Blog · October 14, 2026 · Montana
Garfield County Flood Zone Map: checking a property's flood zone
Flood zones are set by FEMA, and checking one near Sand Springs takes a few minutes.
Main page: Garfield County, MT GIS & Parcel Viewer (official map link, county facts and neighboring maps).
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Weighing a property around Brusett? The Garfield County flood zone map tells you whether it sits in a FEMA flood zone, and no account is needed. What this Garfield County guide covers: the free FEMA tools, what each zone label means, when insurance is required and how to challenge a map that looks wrong.
The Garfield County flood zone map: start here
Flood zones come from FEMA's Flood Map Service Center: search an address around Mosby, and pick the FIRMette or map view. Vacant ground around Jordan is still easy to locate: pan from the closest town and click the spot.
Pulling up a parcel
For a parcel near Brusett, the no-cost parcel map for this area is the Montana Cadastral, and anyone can open it without signing up. When a rural tract has no street number, pan along the nearest road until the lines appear, then click inside the one you want, whether the land is near Brusett or elsewhere in the county. On ground around Sand Springs, the parcel card usually lists the owner of record, acreage on the tax roll, a parcel ID and sometimes recent sales.
A short flood checklist
In and around Brusett, ask the seller for any Elevation Certificate before closing; an insurance quote early avoids surprises.
Deeds, plats and who keeps them
If you're looking near Jordan, the map is an index, not the title: recorded deeds, subdivision plats and easements for parcels in the county are filed with the County Clerk and Recorder. On ground around Cohagen, use the document number shown in the record panel so staff can find the deed fast.
Using it on a phone
The parcel map usually runs in a mobile browser, handy when you're parked on a road near Brusett, though signal can drop in rural spots. A printout of the tract near Brusett keeps working without signal.
Reading A, AE and X
Out toward Jordan, A and V zones mark the Special Flood Hazard Area, meaning a 1% or greater chance of flooding each year. Out toward Sand Springs, a shaded X area is moderate risk, between the 1% and 0.2% annual chance floods; plain X, or C on older maps, is minimal risk.
How land is described here
Montana follows the Public Land Survey System, so rural legal descriptions near Big Dry cite section, township and range. A standard section is about one square mile, roughly 640 acres, with 36 sections to a township, though sections near Jordan can be irregular. Copy the legal description from the record for the parcel near Mosby before you request a deed or survey.
Garfield County in a few facts
Jordan is the county seat, home to the main records offices. You'll also find Big Dry, Brusett, Cohagen, and Mosby, where town lots give way to larger tracts. About 1,211 people call Garfield County home (Census estimate, 2023) across some 4,677 square miles. The county was organized in 1919, which matters when you trace an old farm's title for land near Jordan.
Lining it up with the parcel map
FEMA doesn't draw property lines, so open the Montana Cadastral next to confirm you have the right parcel near Big Dry.
Insurance, lenders and building
For a parcel near Jordan, ask for an Elevation Certificate: it can change the insurance price a lot. New construction in a floodplain near Big Dry can trigger elevation rules; call the permitting office before you plan.
Low spots and local drainage
Small streams around Big Dry aren't always studied in detail, so walk the land after rain. Marshy spots near Brusett can limit building too; the National Wetlands Inventory mapper shows mapped wetlands.
Getting answers from the right desk
Anything recorded against property around Sand Springs are with the County Clerk and Recorder, usually searchable by name or document number. Building or septic questions for a lot near Cohagen need the planning or permitting office, depending on whether the land is inside town limits.
Next door to Garfield County
Garfield County meets Custer County, McCone County, Petroleum County, Phillips County, and Prairie County; every one of them runs a separate parcel map. A tract near the line by Mosby can be split across two assessors' files, so look at the neighboring map too. For a parcel near Big Dry, the Platbookmapper state page links each neighboring county map across Montana.
Garfield County: common questions
Is AE a high-risk flood zone in Garfield County?
For a home near Sand Springs, both are high-risk zones, but only AE has a base flood elevation; unnumbered A zones don't list one.
How can I tell if a house near Cohagen is in a flood zone?
Good question; search the address near Brusett on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which takes a couple of minutes.
Where do I find the BFE for a lot near Sand Springs?
If you're looking near Big Dry, the BFE is printed in AE zones on FEMA's map; local rules may require building above it.
Can I challenge a flood zone near Sand Springs?
For most people, you can ask FEMA for a LOMA if surveyed elevations show the building near Big Dry is above the BFE, and lenders accept the result.
What's the tax parcel number used for near Big Dry?
It's the number the Montana Department of Revenue uses to track a tract near Sand Springs; copy it before you call anyone.
Open the official Garfield County, MT parcel map See it in the Platbookmapper directory
Not a survey. County GIS and tax parcel maps are assessment and planning layers. They are not a substitute for a recorded plat, deed, or licensed survey, especially for fences, setbacks, or boundary disputes.