Onalaska, Texas
13 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1954 and the latest in 1985. It stands in the Livingston-Onalaska census division. It lies in ZIP code area 77360. It stands on Sandy Creek. The Survey maps it on the Onalaska quadrangle. 3,020 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 177 feet above sea level.
Population over time
2 figuresOnalaska grew from 1,764 to 3,020 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.
| Year | People | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 1,764 | |
| 2020 | 3,020 | +1,256 (+71%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
5 surveys from 13 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.
- 1954 USGS Beaumont quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1957 USGS Beaumont quadrangle1:250000
- 1961 USGS Onalaska quadrangle1:24000, 4 printings
- 1984 USGS Beaumont quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1985 USGS Huntsville quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
56 since 1993Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 56 fires within 5 miles of Onalaska between 1993 and 2017, burning about 345 acres in total. 4 started naturally. 6 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 | 30 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 8 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 6 |
| Smoking | 4 |
| Natural | 4 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 2 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 1 |
| Fireworks | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 September 2000 | Debris and open burning | 3.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | CONROE - 429 |
| 26 September 2002 | Debris and open burning | 5.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | WOODVILLE - 201 |
| 24 September 1993 | Debris and open burning | 2.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | not named |
| 20 September 1999 | Debris and open burning | 3.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | not named |
| 12 September 2013 | Fireworks | 3.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | 8071 |
| 11 September 1993 | Debris and open burning | 2.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | not named |
| 31 August 2002 | Debris and open burning | 1.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | WOODVILLE - 190 |
| 30 August 2012 | Debris and open burning | 1.0 acres | Livingston Area | LIVINGSTON - 8060 |
Storms near this place
33 since 1994Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Onalaska in 33 storm reports between 1994 and 2024: 14 hail, 9 thunderstorm wind, 3 tornado, 3 funnel cloud. The reports record 3 deaths and 33 injuries. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 2020 | Tornado (EF3) | Onalaska | 3 killed, 33 hurt, $5,000,000 | Tornado touched down on the eastern shore of Lake Livingston, just NW of Onalaska then moved SE across the town then ESE across Polk County. Some of the most significant damage was in Paradise Acres area of Onalaska. Winds possibly reached 140 mph as the storm moved across this location, which was the only EF3 damage the NWS could confirm along the 30 mile track. The tornado killed three and injured 33 in Onalaska with 291 homes affected and 46 destroyed. It was estimated to be about 500 yards wide as it moved across the town. The tornado continued a general east-|northeastward track across rural Polk county where it snapped and uprooted numerous hardwood and softwood trees and intermittently damaged structures. The tornado path was measured at just over a half-mile wide as it crossed Highway 59 near Seven Oaks, where EF2 damage was surveyed with destruction of two mobile homes and |damage to hardwood trees. The tornado remained in rural areas until it ended very close to Barnes in northeast Polk county. Near the end of the track, a large tree destroyed a mobile home and miraculously just missed a man who was sitting at his computer. He was not seriously injured. For historical context, this was the deadliest single tornado for the NWS Houston-Galveston forecast area since Nov 15th, 1987 when a tornado also killed three in Madison County. The deadliest tornado on record for this area is the F4 in Galveston which killed 8 during Hurricane Carla in 1961. This is only the 8th multiple-fatality tornado for counties served by our office since 1950. |
| August 2017 | Flash Flood | Onalaska | $300,000,000 | There was high flood water on roads FM 3126 and FM 356 along the eastern shore of Lake Livingston.||The lowest homes and businesses within close vicinity of the lake, Trinity River and Long King Creek flooded. Roads along the southern end of Lake Livingston such as FM 3278 were inaccessible, FM 3128 and FM 1988 near Long King Creek were flooded. Major lowland flooding occurred on the Trinity River near Goodrich. |
| May 2024 | Flood | Onalaska | $3,100,000 | Flooding from numerous heavy rain events in April and early May led to significant damage. |
| August 2005 | Hail | Onalaska | $50,000 | Golfball hail on and around Lake Livingston and Onalaska. |
| April 2004 | Hail | Onalaska | $50,000 | Ping Pong ball-size hail covering ground. |
| July 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Onalaska | $40,000 | Partial removal of a nightclub roof on east side of Lake Livingston at Sunset Cove. |
| April 2004 | Hail | Onalaska | $30,000 | Golfball-size hail in Onalaska. |
| October 2001 | Tornado (F1) | Onalaska | $25,000 | Spotter reported a tornado flipped a trailer over and off its foundation on FM 356. |
| March 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Onalaska | $20,000 | Numerous trees were downed on homes and surrounding structures, including power lines. |
| August 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Onalaska | $15,000 | no account filed |
| March 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Onalaska | $10,000 | Barge damage and several overturned boats on Lake Livingston. |
| August 2006 | Hail | Onalaska | $8,000 | Quarter size hail. |
| February 2003 | Hail | Onalaska | $5,000 | 3/4 inch hail. |
| June 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Onalaska | $5,000 | Trees blown down in Onalaska along HWY 190 |
| December 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Onalaska | $5,000 | Large trees blown onto powerlines. |
| May 1994 | Hail | Onalaska | $5,000 | Golf ball-sized hail reported in Northern Polk County. |
| April 1997 | Hail | Onalaska | $5,000 | no account filed |
| April 1997 | Hail | Onalaska | $5,000 | no account filed |
| February 1999 | Hail | Onalaska | $3,000 | no account filed |
| November 1995 | Hail | Onalaska | $3,000 | no account filed |
| April 2011 | Tornado (EF0) | Onalaska | $1,000 | An EF0 tornado caused little damage at Walkers Waterfront. |
| May 2009 | Flash Flood | Onalaska | $1,000 | Roads were reported flooded along FM 350 near Bear Creek. |
| April 1995 | Hail | Onalaska | $1,000 | Reported by the Polk County Sheriffs Office. |
| May 2019 | Hail | Onalaska | - | Golf ball sized hail was reported. |
| May 2019 | Hail | Onalaska | - | Tennis to softball sized hail was reported. |
| May 2015 | Hail | Onalaska | - | Penny sized hail was reported to the northeast of Onalaska. |
| May 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Onalaska | - | Thunderstorm wind gusts downed some trees. |
| July 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | Onalaska | - | Trees were blown down in Onalaska. |
| October 2009 | Flash Flood | Onalaska | - | One lane of FM 356 closed due to high water. |
| May 2006 | Funnel Cloud | Onalaska | - | Three separate waterspouts on Lake Livingston. |
| June 2004 | Funnel Cloud | Onalaska | - | Funnel cloud sighted at Big Bridge over Lake Livingston. |
| October 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Onalaska | - | Tree down |
| May 2003 | Funnel Cloud | Onalaska | - | Funnel Cloud. |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Tempe | 5.2 miles | 13 | |
| Tobacco Patch | 5.7 miles | 12 | |
| Blanchard | 5.7 miles | 12 | |
| Patonia | 5.9 miles | 13 | |
| Bold Springs | 7.2 miles | 13 | |
| Tigerville | 7.5 miles | 12 | |
| Colita | 7.8 miles | 12 | |
| Moore Hill | 9.1 miles | 12 |
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.
| Wikipedia article on Onalaska | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q981987 | 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 1364545. 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.




