Sonora, Texas
7 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1954 and the latest in 1994. It stands in the Sonora census division. It lies in ZIP code area 76950. It lies near Lowrey Draw. The Survey maps it on the Sonora quadrangle. 2,502 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 2,129 feet above sea level.
Research this city
On record in Sonora
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 3 records
Old Mercantile Buildinglisted 1978
Sutton County Courthouselisted 1977- deBerry Ranchlisted 2011
Population over time
2 figuresSonora fell from 3,027 to 2,502 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 | 3,027 | |
| 2020 | 2,502 | -525 (-17%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
5 surveys from 7 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 Sonora quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1958 USGS Sonora quadrangle1:250000
- 1964 USGS Sonora quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1985 USGS Sonora quadrangle1:100000
- 1994 USGS Sonora quadrangle1:100000
Fires near this place
4 since 2006Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 4 fires within 5 miles of Sonora between 2006 and 2019, burning about 1,225 acres in total. 1 started naturally. None was 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 |
|---|---|
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2 |
| Debris and open burning | 1 |
| Natural | 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 July 2019 | Natural | 200 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | CR 211 SONORA |
| 10 March 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | BOND ROAD |
| 10 March 2018 | Debris and open burning | 325 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | VANDERSTUCKEN |
| 18 January 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 500 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | WEST ZONE WEST - 40 |
Storms near this place
60 of 98 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Sonora in 98 storm reports between 1993 and 2026: 54 hail, 26 flash flood, 10 thunderstorm wind, 3 tornado. 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.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2018 | Flash Flood | Sonora | $8,000,000 | Very heavy rain of eight plus inches fell north of Sonora in the vicinity of thirteen uncontrolled dams north of Sonora. Sites 1-8 are on the Dry Devils River and Sites 9-13 are on Lowrey Draw. As these dams filled, flood waters overflowed the spillways into the draws. This was the first time (as far as anyone knows) the emergency spillways were activated for some of these dams. There were no breaches, these structures worked as they were meant to function. Normally these structures would help mitigate flooding in Sonora, but previous rains had already filled up many of the sites. ||One of the deputies saw a wall of water come down the Dry Devil's Draw just north of Sonora at about 1 PM CDT near U.S. 277. This wall of water flooded many homes located near the Dry Devil's Draw in Sonora shortly after 1 PM CDT. Flood waters even flowed over the US 277 bridge on the south side of Sonora. The depth of this wall of water is estimated at around 25 feet. The flood waters cut off the city of Sonora from neighboring first responders in all directions who wanted to help. Emergency management reported about 250 homes were either damaged or destroyed. |
| June 1997 | Hail | Sonora | $100,000 | no account filed |
| April 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sonora | $50,000 | There was some wind and hail damage reported in and around Sonora. |
| May 1995 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sonora | $30,000 | Severe thunderstorms, mainly consisting of large hail on the 6th and 7th, caused limited property and crop damage in West Texas. However, high winds south of Ozona damaged outbuildings and a shed. Strong winds also destroyed a large metal storage shed in Lynn County on the 7th. Small trees were uprooted and a barn was damaged by a tornado in northeast Concho County. |
| June 1997 | Flash Flood | Sonora | $25,000 | Up to three inches of rain fell over southeastern Sutton County. |
| September 1996 | Flash Flood | Sonora | $25,000 | no account filed |
| August 1999 | Lightning | Sonora | $20,000 | Lightning struck a house located about 15 miles west of Sonora. The resulting fire destroyed approximately 40 percent of the house, including the attic and several other rooms. |
| October 2000 | Tornado (F0) | Sonora | $5,000 | A tornado briefly touched down in extreme southeast Sutton County, toppling a few trees and causing minor structural damage. |
| March 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sonora | $2,000 | Several trees were blown down by strong thunderstorm winds. |
| March 1993 | Hail | Sonora | $500 | The Sonora EOC reported golfball-size hail in Sonora. Only minor damage was noted. |
| March 2026 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sonora | - | Public reported sheds damaged and metal roof material thrown onto a power line in Sonora. Time estimated by radar. |
| May 2025 | Hail | Sonora | - | Public report from social media of quarter size hail covering the ground at the rest stop west of Sonora. |
| July 2025 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | Law enforcement reported cars stalled on Interstate 10 due to flooding. |
| July 2025 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | Law enforcement reported flood waters were getting close to flooding homes on the south side of Sonora. |
| July 2025 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | Law enforcement reported cars stalled on Interstate 10, 5 miles east of Sonora, due to flooding. |
| July 2025 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | The Sutton Country Sheriff's Office reported flooding and road closures on parts of CR 864, CR 1691, CR 307, and CR 310. In addition, streets in and around Sonora are flooded as well. |
| July 2025 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | The Sutton County Emergency Manager reported that homes were being evacuated in Sonora due to flooding. |
| August 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sonora | - | NWS storm survey of wind damage to a wool warehouse. Significant wind damage to the metal roof of the warehouse. Winds were estimated at 85 mph based on the roof damage to the warehouse. |
