Community-built site for Noel, Missouri. Not the official City of Noel website. The city’s site is noelmo.org.

Loading live alerts from NWS…

Flat geometric civic mark: a limestone diamond with a spruce chevron on deep navy. Generated graphic, not a photograph. Noel, Missouri on the Elk River
Historic linen postcard: a two-lane highway entering Noel, Missouri, through Ozark hills, U.S. Highway 71, circa 1930–1945.

Noel, Missouri

A city of 2,124 people (2020 Census) on the Elk River in McDonald County, in the far southwest corner of Missouri, just north of Arkansas. Known as Christmas City for its seasonal USPS postmark, and as a put-in for Elk River float trips.

I live hereCity Hall, river flooding, and the everyday tasks below. I’m visitingFloat the Elk, see the bluffs, send a card from Christmas City.
Historic postcard of the highway cut entering Noel through Ozark hills, U.S. 71, circa 1930–1945.
The road in. Ozark Postcard Publishers / Tichnor #78308, public domain. Wikimedia Commons
Historic linen postcard of a bridge over the Elk River near Noel, Missouri, alongside U.S. Highway 71, circa 1930–1945.
The Elk. Ozark Postcard Publishers / Tichnor #78310, public domain. Wikimedia Commons
Large-letter postcard reading Greetings from Noel, Missouri, the Christmas City, circa 1940.
Christmas City. Tichnor #84299, scan by Steve Shook, CC BY 2.0. Wikimedia Commons

I want to…

Twelve tasks in two taps — pay a bill, report a problem, check the river, find a meeting, and more. Each links to the official source.

  1. Pay my sewer or trash bill

    The city’s “Sewer/Trash Pay” nav links to JustInter eBill for online payment. For water rates and start/stop, call City Hall. Services — utilities. Source: noelmo.org Sewer/Trash Pay → justinter.net/eBill/c/1532

  2. Start or stop utility service

    Call City Hall to start or stop service. Source: noelmo.org/contact-us/

  3. See the next Board of Aldermen meeting

    Standing night from the city’s code: second Tuesday, 7 p.m., Council Room. Government — meetings.

  4. Contact the mayor or my alderman

    Six alderpersons are named on the city’s staff page; no mayor and no emails. City Hall: 306 Main St., 417-475-3696. Who sits.

  5. Contact the Marshal / pay a ticket

    Emergencies: 911. Ticket pay is on nCourt; court phone 417-475-5004. Services — public safety.

  6. Get a permit

    A building-sewer connection permit is in the municipal code at $150; other permit desks are not on noelmo.org. Services — permits.

  7. Report a problem

    Call City Hall at 417-475-3696 for leaks, streets, trash, or animals. Source: noelmo.org/contact-us

  8. Check Elk River conditions

    See River today — USGS gage 07188925 at MO-59 in Noel, not a made-up stage.

  9. Find a float trip or campground

    The official camping page names River Ranch, WaySide, and Shady Beach (14332 State Highway 59). Full sourced list: Visit — float & camp. Source: noelmo.org/camping

  10. Christmas City / post-office cancellation

    Each year cards are sent to the Noel Post Office for the postmark “Noel, Mo. - The Christmas City in the Ozark Vacation Land.” Confirm this year’s window with the post office. Source: Wikipedia, Noel, Missouri

  11. Find ordinances / the municipal code

    One PDF is posted: City of Noel code (Oct 2024 upload). Source: noelmo.org

  12. Request a public record

    Missouri’s law is RSMo Chapter 610. Ask the city clerk at City Hall.

Elk River today

Noel sits on the Elk. Current USGS gage data and NWS forecasts, updated each view. Full river page covers live conditions, MDC public accesses, all ten area outfitters, and safety.

