Dotson, Texas
12 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1956 and the latest in 1986. It stands in the Long Branch-Dotson census division. It lies in ZIP code area 75669. It stands on Murphy Creek. The Survey maps it on the Long Branch quadrangle. It stands 371 feet above sea level.
Topographic sheets covering this place
5 surveys from 12 printed sheetsMatched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.
- 1956 USGS Tyler quadrangle1:250000, 5 printings
- 1960 USGS Minden quadrangle1:62500
- 1983 USGS Long Branch quadrangle1:24000
- 1984 USGS Tyler quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1986 USGS Henderson quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
138 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 138 fires within 5 miles of Dotson between 1992 and 2020, burning about 1,281 acres in total. 3 started naturally. 4 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Debris and open burning | 99 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 22 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 7 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 4 |
| Natural | 3 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 2 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 1 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 September 2005 | Debris and open burning | 2.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | HENDERSON - 233 |
| 8 September 2006 | Debris and open burning | 1.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | not named |
| 7 September 1998 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | not named |
| 29 September 2007 | Debris and open burning | 3.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | not named |
| 28 September 1994 | Debris and open burning | 10 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | not named |
| 22 September 2007 | Debris and open burning | 2.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | not named |
| 18 September 2006 | Debris and open burning | 1.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | not named |
| 17 September 2015 | Debris and open burning | 18 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | 7110 |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Storms near this place
6 since 1996Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Dotson in 6 storm reports between 1996 and 2024: 3 hail, 2 thunderstorm wind, 1 tornado. The reports record 1 injury. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 2021 | Tornado (EF2) | Dotson | 1 hurt, $100,000 | This is a continuation of the Southern Rusk County tornado. This tornado continued northeast towards Lake Murvaul, where it maintained EF1 intensity while snapping and uprooting numerous trees as it paralleled FM 1971. Upon reaching the lake, the tornado reached several residences along the shoreline where it increased in intensity as it snapped and uprooted more trees and damaged the shingles of many homes. By this time, the tornado had strengthened to an EF2, with estimated maximum winds of 115 mph. One person was injured at their residence on the shore of Lake Murvaul, while video of the tornado was recorded by a storm chaser as it crossed the lake. After downing trees which damaged several structures on the east shore of the lake, it weakened and produced more sporadic damage before lifting north-northwest of Gary City. A review of video, TDEM ground survey data, and Sentinel satellite data indicate that the tornado lifted for approximately 5 miles before it touched down again in Southern Panola County. |
| July 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Dotson | - | Numerous trees branches snapped, an outdoor table was destroyed, and an awning was ripped off of a trailer at a residence just off of FM Road 1971 on County Road 164 in the Dotson/Long Branch area. |
| April 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Dotson | - | Trees and power lines were downed southwest of Gary City around the area of FM 999 and County Roads 178, 179, and 180. Damage also extends south into Northern Shelby County. |
| April 2015 | Hail | Dotson | - | Ping pong ball sized hail was reported in the Dotson, community west of Gary City, Texas. |
| May 1999 | Hail | Dotson | - | no account filed |
| July 1996 | Hail | Dotson | - | no account filed |
Nearest settlements
The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Long Branch | 5.1 miles | 12 | |
| Buncome | 6.4 miles | 13 | |
| Clayton | 7.1 miles | 13 | |
| Gary | 8.6 miles | 13 | |
| Daniels | 9.2 miles | 13 | |
| Fair Play | 9.8 miles | 12 | |
| Delray | 10.9 miles | 14 | |
| Pleasant Ridge | 12.4 miles | 13 |
Elsewhere
Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.
| Wikidata item Q130312330 | The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0). |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1378218. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.




