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James River (VA) at Cartersville

Highest listed crest 32.60 ftFlood stage 20.0 ft75 crests since 1911

The James River (VA) at Cartersville crested at major flood stage 5 times among the 75 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1911 to 2025. The highest, 32.60 ft on November 6, 1985, was major flooding, 12.60 feet above flood stage. 6 other gauges on the James River (VA) crested above flood stage within a week of it, 3 at their own highest listed crest.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
32.60 ft
November 6, 1985; 225,000 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
20.0 ft
Major flooding from 26.4 ft
Crests at major
5
32nd of 242 gauges in Virginia
Most recent flood crest
February 17, 2025
22.77 ft, minor flooding
Location
Goochland County
Virginia

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, James River (VA) at Cartersville
Action stage15.034May 14, 2025The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)20.026Feb 17, 2025Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage23.010Nov 13, 2020Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage26.45Sep 7, 1996Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

75 crests from 1911 to 2025. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the James River (VA) at Cartersville, 1911 to 2025 1520253035ft Flood stage 20.0 ftMajor 26.4 ft Jan 4, 1911: 16.30 ft, action stage; 50,700 cubic feet per secondMar 16, 1922: 15.50 ft, action stage; 46,600 cubic feet per secondMar 17, 1923: 18.50 ft, action stage; 60,200 cubic feet per secondDec 28, 1926: 16.20 ft, action stage; 49,800 cubic feet per secondOct 6, 1972: 27.12 ft, major flooding; 131,000 cubic feet per secondDec 29, 1973: 20.89 ft, minor flooding; 75,500 cubic feet per secondMar 20, 1975: 26.04 ft, moderate flooding; 120,000 cubic feet per secondJan 1, 1976: 17.26 ft, action stage; 54,400 cubic feet per secondOct 10, 1976: 20.60 ft, minor flooding; 73,900 cubic feet per secondJan 27, 1978: 25.08 ft, moderate flooding; 109,000 cubic feet per secondFeb 26, 1979: 26.33 ft, moderate flooding; 123,000 cubic feet per secondJun 4, 1979: 24.19 ft, moderate floodingSep 23, 1979: 21.86 ft, minor floodingApr 16, 1980: 18.86 ft, action stage; 64,000 cubic feet per secondJun 15, 1982: 20.91 ft, minor flooding; 76,000 cubic feet per secondApr 11, 1983: 20.26 ft, minor flooding; 71,900 cubic feet per secondFeb 16, 1984: 22.42 ft, minor flooding; 86,800 cubic feet per secondMar 30, 1984: 21.62 ft, minor floodingAug 19, 1985: 18.17 ft, action stage; 60,400 cubic feet per secondNov 6, 1985: 32.60 ft, major flooding; 225,000 cubic feet per secondApr 18, 1987: 27.96 ft, major flooding; 142,000 cubic feet per secondMay 7, 1989: 23.38 ft, moderate flooding; 93,800 cubic feet per secondMay 30, 1990: 16.57 ft, action stage; 52,300 cubic feet per secondOct 24, 1990: 20.36 ft, minor flooding; 72,700 cubic feet per secondApr 23, 1992: 25.41 ft, moderate flooding; 113,000 cubic feet per secondJun 6, 1992: 15.39 ft, action stage; 46,600 cubic feet per secondMar 5, 1993: 24.18 ft, moderate flooding; 101,000 cubic feet per secondMar 26, 1993: 18.51 ft, action stage; 62,100 cubic feet per secondNov 28, 1993: 18.92 ft, action stage; 64,300 cubic feet per secondFeb 24, 1994: 16.40 ft, action stage; 51,500 cubic feet per secondMar 30, 1994: 22.29 ft, minor flooding; 85,100 cubic feet per secondJan 17, 1995: 21.96 