25Jun 8, 19918.40−2.60Below flood stage445
26Aug 26, 19798.28−2.72Below flood stage449
27May 29, 19718.04−2.96Below flood stage910
28Jun 20, 19708.03−2.97Below flood stage908
29Jul 5, 20257.64−3.36Below flood stage298
30Jun 15, 20157.51−3.49Below flood stage295
31Jul 1, 19827.42−3.58Below flood stage373
32Jul 14, 19737.37−3.63Below flood stage770
33Feb 24, 20077.28−3.72Below flood stage321
34Sep 22, 19637.27−3.73Below flood stage619
35Jul 27, 19687.21−3.79Below flood stage678
36Jun 8, 20227.18−3.82Below flood stage255
37May 8, 19697.08−3.92Below flood stage726
38Aug 10, 20116.97−4.03Below flood stage244
39Jul 30, 19986.82−4.18Below flood stage273
40May 28, 19956.72−4.28Below flood stage170
41Jul 22, 19786.68−4.32Below flood stage299
42Jun 11, 19746.53−4.47Below flood stage354
43May 22, 19766.40−4.60Below flood stage264
44Oct 8, 20126.20−4.80Below flood stage177
45Aug 19, 20095.82−5.18Below flood stage153
46Jul 29, 19855.61−5.39Below flood stage183
47May 19, 19835.49−5.51Below flood stage163
48May 20, 20245.10−5.90Below flood stage91
49Aug 6, 20174.98−6.02Below flood stage100
50Jun 17, 20064.83−6.17Below flood stage88

Gauges on the Prairie Dog Creek

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

Flood gauges on the Prairie Dog Creek
Clayton 4E this gaugeKS11.016.81 ft, Sep 6, 19723
WoodruffKS19.026.70 ft, Jun 16, 19570

Other gauges in Norton County

Flood gauges in Norton County
Lenora10.024.70 ft, Dec 21, 19874
Norcatur17.017.87 ft, May 24, 20080

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

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge CLNK1, 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.