Why visit Noel
Townapedia lists 2 museums and landmarks, 1 park or trail, 2 places to eat and 1 attraction in and around town.
Highlights include Bluff Dweller's Cave, Adar House and Elk River Golf Course.
August is the warmest month, with average highs of 89°F; January lows average 24°F.
Weather in Noel
Forecast from the National Weather Service. Full forecast
About Noel
Noel is a city on the Elk River and Butler and Mill creeks in McDonald County, Missouri, United States. The population was 2,124 as of the 2020 census, up from 1,832 in 2010. The city is in the southwest corner of Missouri, just north of the Arkansas border.
From the Wikipedia article Noel, Missouri (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Things to do1
Bluff Dweller's Cave
Monument and historic site · 1.6 mi
Cave in United States of America
Museums and landmarks2
Adar House
Monument and historic site · National Register of Historic Places · 3.5 mi
United States historic place
Parks, trails and playgrounds1
Restaurants and cafes2
Sidewinders
Diner · American · 1.0 mi
49 State Highway TT, Noel
History
A post office called Noel has been in operation since 1886. The community was named for Clark Wallace "C.W." and William Jasper "W.J." Noel; brothers, stockmen, and owners of a sawmill. The town was founded after the Kansas City, Pittsburg, and Gulf Railroad arrived.
Noel has capitalized on its Christmas-themed name, along with North Pole, Alaska, Christmas, Michigan, Santa Claus, Indiana, and Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Each year, tens of thousands of Christmas cards and letters are sent to the USPS Noel Post Office during the holiday season to be stamped with a postmark reading, Noel, Mo. - "The Christmas City in the Ozark Vacation Land". This practice became popular in the late 1940s when Kate Smith, a radio and television singer, began telling the "Noel Story" during her broadcasts. Most of the year, area residents pronounce Noel as rhyming with "mole", in honor of the town's namesake, Bridges Noel.
On August 3, 1969, a freight train exploded while passing through Noel, spraying fragments of metal through houses and buildings over a six-block area. One person was killed, and 40 others injured.
From the History section of Noel, Missouri on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Schools, colleges and libraries4
Map of Noel
10 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.
Climate by month
Monthly table
| Month | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 46°F | 24°F | 2.5 in |
| Feb | 51°F | 27°F | 2.4 in |
| Mar | 60°F | 35°F | 4.0 in |
| Apr | 69°F | 44°F | 5.2 in |
| May | 75°F | 54°F | 6.9 in |
| Jun | 84°F | 64°F | 5.0 in |
| Jul | 89°F | 68°F | 4.3 in |
| Aug | 89°F | 66°F | 3.5 in |
| Sep | 82°F | 58°F | 4.3 in |
| Oct | 71°F | 47°F | 3.9 in |
| Nov | 59°F | 36°F | 4.0 in |
| Dec | 49°F | 27°F | 3.0 in |
U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020 for Anderson 3W (7 mi away), NOAA NCEI.
People and cost of living
American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020-2024, U.S. Census Bureau. Estimates have margins of error, larger for small towns.
Disaster history
McDonald County has had 22 federal disaster declarations since 2000, most often for severe storms.
- 2025-06-09: Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding (Severe Storm)
- 2024-07-23: Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding (Severe Storm)
- 2020-03-26: Covid-19 Pandemic (Biological)
- 2020-03-13: Covid-19 (Biological)
- 2019-07-09: Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding (Severe Storm)
- 2017-06-02: Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds And Flooding (Flood)
OpenFEMA disaster declarations summaries.
Getting there and nearby towns
Neosho Hugh Robinson Airport (EOS) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 19 miles away.
- Anderson 8 mi north, about 13 min by car
- Gravette 10 mi southeast, about 17 min by car
- Bella Vista 13 mi east, about 22 min by car
- Decatur 13 mi south, about 22 min by car
- Centerton 17 mi southeast, about 27 min by car
- Grove 17 mi west, about 27 min by car
- Bentonville 19 mi southeast, about 31 min by car
- Jay 19 mi southwest, about 30 min by car
- Gentry 20 mi south, about 32 min by car
- Neosho 22 mi north, about 35 min by car
Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.
Local news
Headlines from INDB, the NEMICO news database.
Reviews, tips and questions
Loading what members have shared...
Sources and licences
- NCES EDGE (Public domain): public schools
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020 (Public domain): climate by month
- OpenFEMA (Public domain): disaster declarations
- OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0): places, airports, map data
- U.S. Census Bureau (Public domain): population, income, housing, education, commute
- Wikidata (CC0 1.0): elevation, founding date, time zone, website, landmarks and historic places
- Wikimedia Commons (see each image): photos
- Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0): overview and history text
Photo credits
- Adar House, Valis55, CC BY-SA 3.0
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