ft, minor flooding; 82,500 cubic feet per secondJun 29, 1995: 21.68 ft, minor flooding; 80,800 cubic feet per secondJan 21, 1996: 26.45 ft, major flooding; 124,000 cubic feet per secondSep 7, 1996: 28.96 ft, major flooding; 158,000 cubic feet per secondDec 3, 1996: 20.73 ft, minor flooding; 74,900 cubic feet per secondJan 10, 1998: 21.05 ft, minor flooding; 76,900 cubic feet per secondJan 29, 1998: 21.87 ft, minor flooding; 82,000 cubic feet per secondFeb 5, 1998: 21.69 ft, minor flooding; 80,800 cubic feet per secondFeb 18, 1998: 21.91 ft, minor flooding; 82,200 cubic feet per secondSep 30, 1999: 21.73 ft, minor flooding; 81,100 cubic feet per secondFeb 24, 2003: 24.47 ft, moderate flooding; 104,000 cubic feet per secondSep 20, 2003: 22.87 ft, minor flooding; 89,700 cubic feet per secondSep 30, 2004: 20.49 ft, minor flooding; 73,500 cubic feet per secondJan 15, 2005: 17.78 ft, action stage; 58,300 cubic feet per secondNov 30, 2005: 19.03 ft, action stage; 64,900 cubic feet per secondJun 28, 2006: 21.15 ft, minor flooding; 77,500 cubic feet per secondOct 8, 2006: 19.97 ft, action stage; 70,300 cubic feet per secondJan 26, 2010: 23.94 ft, moderate flooding; 98,500 cubic feet per secondMar 11, 2011: 18.97 ft, action stage; 64,500 cubic feet per secondApr 18, 2011: 19.73 ft, action stage; 68,900 cubic feet per secondDec 8, 2011: 18.61 ft, action stage; 62,600 cubic feet per secondMay 9, 2013: 19.69 ft, action stage; 68,700 cubic feet per secondMay 16, 2014: 20.50 ft, minor flooding; 73,500 cubic feet per secondMar 7, 2015: 15.90 ft, action stage; 48,900 cubic feet per secondFeb 25, 2016: 16.72 ft, action stage; 53,000 cubic feet per secondMay 6, 2017: 18.16 ft, action stage; 60,300 cubic feet per secondFeb 12, 2018: 20.58 ft, minor flooding; 74,000 cubic feet per secondApr 18, 2018: 17.61 ft, action stage; 57,500 cubic feet per secondMay 19, 2018: 18.72 ft, action stage; 63,200 cubic feet per secondSep 18, 2018: 20.02 ft, minor flooding; 70,600 cubic feet per secondSep 29, 2018: 17.77 ft, action stage; 58,300 cubic feet per secondOct 12, 2018: 19.13 ft, action stage; 65,400 cubic feet per secondNov 16, 2018: 17.97 ft, action stage; 59,300 cubic feet per secondDec 16, 2018: 17.06 ft, action stage; 53,500 cubic feet per secondDec 22, 2018: 19.98 ft, action stage; 69,100 cubic feet per secondDec 29, 2018: 15.06 ft, action stage; 43,900 cubic feet per secondFeb 25, 2019: 21.27 ft, minor flooding; 77,100 cubic feet per secondMar 22, 2019: 15.43 ft, action stage; 45,600 cubic feet per secondNov 13, 2020: 24.12 ft, moderate flooding; 101,000 cubic feet per secondApr 29, 2023: 15.14 ft, action stage; 44,000 cubic feet per secondJul 16, 2023: 17.57 ft, action stage; 55,300 cubic feet per secondJan 10, 2024: 21.82 ft, minor flooding; 78,200 cubic feet per secondFeb 17, 2025: 22.77 ft, minor flooding; 86,400 cubic feet per secondMay 14, 2025: 19.83 ft, action stage; 66,800 cubic feet per second Highest, 32.60 ft, Nov 6, 1985 192019401960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, James River (VA) at Cartersville 1910s: 0 1920s: 0 1930s: 0 1940s: 0 1950s: 0 1960s: 0 1970s: 8 1980s: 7 1990s: 14 14 2000s: 4 2010s: 5 2020s: 3 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.
  3. 64 crests measured on an earlier gauge datum are left out: 25.20 ft on Mar 6, 1899; 16.00 ft on Mar 2, 1900; 27.00 ft on May 23, 1901; 26.70 ft on Dec 30, 1901; 22.00 ft on Jun 7, 1903; 17.00 ft on Jul 14, 1905; and more.

