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Sheyenne River at Valley City

Highest listed crest 20.69 ftFlood stage 15.0 ft91 crests since 1882

The Sheyenne River at Valley City crested at major flood stage 9 times among the 91 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1882 to 2026. The highest, 20.69 ft on April 13, 2009, was major flooding, 5.69 feet above flood stage. 1 other gauge on the Sheyenne River crested above flood stage within a week of it, 1 at its own highest listed crest.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
20.69 ft
April 13, 2009
Flood stage
15.0 ft
Major flooding from 17.0 ft
Crests at major
9
13th of 54 gauges in North Dakota
Most recent flood crest
May 1, 2022
18.07 ft, major flooding
Location
Barnes County
North Dakota

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Sheyenne River at Valley City
Action stage12.59Apr 8, 2020The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)15.02Oct 22, 2019Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage16.01Mar 29, 1995Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage17.09May 1, 2022Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

91 crests from 1882 to 2026. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Sheyenne River at Valley City, 1882 to 2026 0510152025ft Flood stage 15.0 ftMajor 17.0 ft Apr 1, 1882: 20.00 ft, major floodingApr 1, 1897: 15.50 ft, minor floodingApr 18, 1919: 14.90 ft, action stage; 2,750 cubic feet per secondMar 29, 1938: 3.90 ft, below flood stage; 244 cubic feet per secondMar 27, 1939: 4.75 ft, below flood stageApr 8, 1940: 5.14 ft, below flood stage; 525 cubic feet per secondApr 19, 1941: 9.10 ft, below flood stage; 1,590 cubic feet per secondApr 17, 1942: 7.72 ft, below flood stage; 1,190 cubic feet per secondMar 27, 1943: 10.78 ft, below flood stage; 1,900 cubic feet per secondJun 3, 1944: 4.50 ft, below flood stage; 399 cubic feet per secondMar 24, 1945: 7.06 ft, below flood stage; 1,020 cubic feet per secondMar 26, 1946: 7.56 ft, below flood stage; 1,160 cubic feet per secondApr 11, 1947: 10.19 ft, below flood stage; 1,910 cubic feet per secondApr 28, 1948: 17.51 ft, major flooding; 4,580 cubic feet per secondApr 21, 1949: 10.90 ft, below flood stage; 2,120 cubic feet per secondMay 5, 1950: 14.60 ft, action stage; 3,050 cubic feet per secondApr 19, 1951: 8.08 ft, below flood stage; 1,270 cubic feet per secondMar 31, 1952: 6.02 ft, below flood stage; 650 cubic feet per secondJul 17, 1953: 8.11 ft, below flood stage; 1,230 cubic feet per secondJul 13, 1954: 6.29 ft, below flood stage; 726 cubic feet per secondApr 14, 1955: 9.04 ft, below flood stage; 1,490 cubic feet per secondApr 28, 1956: 10.58 ft, below flood stage; 1,870 cubic feet per secondSep 4, 1957: 6.48 ft, below flood stage; 627 cubic feet per secondJul 17, 1958: 4.21 ft, below flood stage; 248 cubic feet per secondJun 27, 1959: 7.02 ft, below flood stage; 988 cubic feet per secondApr 17, 1960: 9.52 ft, below flood stage; 1,570 cubic feet per secondMar 2, 1961: 4.01 ft, below flood stage; 251 cubic feet per secondJul 7, 1962: 9.71 ft, below flood stage; 1,270 cubic feet per secondApr 3, 1963: 4.07 ft, below flood stageJul 26, 1963: 3.39 ft, below flood stage; 78 cubic feet per secondJun 28, 1964: 6.56 ft, below flood stage; 643 cubic feet per secondApr 16, 1965: 14.93 ft, action stage; 3,080 cubic feet per secondMar 28, 1966: 14.27 ft, action stage; 3,350 cubic feet per secondApr 10, 1967: 9.03 ft, below flood stage; 1,570 cubic feet per secondJun 13, 1968: 8.48 ft, below