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Santiam River at Jefferson

Highest listed crest 24.22 ftFlood stage 15.0 ft44 crests since 1907

The Santiam River at Jefferson crested at major flood stage 2 times among the 44 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1907 to 2025. The highest, 24.22 ft on December 22, 1964, was major flooding, 9.22 feet above flood stage.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
24.22 ft
December 22, 1964; 197,000 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
15.0 ft
Major flooding from 23.0 ft
Crests at major
2
36th of 100 gauges in Oregon
Most recent flood crest
December 19, 2025
17.79 ft, minor flooding
Location
Linn County
Near Albany (7.3 mi), Independence (13.4 mi), Lebanon (13.7 mi)

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Santiam River at Jefferson
Action stage13.00—The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)15.029Dec 19, 2025Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage19.013Nov 26, 1999Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage23.02Feb 7, 1996Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

44 crests from 1907 to 2025. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Santiam River at Jefferson, 1907 to 2025 14161820222426ft Flood stage 15.0 ftMajor 23.0 ft Feb 5, 1907: 18.40 ft, minor flooding; 110,000 cubic feet per secondMar 16, 1908: 15.30 ft, minor flooding; 83,600 cubic feet per secondNov 22, 1910: 18.20 ft, minor flooding; 108,000 cubic feet per secondJan 13, 1912: 16.50 ft, minor flooding; 93,200 cubic feet per secondDec 19, 1918: 16.00 ft, minor flooding; 89,200 cubic feet per secondNov 4, 1920: 15.00 ft, minor flooding; 81,200 cubic feet per secondNov 21, 1922: 19.50 ft, moderate flooding; 120,000 cubic feet per secondDec 3, 1941: 17.20 ft, minor floodingNov 24, 1942: 20.80 ft, moderate floodingJan 1, 1943: 21.24 ft, moderate flooding; 118,000 cubic feet per secondDec 29, 1945: 22.55 ft, moderate flooding; 149,000 cubic feet per secondDec 15, 1946: 21.30 ft, moderate floodingJan 7, 1948: 21.80 ft, moderate floodingFeb 25, 1950: 20.10 ft, moderate floodingNov 23, 1953: 20.90 ft, moderate floodingDec 12, 1956: 20.60 ft, moderate floodingDec 20, 1961: 16.82 ft, minor flooding; 60,300 cubic feet per secondDec 22, 1964: 24.22 ft, major flooding; 197,000 cubic feet per secondJan 23, 1970: 15.46 ft, minor flooding; 51,200 cubic feet per secondJan 19, 1971: 16.20 ft, minor flooding; 56,400 cubic feet per secondJan 21, 1972: 20.47 ft, moderate flooding; 103,000 cubic feet per secondJan 16, 1974: 19.28 ft, moderate flooding; 84,900 cubic feet per secondJan 8, 1976: 15.99 ft, minor flooding; 54,900 cubic feet per secondDec 14, 1977: 16.23 ft, minor flooding; 56,600 cubic feet per secondDec 26, 1980: 16.87 ft, minor flooding; 61,100 cubic feet per secondDec 6, 1981: 16.14 ft, minor flooding; 56,000 cubic feet per secondJan 7, 1983: 15.05 ft, minor flooding; 48,300 cubic feet per secondFeb 23, 1986: 17.60 ft, minor flooding; 67,300 cubic feet per secondJan 10, 1989: 15.31 ft, minor flooding; 51,800 cubic feet per secondJan 14, 1995: 15.20 ft, minor floodingFeb 18, 1995: 15.61 ft, minor flooding; 51,600 cubic feet per secondFeb 7, 1996: 23.25 ft, major flooding; 168,000 cubic feet per secondNov 19, 1996: 19.63 ft, moderate flooding; 89,600 cubic feet per secondDec 30, 1996: 15.70 ft, minor floodingDec 28, 1998: 18.59 ft, minor flooding; 76,800 cubic feet per secondNov 26, 1999: 19.10 ft, moderate flooding; 82,800 cubic feet per secondDec 31, 2005: 15.90 ft, minor flooding; 55,298 cubic feet per secondJan 18, 2006: 15.38 ft, minor flooding; 52,133 cubic feet per secondNov 8, 2006: 15.20 ft, minor flooding; 51,100 cubic feet per secondJan 3, 2009: 15.81 ft, minor flooding; 62,282 cubic feet per secondJan 17, 2011: 15.38 ft, minor flooding; 58,800 cubic feet per secondJan 20, 2012: 18.35 ft, minor flooding; 90,000 cubic feet per secondApr 9, 2019: 15.80 ft, minor flooding; 62,002 cubic feet per secondDec 19, 2025: 17.79 ft, minor flooding; 81,400 cubic feet per second Highest, 24.22 ft, Dec 22, 1964 192019401960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Santiam River at Jefferson 1900s: 2 1910s: 3 1920s: 2 1930s: 0 1940s: 6 1950s: 3 1960s: 2 1970s: 6 1980s: 5 1990s: 7 7 2000s: 4 2010s: 3 2020s: 1 1900s1910s1920s1930s1940s1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
  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.
  3. 3 crests measured on an earlier gauge datum are left out: 22.50 ft on Nov 21, 1921; 18.50 ft on Jan 7, 1923; 17.50 ft on Apr 1, 1931.

