Search
Menu

Explore

Hazards

Analysis

Rankings

Reference

Smith River at Martinsville

Highest listed crest 20.08 ftFlood stage 11.0 ft76 crests since 1952

The Smith River at Martinsville crested at major flood stage 3 times among the 76 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1952 to 2024. The highest, 20.08 ft on September 8, 1987, was major flooding, 9.08 feet above flood stage. 1 other gauge on the Smith River crested above flood stage within a week of it.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
20.08 ft
September 8, 1987; 34,600 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
11.0 ft
Major flooding from 16.0 ft
Crests at major
3
55th of 242 gauges in Virginia
Most recent flood crest
May 25, 2020
12.87 ft, minor flooding
Location
Henry County
Near Martinsville (1.8 mi), Eden (13.4 mi)

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Smith River at Martinsville
Action stage9.014Jan 10, 2024The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)11.02May 25, 2020Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage14.03Jan 25, 2010Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage16.03Sep 6, 1996Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

76 crests from 1952 to 2024. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Smith River at Martinsville, 1952 to 2024 0510152025ft Flood stage 11.0 ftMajor 16.0 ft Sep 1, 1952: 7.36 ft, below flood stage; 6,440 cubic feet per secondMar 24, 1953: 6.37 ft, below flood stage; 4,880 cubic feet per secondJan 22, 1954: 7.14 ft, below flood stage; 5,960 cubic feet per secondOct 15, 1954: 8.98 ft, below flood stage; 9,000 cubic feet per secondApr 16, 1956: 6.06 ft, below flood stage; 4,430 cubic feet per secondSep 17, 1957: 10.10 ft, action stage; 10,900 cubic feet per secondNov 19, 1957: 7.94 ft, below flood stage; 7,240 cubic feet per secondSep 30, 1959: 9.30 ft, action stage; 9,510 cubic feet per secondFeb 5, 1960: 8.18 ft, below flood stage; 7,720 cubic feet per secondFeb 23, 1961: 5.73 ft, below flood stage; 4,040 cubic feet per secondDec 12, 1961: 6.66 ft, below flood stage; 5,400 cubic feet per secondNov 9, 1962: 8.15 ft, below flood stage; 7,720 cubic feet per secondAug 31, 1964: 8.88 ft, below flood stage; 8,840 cubic feet per secondFeb 7, 1965: 7.39 ft, below flood stage; 6,440 cubic feet per secondFeb 13, 1966: 6.60 ft, below flood stage; 5,170 cubic feet per secondAug 24, 1967: 4.97 ft, below flood stage; 3,300 cubic feet per secondMar 12, 1968: 5.31 ft, below flood stage; 3,660 cubic feet per secondJul 3, 1969: 6.87 ft, below flood stage; 5,690 cubic feet per secondAug 10, 1970: 5.87 ft, below flood stage; 4,390 cubic feet per secondOct 31, 1970: 7.00 ft, below flood stage; 5,840 cubic feet per secondJun 21, 1972: 14.95 ft, moderate flooding; 20,900 cubic feet per secondFeb 2, 1973: 7.89 ft, below flood stage; 7,220 cubic feet per secondApr 4, 1974: 7.94 ft, below flood stage; 7,300 cubic feet per secondMar 19, 1975: 8.95 ft, below flood stage; 8,920 cubic feet per secondMay 30, 1976: 6.08 ft, below flood stage; 4,620 cubic feet per secondOct 9, 1976: 8.84 ft, below flood stage; 8,740 cubic feet per secondJan 26, 1978: 10.77 ft, action stage; 12,100 cubic feet per secondSep 22, 1979: 16.59 ft, major flooding; 24,900 cubic feet per secondApr 9, 1980: 8.99 