flood stage; 1,220 cubic feet per secondApr 19, 1969: 17.62 ft, major flooding; 4,520 cubic feet per secondApr 20, 1970: 8.47 ft, below flood stage; 1,370 cubic feet per secondApr 21, 1971: 10.27 ft, below flood stage; 1,820 cubic feet per secondApr 16, 1972: 7.23 ft, below flood stage; 1,070 cubic feet per secondMar 14, 1973: 6.32 ft, below flood stage; 761 cubic feet per secondApr 22, 1974: 10.74 ft, below flood stage; 2,160 cubic feet per secondJun 30, 1975: 10.27 ft, below flood stage; 1,960 cubic feet per secondAug 29, 1980: 7.00 ft, below flood stage; 765 cubic feet per secondApr 2, 1981: 5.91 ft, below flood stage; 542 cubic feet per secondApr 14, 1982: 10.95 ft, below flood stage; 1,990 cubic feet per secondMar 13, 1983: 11.26 ft, below flood stage; 2,030 cubic feet per secondApr 6, 1984: 10.43 ft, below flood stage; 1,950 cubic feet per secondMay 17, 1985: 6.37 ft, below flood stage; 680 cubic feet per secondApr 19, 1986: 11.04 ft, below flood stage; 2,100 cubic feet per secondApr 13, 1987: 11.43 ft, below flood stage; 2,300 cubic feet per secondFeb 8, 1988: 5.03 ft, below flood stageMar 30, 1989: 8.38 ft, below flood stage; 850 cubic feet per secondJul 11, 1990: 4.59 ft, below flood stage; 278 cubic feet per secondAug 24, 1991: 3.37 ft, below flood stage; 77 cubic feet per secondMar 8, 1992: 8.59 ft, below flood stage; 1,260 cubic feet per secondJul 16, 1993: 18.05 ft, major floodingApr 9, 1994: 9.00 ft, below flood stage; 1,530 cubic feet per secondMar 29, 1995: 16.57 ft, moderate flooding; 4,120 cubic feet per secondApr 21, 1996: 18.78 ft, major flooding; 5,250 cubic feet per secondApr 19, 1997: 18.01 ft, major flooding; 4,810 cubic feet per secondFeb 28, 1998: 9.80 ft, below flood stage; 1,700 cubic feet per secondApr 2, 1999: 13.07 ft, action stage; 2,720 cubic feet per secondJun 19, 2000: 11.98 ft, below flood stage; 2,240 cubic feet per secondApr 14, 2001: 11.60 ft, below flood stage; 2,450 cubic feet per secondMay 14, 2002: 6.44 ft, below flood stage; 733 cubic feet per secondJul 17, 2003: 6.81 ft, below flood stage; 920 cubic feet per secondApr 8, 2004: 14.70 ft, action stage; 3,560 cubic feet per secondJun 13, 2005: 9.11 ft, below flood stage; 1,830 cubic feet per secondApr 13, 2006: 8.38 ft, below flood stage; 1,370 cubic feet per secondJun 19, 2007: 10.18 ft, below flood stage; 1,950 cubic feet per secondMar 7, 2008: 5.50 ft, below flood stageJun 19, 2008: 5.09 ft, below flood stage; 361 cubic feet per secondApr 13, 2009: 20.69 ft, major floodingMar 23, 2010: 14.13 ft, action stage; 3,280 cubic feet per secondApr 18, 2011: 20.66 ft, major flooding; 7,270 cubic feet per secondNov 4, 2011: 7.19 ft, below flood stage; 1,000 cubic feet per secondJun 21, 2013: 14.21 ft, action stage; 3,380 cubic feet per secondApr 16, 2014: 9.38 ft, below flood stage; 1,920 cubic feet per secondMay 20, 2015: 9.87 ft, below flood stage; 1,920 cubic feet per secondJun 18, 2016: 8.07 ft, below flood stage; 1,420 cubic feet per secondApr 25, 2017: 10.32 ft, below flood stage; 2,160 cubic feet per secondApr 27, 2018: 8.55 ft, below flood stage; 1,510 cubic feet per secondApr 17, 2019: 12.29 ft, below flood stage; 2,940 cubic feet per secondOct 22, 2019: 15.24 ft, minor floodingApr 8, 2020: 14.47 ft, action stage; 3,860 cubic feet per secondOct 13, 2021: 6.48 ft, below flood stage; 745 cubic feet per secondMay 1, 2022: 18.07 ft, major flooding; 5,410 cubic feet per secondMay 7, 2023: 11.22 ft, below flood stage; 2,590 cubic feet per secondJun 21, 2024: 9.20 ft, below flood stage; 1,830 cubic feet per secondAug 6, 2025: 8.30 ft, below flood stage; 1,480 cubic feet per secondApr 2, 2026: 8.75 ft, below flood stage Highest, 20.69 ft, Apr 13, 2009 1900192019401960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Sheyenne River at Valley City 1880s: 1 1890s: 1 1900s: 0 1910s: 0 1920s: 0 1930s: 0 1940s: 1 1950s: 0 1960s: 1 1970s: 0 1980s: 0 1990s: 4 4 2000s: 1 2010s: 2 2020s: 1 1880s1900s1920s1940s1960s1980s2000s2020s