USGS 07188925 — Elk River at MO-59, Noel, Mo. The gage on the Elk in Noel itself (stage only; drainage 801 square miles). Instantaneous values fetched 23 September 2026 20:28Z returned stage 5.34 ft at 03:15 PM CDT 23 Sep (the latest of 5 PT1H samples — 14:30=5.34, 14:45=5.33, 15:00=5.34, 15:15=5.34; brief 13:30 dip to 5.31 then recovered 5.34 holding 3 of last 4 samples; 3-hour trend 5.34 → 5.34 — flat; S-Live-92 was last tick — stage recovered 0.01 ft from 5.33 to 5.34 ft). The old Tiff City gage (07189000) stopped publishing 2026-04-27; the NWS forecast point is TIFM7 at Tiff City — forecast primary 2.9 ft (no flooding) valid 2026-09-24T00:00Z UNCHANGED. Two gages, two datums — never compare the numbers.

NWS forecast point: water.noaa.gov/gauges/tifm7. USGS monitoring location.

What’s on

Only dated items the city or a cited source publishes.

No dated upcoming events on the official city calendar. noelmo.org/events-2 fetched 22 September 2026 returns the heading “Events” and no listings.

  • The city page Noel Event Applications (fetched 22 September 2026) is open for hosts: Google Forms for a Noel Event Calendar, Noel Fall Festival, Noel Christmas Pageant, and Noel Christmas Parade. No dates or deadlines are posted on that page — apply there, or ask City Hall.
  • The official Community page (re-fetched 22 September 2026) still describes a 4th of July celebration on July 3 with a parade, and names Rosetta Hartley at Noel Housing Authority for entries. It does not state a year.
  • The city’s last news post that named an event was “Truck or Treat” (18 September 2024). It is past. Do not reuse it as current.
  • Christmas City postmark: cards are sent each year to the Noel Post Office for the cancellation “Noel, Mo. - The Christmas City in the Ozark Vacation Land.” Confirm this year’s window with the Noel Post Office (ZIP 64854).

Fetched 22 September 2026 from noelmo.org/events-2 (heading “Events”, no listings), noelmo.org/christmas-parade (event applications still open, no dates), noelmo.org/community, and Wikipedia — Noel, Missouri. When the clerk posts a dated item, it will be cited here with a fetch date.

If you are visiting

The official city site brands Noel “The Christmas City and Canoeing Capital of the Ozarks.” This independent guide keeps the postcard and the safety facts on the same page.

If you live here

2,124 residents as of the 2020 Census (1,832 in 2010). Hispanic or Latino residents: 882 people, 41.5%. Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander: 212, 10.0%. Spanish-language guide: /es/. Somali belongs on police, court, utilities, and flood pages once those exist.

Schools are McDonald County R-1, not a city department. Property tax and plates run through the county, not a fake city portal.

City government

Noel is a Missouri 4th-class city (mayor and board of aldermen under RSMo Chapter 79). Names the city publishes, the standing meeting night from the municipal code, and how to attend: Government.

The official staff page names six alderpersons by West, North, and South wards. It does not name a sitting mayor. Full sourced list: Government — who sits.

Municipal code (PDF the city posted): City-Codes-1.pdf.

Public safety

Call 911 for emergencies. Marshal Facebook, nCourt ticket pay, Sheriff 417-223-4319. Services — public safety. City Hall: 417-475-3696.

Business directory the city already publishes

From the official local-businesses page. Phones as the city listed them.

Source: noelmo.org/services (fetched 2026-09-20). Doug Laman’s Art Gallery is listed there without a phone in the same fetch, so it is omitted until a number is published.

Español

La guía en español ya está publicada. El 41.5% de Noel se identificó como hispano o latino en el censo de 2020 (882 personas). Abrir la guía en español. Las etiquetas en español son traducción humana; los textos largos y las alertas del NWS se quedan en inglés.

Fuente: censo de 2020, tabla en Wikipedia — Noel, Missouri. Fetched 20 September 2026.

City Hall

City of Noel — City Hall
306 Main St.
P.O. Box 1010
Noel, MO 64854
417-475-3696

Facebook page named “City of NOEL, Missouri”: facebook.com/City-of-NOEL-Missouri.

This is a community-built information site. Calling City Hall still goes to the city. Meeting notices copied here later would be a courtesy and would not satisfy Missouri Sunshine Law posting duties.

ZIP 64854 · area code 417 · Census place FIPS 29-52742. Source: Wikipedia infobox, Noel, Missouri.