ft, below flood stage; 8,980 cubic feet per secondSep 16, 1981: 3.85 ft, below flood stage; 1,940 cubic feet per secondMay 28, 1982: 6.93 ft, below flood stage; 5,740 cubic feet per secondApr 10, 1983: 9.65 ft, action stage; 10,100 cubic feet per secondFeb 14, 1984: 5.81 ft, below flood stage; 4,800 cubic feet per secondAug 18, 1985: 15.43 ft, moderate flooding; 21,900 cubic feet per secondNov 4, 1985: 8.09 ft, below flood stage; 7,880 cubic feet per secondSep 8, 1987: 20.08 ft, major flooding; 34,600 cubic feet per secondJul 27, 1988: 7.81 ft, below flood stage; 7,480 cubic feet per secondJul 6, 1989: 10.98 ft, action stage; 12,500 cubic feet per secondMar 17, 1990: 7.86 ft, below flood stage; 7,550 cubic feet per secondMar 29, 1991: 7.38 ft, below flood stage; 6,880 cubic feet per secondJun 5, 1992: 10.42 ft, action stage; 11,500 cubic feet per secondMar 4, 1993: 10.15 ft, action stage; 11,000 cubic feet per secondMar 28, 1994: 6.25 ft, below flood stage; 5,320 cubic feet per secondJan 15, 1995: 7.99 ft, below flood stage; 7,740 cubic feet per secondSep 6, 1996: 16.75 ft, major flooding; 25,300 cubic feet per secondApr 29, 1997: 6.08 ft, below flood stage; 5,090 cubic feet per secondApr 19, 1998: 6.75 ft, below flood stage; 6,010 cubic feet per secondSep 30, 1999: 4.93 ft, below flood stage; 3,520 cubic feet per secondMar 21, 2000: 4.22 ft, below flood stage; 2,570 cubic feet per secondMay 22, 2001: 7.06 ft, below flood stage; 6,430 cubic feet per secondMar 18, 2002: 4.41 ft, below flood stage; 2,820 cubic feet per secondMar 20, 2003: 10.27 ft, action stage; 11,200 cubic feet per secondSep 8, 2004: 8.56 ft, below flood stage; 8,530 cubic feet per secondMar 28, 2005: 6.13 ft, below flood stage; 5,160 cubic feet per secondAug 31, 2006: 6.46 ft, below flood stage; 5,610 cubic feet per secondJan 1, 2007: 6.88 ft, below flood stage; 6,180 cubic feet per secondMay 9, 2008: 7.92 ft, below flood stage; 7,640 cubic feet per secondJan 7, 2009: 5.72 ft, below flood stage; 4,590 cubic feet per secondJan 25, 2010: 15.19 ft, moderate flooding; 21,400 cubic feet per secondSep 30, 2010: 10.49 ft, action stage; 11,700 cubic feet per secondMar 6, 2011: 5.25 ft, below flood stage; 3,960 cubic feet per secondDec 7, 2011: 5.65 ft, below flood stage; 4,500 cubic feet per secondJan 15, 2013: 5.81 ft, below flood stage; 4,720 cubic feet per secondDec 23, 2013: 5.42 ft, below flood stage; 4,190 cubic feet per secondOct 1, 2015: 7.16 ft, below flood stage; 6,570 cubic feet per secondNov 10, 2015: 7.98 ft, below flood stage; 7,720 cubic feet per secondJun 17, 2017: 7.89 ft, below flood stage; 7,590 cubic feet per secondMay 20, 2018: 10.53 ft, action stage; 11,600 cubic feet per secondSep 17, 2018: 10.24 ft, action stage; 11,100 cubic feet per secondOct 12, 2018: 12.79 ft, minor flooding; 16,000 cubic feet per secondApr 13, 2020: 9.72 ft, action stage; 10,254 cubic feet per secondMay 25, 2020: 12.87 ft, minor flooding; 16,200 cubic feet per secondAug 21, 2020: 8.75 ft, below flood stage; 8,790 cubic feet per secondOct 29, 2020: 9.33 ft, action stage; 9,650 cubic feet per secondNov 12, 2020: 8.71 ft, below flood stage; 8,740 cubic feet per secondJan 10, 2024: 10.96 ft, action stage; 12,420 cubic feet per second Highest, 20.08 ft, Sep 8, 1987 1960197019801990200020102020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Smith River at Martinsville 1950s: 0 1960s: 0 1970s: 2 2 1980s: 2 1990s: 1 2000s: 0 2010s: 2 2020s: 1 1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