Highest crests

Highest listed crests, Santiam River at Jefferson
1Dec 22, 196424.22+9.22Major197,000
2Feb 7, 199623.25+8.25Major168,000
3Dec 29, 194522.55+7.55Moderate149,000
4Jan 7, 194821.80+6.80Moderate—
5Dec 15, 194621.30+6.30Moderate—
6Jan 1, 194321.24+6.24Moderate118,000
7Nov 23, 195320.90+5.90Moderate—
8Nov 24, 194220.80+5.80Moderate—
9Dec 12, 195620.60+5.60Moderate—
10Jan 21, 197220.47+5.47Moderate103,000
11Feb 25, 195020.10+5.10Moderate—
12Nov 19, 199619.63+4.63Moderate89,600
13Nov 21, 192219.50+4.50Moderate120,000
14Jan 16, 197419.28+4.28Moderate84,900
15Nov 26, 199919.10+4.10Moderate82,800
16Dec 28, 199818.59+3.59Minor76,800
17Feb 5, 190718.40+3.40Minor110,000
18Jan 20, 201218.35+3.35Minor90,000
19Nov 22, 191018.20+3.20Minor108,000
20Dec 19, 202517.79+2.79Minor81,400
21Feb 23, 198617.60+2.60Minor67,300
22Dec 3, 194117.20+2.20Minor—
23Dec 26, 198016.87+1.87Minor61,100
24Dec 20, 196116.82+1.82Minor60,300
25Jan 13, 191216.50+1.50Minor93,200
26Dec 14, 197716.23+1.23Minor56,600
27Jan 19, 197116.20+1.20Minor56,400
28Dec 6, 198116.14+1.14Minor56,000
29Dec 19, 191816.00+1.00Minor89,200
30Jan 8, 197615.99+0.99Minor54,900
31Dec 31, 200515.90+0.90Minor55,298
32Jan 3, 200915.81+0.81Minor62,282
33Apr 9, 201915.80+0.80Minor62,002
34Dec 30, 199615.70+0.70Minor—
35Feb 18, 199515.61+0.61Minor51,600
36Jan 23, 197015.46+0.46Minor51,200
37Jan 18, 200615.38+0.38Minor52,133
38Jan 17, 201115.38+0.38Minor58,800
39Jan 10, 198915.31+0.31Minor51,800
40Mar 16, 190815.30+0.30Minor83,600
41Jan 14, 199515.20+0.20Minor—
42Nov 8, 200615.20+0.20Minor51,100
43Jan 7, 198315.05+0.05Minor48,300
44Nov 4, 192015.000.00Minor81,200

Other gauges in Linn County

Flood gauges in Linn County
Waterloo12.024.50 ft, Dec 22, 196410
Scio18.020.08 ft, Jan 19, 20121
Albany25.041.00 ft, Dec 4, 18612
Harrisburg14.023.00 ft, Dec 4, 18616

Linn County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Oregon

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge JFFO3, 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.