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Salado, Texas

14 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1893 and the latest in 1985. It stands in the South Bell census division. It lies in ZIP code area 76571. It stands on Watkins Branch. The Survey maps it on the Salado quadrangle. 2,394 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 600 feet above sea level.

Salado within Bell County

On record in Salado

Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.

On the National Register 12 of 19 shown

Every listing in Bell County

Surveyed buildings and structures 2 records

Population over time

2 figures

Salado grew from 2,126 to 2,394 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.

YearPeople Change
20102,126
20202,394+268 (+13%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

4 surveys from 14 printed sheets

Matched 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.

Photographs

2 photographs,

Taken for the Office of War Information and the Farm Security Administration, who photographed the country between 1935 and 1944. Works of United States government photographers, with no known restriction on use. Each opens its catalogue record.

E. Sterling C. Robertson Plantation House, West access road, I-35 vicinity, Salado, Bell County, TX
E. Sterling C. Robertson Plantation House, West access road, I-35 vicinity, Salado, Bell County, TX
Photographer not recorded. Library of Congress
"Shady Villa", East access Road I-35, Salado, Bell County, TX
"Shady Villa", East access Road I-35, Salado, Bell County, TX
Photographer not recorded. Library of Congress

Fires near this place

95 since 2003

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 95 fires within 5 miles of Salado between 2003 and 2017, burning about 2,502 acres in total. 1 started naturally. 2 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 burning54
Equipment and vehicle use20
Missing data/not specified/undetermined14
Power generation/transmission/distribution3
Arson/incendiarism2
Natural1
Smoking1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
4 September 2011Debris and open burning1.0 acresTexas A & M Forest Service1220 ELMER KING RD
30 September 2006Arson/incendiarism1.0 acresTexas A & M Forest Servicenot named
30 September 2005Debris and open burning261 acresTexas A & M Forest ServiceMUSTANG CREEK
22 September 2011Natural1.0 acresTexas A & M Forest ServiceHACKBERRY & GOOSNECK
21 September 2008Equipment and vehicle use1.0 acresTexas A & M Forest Servicenot named
21 September 2006Debris and open burning2.0 acresTexas A & M Forest Servicenot named
19 September 2008Equipment and vehicle use10 acresTexas A & M Forest Servicenot named
16 September 2008Equipment and vehicle use3.0 acresTexas A & M Forest Servicenot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Bell County

Mines and quarries near this place

2 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 2 workings within 5 miles of Salado: 1 producer, 1 past producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Bandas Industries Inc Reed,S LakeSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
UnknownSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

