Highest listed crest 31.43 ft October 3, 1959; 30,200 cubic feet per second
Flood stage 17.0 ft Major flooding from 25.0 ft
Crests at major 9 30th of 92 gauges in Oklahoma
Most recent flood crest May 26, 2019 18.56 ft, minor flooding Listed crests at the Black Bear Creek at Pawnee, 1908 to 2019 0 10 20 30 40 ft Flood stage 17.0 ft Major 25.0 ft May 25, 1908: 27.30 ft, major flooding; 15,600 cubic feet per second May 19, 1943: 28.19 ft, major flooding; 17,800 cubic feet per second Dec 7, 1944: 17.86 ft, minor flooding; 6,500 cubic feet per second Mar 26, 1945: 16.21 ft, below flood stage; 5,390 cubic feet per second Apr 13, 1945: 16.15 ft, below flood stage; 5,460 cubic feet per second Apr 17, 1945: 20.62 ft, minor flooding; 8,750 cubic feet per second Jun 22, 1945: 16.00 ft, below flood stage; 5,580 cubic feet per second Jun 29, 1945: 15.76 ft, below flood stage; 5,460 cubic feet per second Sep 30, 1945: 28.11 ft, major flooding; 17,500 cubic feet per second Jun 29, 1946: 15.43 ft, below flood stage; 4,900 cubic feet per second Apr 16, 1947: 22.55 ft, moderate flooding; 9,390 cubic feet per second May 17, 1947: 17.31 ft, minor flooding; 5,340 cubic feet per second Aug 8, 1948: 16.45 ft, below flood stage; 4,890 cubic feet per second May 21, 1949: 15.70 ft, below flood stage; 4,550 cubic feet per second May 27, 1949: 16.16 ft, below flood stage; 4,790 cubic feet per second Aug 3, 1950: 13.58 ft, below flood stage; 3,830 cubic feet per second Jul 3, 1951: 14.76 ft, below flood stage; 4,280 cubic feet per second Jun 7, 1952: 16.18 ft, below flood stage; 4,790 cubic feet per second Jul 14, 1953: 10.56 ft, below flood stage; 2,610 cubic feet per second May 2, 1954: 11.16 ft, below flood stage; 2,810 cubic feet per second May 11, 1955: 16.37 ft, below flood stage; 5,130 cubic feet per second May 22, 1955: 21.74 ft, moderate flooding; 8,640 cubic feet per second May 28, 1955: 21.78 ft, moderate flooding; 8,720 cubic feet per second Oct 5, 1955: 16.96 ft, below flood stage; 5,430 cubic feet per second Apr 20, 1957: 20.73 ft, minor flooding; 7,680 cubic feet per second May 18, 1957: 25.26 ft, major flooding; 12,200 cubic feet per second May 22, 1957: 18.10 ft, minor flooding; 6,090 cubic feet per second May 27, 1957: 18.48 ft, minor flooding; 6,370 cubic feet per second Jun 12, 1957: 18.95 ft, minor flooding; 6,740 cubic feet per second Jun 25, 1957: 22.56 ft, moderate flooding; 9,720 cubic feet per second Jul 3, 1957: 14.28 ft, below flood stage; 4,000 cubic feet per second Jul 12, 1958: 13.97 ft, below flood stage; 3,880 cubic feet per second Jul 16, 1959: 18.72 ft, minor flooding; 6,540 cubic feet per second Jul 22, 1959: 14.63 ft, below flood stage; 4,340 cubic feet per second Sep 27, 1959: 19.21 ft, minor flooding; 6,890 cubic feet per second Oct 3, 1959: 31.43 ft, major flooding; 30,200 cubic feet per second May 29, 1960: 14.58 ft, below flood stage; 4,340 cubic feet per second Jul 6, 1960: 18.53 ft, minor flooding; 6,400 cubic feet per second Jun 14, 1961: 18.56 ft, minor flooding; 6,470 cubic feet per second Jul 17, 1961: 13.91 ft, below flood stage; 4,140 cubic feet per second Sep 14, 1961: 27.16 ft, major flooding; 15,400 cubic feet per second Oct 12, 1961: 21.68 ft, moderate flooding; 8,880 cubic feet per second Nov 4, 1961: 13.97 ft, below flood stage; 4,100 cubic feet per second Jun 7, 1962: 15.70 ft, below flood stage; 4,780 cubic feet per second Sep 16, 1963: 12.84 ft, below flood stage; 3,620 cubic feet per second Aug 28, 1964: 8.96 ft, below flood stage; 2,250 cubic feet per second Nov 19, 1964: 9.73 ft, below flood stage; 2,520 cubic feet per second Jul 25, 1966: 13.48 ft, below flood stage; 4,100 cubic feet per second Jun 26, 1967: 7.81 ft, below flood stage; 1,780 cubic feet per second Apr 3, 1968: 10.39 ft, below flood stage; 3,040 cubic feet per second Apr 17, 1969: 12.70 ft, below flood stage; 4,440 cubic feet per second Apr 30, 1970: 10.89 ft, below flood stage; 3,490 cubic feet per second Sep 6, 1971: 10.18 ft, below flood stage; 3,050 cubic feet per second Dec 16, 1971: 8.54 ft, below flood stage; 2,220 cubic feet per second Mar 10, 1973: 18.03 ft, minor flooding; 6,920 cubic feet per second Apr 15, 1973: 17.03 ft, minor flooding; 6,320 cubic feet per second Mar 12, 1974: 24.43 