  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 91 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Sheyenne River at Valley City
1Apr 13, 200920.69+5.69Major—
2Apr 18, 201120.66+5.66Major7,270
3Apr 1, 188220.00+5.00Major—
4Apr 21, 199618.78+3.78Major5,250
5May 1, 202218.07+3.07Major5,410
6Jul 16, 199318.05+3.05Major—
7Apr 19, 199718.01+3.01Major4,810
8Apr 19, 196917.62+2.62Major4,520
9Apr 28, 194817.51+2.51Major4,580
10Mar 29, 199516.57+1.57Moderate4,120
11Apr 1, 189715.50+0.50Minor—
12Oct 22, 201915.24+0.24Minor—
13Apr 16, 196514.93−0.07Action3,080
14Apr 18, 191914.90−0.10Action2,750
15Apr 8, 200414.70−0.30Action3,560
16May 5, 195014.60−0.40Action3,050
17Apr 8, 202014.47−0.53Action3,860
18Mar 28, 196614.27−0.73Action3,350
19Jun 21, 201314.21−0.79Action3,380
20Mar 23, 201014.13−0.87Action3,280
21Apr 2, 199913.07−1.93Action2,720
22Apr 17, 201912.29−2.71Below flood stage2,940
23Jun 19, 200011.98−3.02Below flood stage2,240
24Apr 14, 200111.60−3.40Below flood stage2,450
25Apr 13, 198711.43−3.57Below flood stage2,300
26Mar 13, 198311.26−3.74Below flood stage2,030
27May 7, 202311.22−3.78Below flood stage2,590
28Apr 19, 198611.04−3.96Below flood stage2,100
29Apr 14, 198210.95−4.05Below flood stage1,990
30Apr 21, 194910.90−4.10Below flood stage2,120
31Mar 27, 194310.78−4.22Below flood stage1,900
32Apr 22, 197410.74−4.26Below flood stage2,160
33Apr 28, 195610.58−4.42Below flood stage1,870
34Apr 6, 198410.43−4.57Below flood stage1,950
35Apr 25, 201710.32−4.68Below flood stage2,160
36Apr 21, 197110.27−4.73Below flood stage1,820
37Jun 30, 197510.27−4.73Below flood stage1,960
38Apr 11, 194710.19−4.81Below flood stage1,910
39Jun 19, 200710.18−4.82Below flood stage1,950
40May 20, 20159.87−5.13Below flood stage1,920
41Feb 28, 19989.80−5.20Below flood stage1,700
42Jul 7, 19629.71−5.29Below flood stage1,270
43Apr 17, 19609.52−5.48Below flood stage1,570
44Apr 16, 20149.38−5.62Below flood stage1,920
45Jun 21, 20249.20−5.80Below flood stage1,830
46Jun 13, 20059.11−5.89Below flood stage1,830
47Apr 19, 19419.10−5.90Below flood stage1,590
48Apr 14, 19559.04−5.96Below flood stage1,490
49Apr 10, 19679.03−5.97Below flood stage1,570
50Apr 9, 19949.00−6.00Below flood stage1,530

The worst floods along the Sheyenne River

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

April 13, 2009: 20.69 ft here, major flooding

  • LisbonND · Apr 16, 2009 · 22.86 ft · Major · its highest

April 18, 2011: 20.66 ft here, major flooding

  • LisbonND · Apr 20, 2011 · 21.70 ft · Major
  • KindredND · Apr 22, 2011 · 21.35 ft · Major

April 21, 1996: 18.78 ft here, major flooding

Gauges on the Sheyenne River

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

Flood gauges on the Sheyenne River
Valley City this gaugeND15.020.69 ft, Apr 13, 20099
LisbonND15.022.86 ft, Apr 16, 20097
KindredND16.022.33 ft, Apr 8, 199712
West Fargo DiversionND18.028.77 ft, Apr 18, 199613
HarwoodND84.092.02 ft, Apr 16, 19977

Barnes County: every hazard · River floods across the country · North Dakota

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge VCRN8, 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.