Search
Menu

Explore

Hazards

Analysis

Rankings

Reference

Caney River at Bartlesville

Highest listed crest 27.70 ftFlood stage 13.0 ft43 crests since 1918

The Caney River at Bartlesville crested at major flood stage 12 times among the 43 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1918 to 2025. The highest, 27.70 ft on October 4, 1986, was major flooding, 14.70 feet above flood stage. 2 other gauges on the Caney River crested above flood stage within a week of it.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
27.70 ft
October 4, 1986; 94,500 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
13.0 ft
Major flooding from 19.0 ft
Crests at major
12
18th of 92 gauges in Oklahoma
Most recent flood crest
June 6, 2025
13.18 ft, minor flooding
Location
Washington County
Near Bartlesville (1.8 mi)

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Caney River at Bartlesville
Action stage13.00—The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)13.09Jun 6, 2025Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage15.019May 28, 2019Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage19.012Jul 2, 2007Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

43 crests from 1918 to 2025. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Caney River at Bartlesville, 1918 to 2025 1015202530ft Flood stage 13.0 ftMajor 19.0 ft May 7, 1918: 23.30 ft, major floodingOct 3, 1926: 25.30 ft, major floodingAug 4, 1927: 21.00 ft, major floodingOct 3, 1927: 22.20 ft, major floodingApr 21, 1929: 21.80 ft, major floodingMay 19, 1943: 23.40 ft, major floodingApr 11, 1944: 24.71 ft, major floodingOct 2, 1945: 21.32 ft, major floodingJul 21, 1950: 19.90 ft, major floodingAug 2, 1950: 17.80 ft, moderate floodingJul 2, 1951: 17.60 ft, moderate floodingJun 12, 1957: 17.30 ft, moderate floodingJun 23, 1957: 15.60 ft, moderate floodingJul 15, 1959: 15.20 ft, moderate floodingJul 22, 1959: 18.75 ft, moderate floodingOct 4, 1959: 14.80 ft, minor floodingMay 9, 1961: 17.45 ft, moderate floodingApr 5, 1965: 14.30 ft, minor floodingApr 30, 1970: 14.67 ft, minor floodingApr 16, 1973: 15.11 ft, moderate floodingMar 11, 1975: 20.90 ft, major floodingNov 4, 1975: 16.33 ft, moderate floodingNov 11, 1979: 12.65 ft, below flood stageSep 30, 1985: 18.25 ft, moderate flooding; 21,100 cubic feet per secondOct 4, 1986: 27.70 ft, major flooding; 94,500 cubic feet per secondApr 1, 1988: 14.56 ft, minor flooding; 8,490 cubic feet per secondJun 11, 1989: 12.16 ft, below flood stage; 8,700 cubic feet per secondMar 11, 1990: 14.99 ft, minor flooding; 6,570 cubic feet per secondMay 9, 1993: 16.54 ft, moderate flooding; 9,268 cubic feet per secondApr 11, 1994: 16.75 ft, moderate flooding; 10,000 cubic feet per secondJun 10, 1995: 15.93 ft, moderate flooding; 10,300 cubic feet per secondApr 25, 1999: 13.60 ft, minor flooding; 6,040 cubic feet per secondMay 9, 2000: 16.00 ft, moderate flooding; 12,300 cubic feet per secondMar 5, 2004: 16.19 ft, moderate flooding; 16,000 cubic feet per secondMay 7, 2007: 13.85 ft, minor flooding; 10,800 cubic feet per secondJun 11, 2007: 15.98 ft, moderate flooding; 10,400 cubic feet per secondJul 2, 2007: 21.57 ft, major flooding; 39,400 cubic feet per secondJun 9, 2008: 16.38 ft, moderate flooding; 9,500 cubic feet per secondApr 30, 2017: 13.03 ft, minor flooding; 12,624 cubic feet per secondMay 21, 2019: 18.21 ft, moderate flooding; 19,300 cubic feet per secondMay 28, 2019: 17.83 ft, moderate flooding; 20,005 cubic feet per secondJun 6, 2025: 13.18 ft, minor flooding; 14,203 cubic feet per secondJun 18, 2025: 12.38 ft, below flood stage; 13,336 cubic feet per second Highest, 27.70 ft, Oct 4, 1986 192019401960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Caney River at Bartlesville 1910s: 1 1920s: 4 1930s: 0 1940s: 3 1950s: 8 8 1960s: 2 1970s: 4 1980s: 3 1990s: 5 2000s: 6 2010s: 3 2020s: 1 1910s1920s1930s1940s1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
  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

