Converse County, Wyoming
Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 16% of Converse County's mapped land, a higher share than 64% of US counties and the 9th highest of 22 Wyoming counties. A shallow water table limits basements on 1%.
100% of the county is in drought on the October 13, 2026 Drought Monitor map. FEMA's flood data list 4 flood losses here since 2016. 57% of homes were built before 1980, against 50% nationally; the median home dates from 1978.
Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources
expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes
high water table: limits basements
in drought, October 13, 2026
of homes built before 1980
Soil under Converse County
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 15.6% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 0.6% |
| Septic fields very limited | 67.9% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 3.7% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 14.9% |
| Mapped soil | 2,502,205 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: expansive clay |
|---|---|---|
| Shingle | 9% | n/a |
| Hiland | 9% | n/a |
| Theedle | 6% | n/a |
| Bowbac | 4% | n/a |
| Cambria | 4% | n/a |
| Kishona | 4% | n/a |
How we count · survey areas WY609 (2025-09-04), WY709 (2025-09-04)
What the numbers mean here
Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 3.7% by land area here, and 15% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 16% of the mapped land.
Clay shrinks as it dries: 100% of the county is in drought on the latest map, and 16% of Converse County's mapped land has shrink-swell clay.
Rain over the 12 months to August 2026: 12.16 in, 2.17 in below the 1991-2020 average year of 14.33 in.
USDA rates 68% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Drought
100% of the county is in drought (D1 or worse) on the October 13, 2026 map. Part of the county was in drought in 40 of the last 52 weeks; the most was 100% of its area, in 35 weeks, most recently on the October 13, 2026 map.
| Category, October 13, 2026 | Share of county |
|---|---|
| D0 abnormally dry or worse | 100% |
| D1 moderate drought or worse | 100% |
| D2 severe or worse | 89.6% |
| D3 extreme or worse | 8.5% |
| D4 exceptional | 0% |
Flood losses since 2016
4 flood losses since 2016, $73,607 paid. The worst year was 2023, with 2.
| Year | Flood losses |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 0 |
| 2017 | 0 |
| 2018 | 0 |
| 2019 | 0 |
| 2020 | 0 |
| 2021 | 0 |
| 2022 | 0 |
| 2023 | 2 |
| 2024 | 0 |
| 2025 | 1 |
| 2026 to date | 1 |
Rain
| Average year, 1991-2020 | 14.33 in |
| 12 months to August 2026 | 12.16 in (-2.17) |
| 2025 | 15.57 in (+1.24) |
| Wettest year since 1895 | 1915: 20.50 in |
| Driest year since 1895 | 2012: 7.79 in |
| Days with 1 inch or more, normal at DOUGLAS CONVERSE CO AP (15 mi away) | 0.4 |
Homes
| Housing units | 6,646 |
| Median year built | 1978 |
| Built before 1980 | 57% |
| Built 2000 or later | 26% |
| Owner-occupied | 77% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $292,700 |
| Single-family detached | 68% |
What repairs cost
Published ranges from cost guides, not quotes. More sources, and where they disagree.
Nearby counties
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Niobrara County, WY | 54 mi | 10% | 1% |
| Natrona County, WY | 63 mi | 17% | 1% |
| Platte County, WY | 66 mi | under 1% | 2% |
| Weston County, WY | 76 mi | 27% | 1% |
| Campbell County, WY | 83 mi | 22% | 1% |
| Goshen County, WY | 86 mi | 1% | 2% |
| Johnson County, WY | 91 mi | 18% | 1% |
| Albany County, WY | 92 mi | 5% | 7% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (September 4, 2025) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · NOAA (August 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status