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Shawnee, Ohio
Inside Shawnee's city limits, a shallow water table limits basements on 23% of mapped land. Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 23%, the 2nd-highest of 11 cities in Perry County.
That water-table share is below Perry County's 42%. FEMA's flood data list no flood losses since 2016 in ZIP code 43782 overlapping the city. Of its 222 homes, 74% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1939 or earlier.
Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources · in Perry County
expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes
high water table: limits basements
flood losses since 2016 in 1 overlapping ZIP
of homes built before 1980
Basement waterproofing in Shawnee
Basement waterproofing in Shawnee: a shallow water table limits basements on 23% of Shawnee's mapped land.
In Perry County, 19% of the 31 flood-loss buildings with a recorded foundation type had basements.
About 200 of Shawnee's 222 homes are detached houses.
Soil under Shawnee city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 22.7% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 23.3% |
| Septic fields very limited | 79.6% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 3.1% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 21.4% |
| Mapped soil | 1,445 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: high water table |
|---|---|---|
| Guernsey | 22% | n/a |
| Bethesda | 21% | n/a |
| Westmoreland | 20% | 0% |
| Westmore | 6% | n/a |
| Brownsville | 5% | n/a |
| Morristown | 3% | n/a |
What the numbers mean here
Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 3.1% by land area here, and 21% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 23% of the mapped land.
On 23% of Shawnee's mapped land, soil stays saturated within about 6 feet of the surface for part of the year, which is basement depth.
USDA rates 80% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Drought in Perry County
0% of Perry County is in drought (D1 or worse) on the October 13, 2026 map. County detail.
Flood losses by ZIP code
FEMA flood records since 2016 in the ZIP codes that overlap Shawnee. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 43782 | 100% | 0 | $0 |
Homes in Shawnee
| Housing units | 222 |
| Median year built | 1939 or earlier |
| Built before 1980 | 74% |
| Built 2000 or later | 14% |
| Owner-occupied | 83% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $71,700 |
| Single-family detached | 83% |
Nearby cities
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Straitsville | 3 mi | 33% | 36% |
| Hemlock | 3 mi | 14% | 38% |
| Corning | 6 mi | 17% | 29% |
| Murray City | 7 mi | 16% | 33% |
| New Lexington | 7 mi | 4% | 38% |
| Junction City | 9 mi | 3% | 61% |
| Glouster | 10 mi | 10% | 45% |
| Buchtel | 10 mi | 19% | 29% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (August 5, 2026) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status