Highest listed crests, Caney River at Bartlesville
1Oct 4, 198627.70+14.70Major94,500
2Oct 3, 192625.30+12.30Major—
3Apr 11, 194424.71+11.71Major—
4May 19, 194323.40+10.40Major—
5May 7, 191823.30+10.30Major—
6Oct 3, 192722.20+9.20Major—
7Apr 21, 192921.80+8.80Major—
8Jul 2, 200721.57+8.57Major39,400
9Oct 2, 194521.32+8.32Major—
10Aug 4, 192721.00+8.00Major—
11Mar 11, 197520.90+7.90Major—
12Jul 21, 195019.90+6.90Major—
13Jul 22, 195918.75+5.75Moderate—
14Sep 30, 198518.25+5.25Moderate21,100
15May 21, 201918.21+5.21Moderate19,300
16May 28, 201917.83+4.83Moderate20,005
17Aug 2, 195017.80+4.80Moderate—
18Jul 2, 195117.60+4.60Moderate—
19May 9, 196117.45+4.45Moderate—
20Jun 12, 195717.30+4.30Moderate—
21Apr 11, 199416.75+3.75Moderate10,000
22May 9, 199316.54+3.54Moderate9,268
23Jun 9, 200816.38+3.38Moderate9,500
24Nov 4, 197516.33+3.33Moderate—
25Mar 5, 200416.19+3.19Moderate16,000
26May 9, 200016.00+3.00Moderate12,300
27Jun 11, 200715.98+2.98Moderate10,400
28Jun 10, 199515.93+2.93Moderate10,300
29Jun 23, 195715.60+2.60Moderate—
30Jul 15, 195915.20+2.20Moderate—
31Apr 16, 197315.11+2.11Moderate—
32Mar 11, 199014.99+1.99Minor6,570
33Oct 4, 195914.80+1.80Minor—
34Apr 30, 197014.67+1.67Minor—
35Apr 1, 198814.56+1.56Minor8,490
36Apr 5, 196514.30+1.30Minor—
37May 7, 200713.85+0.85Minor10,800
38Apr 25, 199913.60+0.60Minor6,040
39Jun 6, 202513.18+0.18Minor14,203
40Apr 30, 201713.03+0.03Minor12,624
41Nov 11, 197912.65−0.35Below flood stage—
42Jun 18, 202512.38−0.62Below flood stage13,336
43Jun 11, 198912.16−0.84Below flood stage8,700

The worst floods along the Caney River

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

October 4, 1986: 27.70 ft here, major flooding

  • CollinsvilleOK · Oct 6, 1986 · 39.45 ft · Major
  • RamonaOK · Oct 5, 1986 · 31.16 ft · Major

April 11, 1944: 24.71 ft here, major flooding

May 19, 1943: 23.40 ft here, major flooding

  • CollinsvilleOK · May 21, 1943 · 39.80 ft · Major · its highest
  • RamonaOK · May 21, 1943 · 39.80 ft · Major · its highest

Gauges on the Caney River

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

Flood gauges on the Caney River
Bartlesville this gaugeOK13.027.70 ft, Oct 4, 198612
RamonaOK26.039.80 ft, May 21, 19432
CollinsvilleOK26.039.80 ft, May 21, 19437

Other gauges in Washington County

Flood gauges in Washington County
Ramona26.039.80 ft, May 21, 19432

Washington County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Oklahoma

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge BVLO2, 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.