Highest crests

The 50 highest of 75 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, James River (VA) at Cartersville
1Nov 6, 198532.60+12.60Major225,000
2Sep 7, 199628.96+8.96Major158,000
3Apr 18, 198727.96+7.96Major142,000
4Oct 6, 197227.12+7.12Major131,000
5Jan 21, 199626.45+6.45Major124,000
6Feb 26, 197926.33+6.33Moderate123,000
7Mar 20, 197526.04+6.04Moderate120,000
8Apr 23, 199225.41+5.41Moderate113,000
9Jan 27, 197825.08+5.08Moderate109,000
10Feb 24, 200324.47+4.47Moderate104,000
11Jun 4, 197924.19+4.19Moderate—
12Mar 5, 199324.18+4.18Moderate101,000
13Nov 13, 202024.12+4.12Moderate101,000
14Jan 26, 201023.94+3.94Moderate98,500
15May 7, 198923.38+3.38Moderate93,800
16Sep 20, 200322.87+2.87Minor89,700
17Feb 17, 202522.77+2.77Minor86,400
18Feb 16, 198422.42+2.42Minor86,800
19Mar 30, 199422.29+2.29Minor85,100
20Jan 17, 199521.96+1.96Minor82,500
21Feb 18, 199821.91+1.91Minor82,200
22Jan 29, 199821.87+1.87Minor82,000
23Sep 23, 197921.86+1.86Minor—
24Jan 10, 202421.82+1.82Minor78,200
25Sep 30, 199921.73+1.73Minor81,100
26Feb 5, 199821.69+1.69Minor80,800
27Jun 29, 199521.68+1.68Minor80,800
28Mar 30, 198421.62+1.62Minor—
29Feb 25, 201921.27+1.27Minor77,100
30Jun 28, 200621.15+1.15Minor77,500
31Jan 10, 199821.05+1.05Minor76,900
32Jun 15, 198220.91+0.91Minor76,000
33Dec 29, 197320.89+0.89Minor75,500
34Dec 3, 199620.73+0.73Minor74,900
35Oct 10, 197620.60+0.60Minor73,900
36Feb 12, 201820.58+0.58Minor74,000
37May 16, 201420.50+0.50Minor73,500
38Sep 30, 200420.49+0.49Minor73,500
39Oct 24, 199020.36+0.36Minor72,700
40Apr 11, 198320.26+0.26Minor71,900
41Sep 18, 201820.02+0.02Minor70,600
42Dec 22, 201819.98−0.02Action69,100
43Oct 8, 200619.97−0.03Action70,300
44May 14, 202519.83−0.17Action66,800
45Apr 18, 201119.73−0.27Action68,900
46May 9, 201319.69−0.31Action68,700
47Oct 12, 201819.13−0.87Action65,400
48Nov 30, 200519.03−0.97Action64,900
49Mar 11, 201118.97−1.03Action64,500
50Nov 28, 199318.92−1.08Action64,300

The worst floods along the James River (VA)

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

November 6, 1985: 32.60 ft here, major flooding

  • Holcomb RockVA · Nov 5, 1985 · 42.15 ft · Major · its highest
  • BuchananVA · Nov 5, 1985 · 38.84 ft · Major · its highest
  • ScottsvilleVA · Nov 6, 1985 · 31.77 ft · Major
  • Bent CreekVA · Nov 5, 1985 · 30.76 ft · Major · its highest
  • Lick RunVA · Nov 5, 1985 · 30.22 ft · Major
  • Richmond-WesthamVA · Nov 7, 1985 · 24.77 ft · Major

September 7, 1996: 28.96 ft here, major flooding

April 18, 1987: 27.96 ft here, major flooding

Gauges on the James River (VA)

Flood gauges sharing the river's name, linked within 80 miles of one another.

Flood gauges on the James River (VA)
Bent CreekVA16.030.76 ft, Nov 5, 19855
Bremo BluffVA21.024.29 ft, Feb 17, 20250
BuchananVA17.038.84 ft, Nov 5, 19855
Cartersville this gaugeVA20.032.60 ft, Nov 6, 19855
Fort Monroe (IN MLLW)VA4.56.42 ft, Oct 4, 20150
Holcomb RockVA22.042.15 ft, Nov 5, 19857
Jamestown/Scotland Ferry (IN MLLW)VA4.06.27 ft, Oct 4, 20158
Lick RunVA16.033.00 ft, Nov 24, 18777
Richmond LocksVA8.023.75 ft, Sep 8, 19960
Richmond-WesthamVA12.028.62 ft, Jun 23, 19725
ScottsvilleVA20.034.02 ft, Jun 22, 197212
Sewell's Point (IN MLLW)VA4.58.02 ft, Aug 23, 193311

Goochland County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Virginia

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge CARV2, 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.