Every working recorded in Bell County

Storms near this place

45 since 1993

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Salado in 45 storm reports between 1993 and 2024: 26 hail, 12 thunderstorm wind, 4 flash flood, 2 flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
April 2022HailSalado$1,000,000Many social media reports of large hail ranging up to 4 inch in diameter hail was reported in and around the Salado, TX area. This was in addition to the 5.6+ inch hail stone that is noted separately. The large hail fell for several minutes.
June 2007FloodSalado$750,000Runoff from heavy rains caused Mills Creek to flood portions of Salado, including Mill Creek Drive and Smith Bluff. About 30 homes were evacuated and one man had to be rescued from his rooftop. A water rescue was required on the Little River, and Salado Creek flooded the Interstate 35 access roads and the bridge on Main Street by four feet of water. One vehicle was washed off the road and a high water rescue was needed.
April 2024HailSalado$500,000Emergency manager reported baseball sized hail fell in Salado.
April 2022HailSalado$500,000A social media picture indicated a 5.6+ inch diameter hail stone in Salado, TX. Swift actions were taken by NWS Fort Worth and the IBHS (Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety) to preserve and document this record hailstone. The IBHS officially measured the hailstone at: Maximum diameter 5.676 in, Mass 409.3 g, Volume 29.5 in3 making it the largest hail stone on record in the FWD CWA to date. Other large hailstones also fell in this same area.
May 2008Thunderstorm WindSalado$100,000Two foot diameter trees were snapped in half along Highway 95 in Little River Academy. Numerous signs and billboards were blown down between Salado and Little River Academy. Trees fell on and damaged cars in Little River.
May 2008Thunderstorm WindSalado$50,000Numerous trees had large limbs broken. A few trees were uprooted or snapped at the trunk. Several storage buildings were damaged, and a few homes suffered minor roof damage. Additional homes were damaged by falling trees and limbs.
May 2008Thunderstorm WindSalado$50,000Trees were blown down and the high school lost some bricks. A historic home and a restaurant in Salado suffered roof damage.
May 2008Thunderstorm WindSalado$30,000Trees were blown down and a hotel under construction was damaged at I-35 and exit 286.
November 2001Thunderstorm WindSalado$25,000There was wind damage to two recreational vehicles, one mobile home, a two story house, and signswere blown down.
May 2001Thunderstorm WindSalado$25,000A large tree was blown down onto an SUV.
May 2008Thunderstorm WindSalado$20,000A carport was damaged.
October 2009Flash FloodSalado$15,000Five bridges in Salado were closed for a few hours due to high water that covered each bridge with up to 3 feet of water. The South Ridge and Chisholm Trail bridges in Mill Creek, the Smith Bluff bridge east of Mill Creek, and two access road bridges along Interstate 35 were all closed down.
May 2001Tornado (F0)Salado$15,000The walls of a house bowed in and the roof was lifted off and moved six inches.
July 2008Thunderstorm WindSalado$12,000Rock facing was removed from the wall of a commercial building.
June 2019HailSalado$10,000Broadcast media supplied a picture of hen-egg sized hail in the city of Salado, TX.
April 2008HailSalado$5,000no account filed
March 2014HailSalado$4,000no account filed
October 2009FloodSalado$3,000Two flooded bridges along the access road of Interstate 35 in Salado were reopened during the afternoon hours, but the South Ridge bridge and Chisholm Trail bridges in Mill Creek remained closed until the following morning when the water finally drained. The closure of these two bridges cut off residents' access through the subdivision.
May 2001Thunderstorm WindSalado$2,000A porch was blown down by high winds.
April 2020Thunderstorm WindSalado$1,000A social media report indicated downed trees and power lines in the city of Salado, TX.
June 2007HailSalado$1,000no account filed
May 2024Flash FloodSalado-Media reports all low water crossings near Salado Creek 1 mile east of I-35 are out.
April 2022HailSalado-Amateur radio reported half dollar sized hail near the intersection of Highways 2484 and 1670 in Bell County.
April 2010HailSalado-Penny size hail was reported in Salado.
October 2010HailSalado-Half dollar size hail was reported near Salado.
October 2010HailSalado-Quarter size hail was reported 2 miles north of Salado.
February 2009Thunderstorm WindSalado-Two 18 wheelers were overturned. A 35-foot communications tower on top of a building was folded over. 70 MPH winds were estimated in the area.
June 2007Flash FloodSalado-Interstate 35 service roads were flooded north of FM 2484.
October 2006HailSalado-Penny-size hail reported from Salado to near Belton.
June 2004Flash FloodSalado-Water was reported over a street in town, and over FM 1123 outside of Salado. On Church Street, south of the fire department, barricades were up due to high water.
March 2000Thunderstorm WindSalado-Tractor trailer rigs were blown off I-35.
May 1994HailSalado-Three feet of water was over Interstate 35 in Salado.
April 1993HailSalado-Thunderstorms developed late in the afternoon ahead of a cold front and moved slowly southeast through parts of north central and northeast Texas during the evening hours.
April 2014HailSalado-no account filed
April 2005HailSalado-no account filed
November 2004HailSalado-no account filed
November 2004HailSalado-no account filed
March 2000HailSalado-no account filed
April 2000HailSalado-no account filed
March 2000HailSalado-no account filed
February 1998HailSalado-no account filed
May 1997HailSalado-no account filed
May 1997HailSalado-no account filed
April 1997HailSalado-no account filed
September 1996HailSalado-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Bell County

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 PlaceDistance Sheets
Prairie Dell4.9 miles14
Union Grove5.0 miles19
Summers Mill5.9 miles14
Childers Mill (historical)6.2 miles14
Dog Ridge (historical)7.6 miles19
Cedar Valley7.9 miles15
Belton8.5 miles16
Holland8.7 miles14

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 SaladoAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q1479634The 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 1367336. 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.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

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.