ft, moderate flooding; 11,500 cubic feet per second Aug 9, 1974: 15.89 ft, below flood stage; 6,040 cubic feet per second Sep 2, 1974: 15.64 ft, below flood stage; 5,900 cubic feet per second Sep 20, 1974: 21.33 ft, moderate flooding; 9,390 cubic feet per second Oct 30, 1974: 22.35 ft, moderate flooding; 9,880 cubic feet per second Nov 4, 1974: 26.87 ft, major flooding; 17,100 cubic feet per second May 14, 1975: 14.71 ft, below flood stage; 4,980 cubic feet per second Jun 2, 1975: 17.91 ft, minor flooding Jun 12, 1975: 17.91 ft, minor flooding; 6,660 cubic feet per second May 27, 1976: 7.43 ft, below flood stage; 1,560 cubic feet per second May 23, 1977: 13.75 ft, below flood stage; 4,970 cubic feet per second Feb 13, 1978: 7.68 ft, below flood stage; 1,760 cubic feet per second Mar 23, 1979: 9.61 ft, below flood stage; 2,850 cubic feet per second Apr 26, 1980: 11.95 ft, below flood stage; 4,070 cubic feet per second Jun 19, 1980: 15.18 ft, below flood stage; 5,870 cubic feet per second Oct 17, 1980: 7.43 ft, below flood stage; 1,760 cubic feet per second May 12, 1982: 12.55 ft, below flood stage; 4,850 cubic feet per second May 17, 1982: 14.39 ft, below flood stage; 5,750 cubic feet per second May 24, 1982: 11.08 ft, below flood stage; 4,030 cubic feet per second May 21, 1983: 13.86 ft, below flood stage; 5,480 cubic feet per second Oct 21, 1983: 11.42 ft, below flood stage; 4,110 cubic feet per second Mar 23, 1984: 12.44 ft, below flood stage; 4,770 cubic feet per second Dec 16, 1984: 11.64 ft, below flood stage; 4,740 cubic feet per second Feb 23, 1985: 15.49 ft, below flood stage; 6,920 cubic feet per second Mar 4, 1985: 13.02 ft, below flood stage; 5,490 cubic feet per second Apr 29, 1985: 12.63 ft, below flood stage; 5,280 cubic feet per second Sep 30, 1986: 17.26 ft, minor flooding; 7,640 cubic feet per second Oct 5, 1986: 27.30 ft, major flooding; 19,200 cubic feet per second Nov 7, 1986: 11.18 ft, below flood stage; 4,030 cubic feet per second Nov 26, 1986: 11.78 ft, below flood stage; 4,340 cubic feet per second Mar 2, 1987: 15.89 ft, below flood stage; 6,690 cubic feet per second May 30, 1987: 17.21 ft, minor flooding; 7,510 cubic feet per second Mar 5, 1988: 12.27 ft, below flood stage; 4,650 cubic feet per second Apr 1, 1988: 14.78 ft, below flood stage; 6,070 cubic feet per second Mar 30, 1989: 10.04 ft, below flood stage; 3,400 cubic feet per second Mar 11, 1990: 17.82 ft, minor flooding; 7,960 cubic feet per second May 21, 1991: 7.12 ft, below flood stage; 1,700 cubic feet per second May 10, 1993: 23.24 ft, moderate flooding; 11,300 cubic feet per second Apr 11, 1994: 17.09 ft, minor flooding; 7,430 cubic feet per second Jul 18, 1997: 15.19 ft, below flood stage Oct 5, 1998: 19.70 ft, minor flooding; 9,210 cubic feet per second Apr 25, 1999: 20.80 ft, minor flooding; 11,000 cubic feet per second Mar 6, 2004: 18.21 ft, minor flooding; 7,970 cubic feet per second Jun 29, 2007: 20.29 ft, minor flooding; 12,600 cubic feet per second Mar 31, 2008: 20.52 ft, minor flooding; 12,800 cubic feet per second Apr 10, 2008: 19.53 ft, minor flooding; 12,000 cubic feet per second Apr 29, 2017: 17.92 ft, minor flooding; 10,736 cubic feet per second Oct 4, 2017: 21.16 ft, moderate flooding; 13,328 cubic feet per second May 6, 2019: 16.17 ft, below flood stage; 8,204 cubic feet per second May 21, 2019: 26.18 ft, major flooding; 19,500 cubic feet per second May 26, 2019: 18.56 ft, minor flooding; 9,562 cubic feet per second Highest, 31.43 ft, Oct 3, 1959 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000 2020 Crests at or above flood stage, by decade Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Black Bear Creek at Pawnee 1900s: 1 1910s: 0 1920s: 0 1930s: 0 1940s: 6 1950s: 11 11 1960s: 4 1970s: 8 1980s: 3 1990s: 5 2000s: 4 2010s: 4 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 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. Categories use today's flood stages. Levees, dams and channel changes since a crest can make old and new stages not directly comparable. 05 Other gauges in Pawnee County Pawnee County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Oklahoma
NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge PAWO2, 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.