  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 76 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Smith River at Martinsville
1Sep 8, 198720.08+9.08Major34,600
2Sep 6, 199616.75+5.75Major25,300
3Sep 22, 197916.59+5.59Major24,900
4Aug 18, 198515.43+4.43Moderate21,900
5Jan 25, 201015.19+4.19Moderate21,400
6Jun 21, 197214.95+3.95Moderate20,900
7May 25, 202012.87+1.87Minor16,200
8Oct 12, 201812.79+1.79Minor16,000
9Jul 6, 198910.98−0.02Action12,500
10Jan 10, 202410.96−0.04Action12,420
11Jan 26, 197810.77−0.23Action12,100
12May 20, 201810.53−0.47Action11,600
13Sep 30, 201010.49−0.51Action11,700
14Jun 5, 199210.42−0.58Action11,500
15Mar 20, 200310.27−0.73Action11,200
16Sep 17, 201810.24−0.76Action11,100
17Mar 4, 199310.15−0.85Action11,000
18Sep 17, 195710.10−0.90Action10,900
19Apr 13, 20209.72−1.28Action10,254
20Apr 10, 19839.65−1.35Action10,100
21Oct 29, 20209.33−1.67Action9,650
22Sep 30, 19599.30−1.70Action9,510
23Apr 9, 19808.99−2.01Below flood stage8,980
24Oct 15, 19548.98−2.02Below flood stage9,000
25Mar 19, 19758.95−2.05Below flood stage8,920
26Aug 31, 19648.88−2.12Below flood stage8,840
27Oct 9, 19768.84−2.16Below flood stage8,740
28Aug 21, 20208.75−2.25Below flood stage8,790
29Nov 12, 20208.71−2.29Below flood stage8,740
30Sep 8, 20048.56−2.44Below flood stage8,530
31Feb 5, 19608.18−2.82Below flood stage7,720
32Nov 9, 19628.15−2.85Below flood stage7,720
33Nov 4, 19858.09−2.91Below flood stage7,880
34Jan 15, 19957.99−3.01Below flood stage7,740
35Nov 10, 20157.98−3.02Below flood stage7,720
36Nov 19, 19577.94−3.06Below flood stage7,240
37Apr 4, 19747.94−3.06Below flood stage7,300
38May 9, 20087.92−3.08Below flood stage7,640
39Feb 2, 19737.89−3.11Below flood stage7,220
40Jun 17, 20177.89−3.11Below flood stage7,590
41Mar 17, 19907.86−3.14Below flood stage7,550
42Jul 27, 19887.81−3.19Below flood stage7,480
43Feb 7, 19657.39−3.61Below flood stage6,440
44Mar 29, 19917.38−3.62Below flood stage6,880
45Sep 1, 19527.36−3.64Below flood stage6,440
46Oct 1, 20157.16−3.84Below flood stage6,570
47Jan 22, 19547.14−3.86Below flood stage5,960
48May 22, 20017.06−3.94Below flood stage6,430
49Oct 31, 19707.00−4.00Below flood stage5,840
50May 28, 19826.93−4.07Below flood stage5,740

The worst floods along the Smith River

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

September 8, 1987: 20.08 ft here, major flooding

  • EdenNC · Sep 8, 1987 · 16.17 ft · Moderate

September 6, 1996: 16.75 ft here, major flooding

  • EdenNC · Sep 6, 1996 · 15.61 ft · Moderate

September 22, 1979: 16.59 ft here, major flooding

  • EdenNC · Sep 22, 1979 · 15.68 ft · Moderate

Gauges on the Smith River

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

Flood gauges on the Smith River
Smith River Church near WoolwineVA9.016.11 ft, Sep 29, 20151
Martinsville this gaugeVA11.020.08 ft, Sep 8, 19873
EdenNC12.019.28 ft, Aug 15, 19401

Other gauges in Henry County

Flood gauges in Henry County
Spencer8.015.80 ft, Oct 9, 19473

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

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge SMMV2, 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.