| August 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sonora | - | The Sutton County Sheriff's Office reported numerous roofs blown off, electrical power poles down, and numerous large trees down just south of Sonora off of U.S. HWY 277. |
| September 2025 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | The Sutton County Emergency Manager reported that multiple low water crossings around the city had 1 to 3 feet of flowing water and barricades were placed at these low water crossings. |
| June 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sonora | - | Law enforcement reported that trees and large tree limbs were blown down and shingles were blown off roofs. |
| June 2024 | Hail | Sonora | - | Public reported golf ball size hail. |
| October 2023 | Flood | Sonora | - | There was some flooding in Sonora. |
| April 2021 | Hail | Sonora | - | A report from Facebook indicated golf ball size hail fell about 5 miles north of Sonora. |
| May 2021 | Hail | Sonora | - | The public measured hail at least 2.25 inches in diameter in southern Sutton County. |
| April 2019 | Hail | Sonora | - | A picture of quarter size to half dollar size hail was received via social media. |
| May 2019 | Hail | Sonora | - | The public reported baseball size hail 12 miles east of Sonora. |
| May 2019 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | The Sutton County Sheriffs office reported a foot of water over Cusenbary Road and County Road 405. |
| May 2018 | Hail | Sonora | - | The broadcast media shared pictures via Twitter of golf ball size hail near Sonora. The time of the event is based on radar. |
| October 2018 | Flood | Sonora | - | TxDOT reported Ranch Road 864 and Ranch Road 189 in Sutton County closed due to flooding. |
| April 2016 | Hail | Sonora | - | A CoCoRaHS observer reported golf ball size hail just south of Sonora, causing broken windows and dents on vehicles. |
| June 2016 | Flood | Sonora | - | The Sutton County Sheriff's Office reported two road closures. Juno Road or Ranch Road 189 was closed at the intersection with U.S. Highway 277. Caverns Road or Ranch Road 1989 was closed near the intersection with Interstate 10. In addition, flooding was reported along two draws in the town of Sonora. Barricades were placed at Water Street and the draw, and also at the intersection of Oak and Tom Green Streets. Texas Department of Transportation reported standing water along the ditches of U.S. Highway 277 south of Sonora. |
| May 2016 | Hail | Sonora | - | Golf ball to baseball size hail damaged skylights of a residence. |
| May 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sonora | - | Public reported 4 inch diameter Live Oak tree limbs were snapped off by damaging thunderstorm winds about 5 miles east of Sonora. |
| May 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sonora | - | A trained spotter reported numerous tree branches down by damaging thunderstorm winds. |
| May 2015 | Hail | Sonora | - | A National Weather Service employee reported golf ball sized hail along Interstate 10 about 15.6 miles east of Sonora. |
| September 2013 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | The Sheriff's Office reported Juno Highway or Ranch Road 189, located about 14 miles south of Sonora, was closed because of flooding. |
| September 2013 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | The Sheriff's Office reported Bond Road or Ranch Road 1691, about 4 miles southeast of Sonora, was closed due to flooding. |
| September 2013 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | U.S. Highway 277 located just south of Sonora was closed because of high water. |
| March 2012 | Hail | Sonora | - | Quarter size hail was reported four miles east of the intersection of the Caverns of Sonora Road and Ranch Road 189. |
| March 2012 | Hail | Sonora | - | Golf ball size hail was reported. |
| June 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sonora | - | Tree limbs were blown down at the KHOS Radio Station. |
| April 2009 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | Law Enforcement and the city road crews reported 3 feet of water running over the roads in Sonora. County Road 202 just northeast of Sonora had a foot of water over the road. |
| March 2009 | Hail | Sonora | - | Penny to nickel size hail was reported. |
| April 2009 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | Texas Department of Transportation indicates that Ranch Road 2597 was closed due to flooding at the intersection of Ranch Road 864. |
| April 2009 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | Texas Department of Transportation indicated that Ranch Road 2596 was closed due to flooding in Sutton County at the First Draw which is located just past the intersection with Ranch Road 864. |
| April 2009 | Hail | Sonora | - | Hail just larger than golfballs covered the road on Highway 277. |
| May 2007 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | A road that paralleled Interstate 10 just east of Sonora was flooded. |
| May 2007 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | Texas Department of Transportation reported Farm to Market Road 2596 in northwest Sutton County was closed due to one foot or more of water over the road. |
| May 2007 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | Highway 2129 was closed off of Loop 312 due to high water across the road. |
| June 2004 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | County road 189 was closed for a time due to high water south of Sonora. |
| October 2003 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | Road 1691 was closed after heavy rains flooded the road. |
| May 2003 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | Reports of numerous street and road closures due to flooding. |
| July 2002 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | Significant street flooding was reported in Sonora. |
| October 2000 | Tornado (F0) | Sonora | - | A storm spotter tracked a tornado for 7 minutes in extreme southern Sutton County, remaining south of Interstate 10. Damage was light. |
| May 1999 | Tornado (F0) | Sonora | - | A tornado briefly touched down west of Sonora in western Sutton County. |
| June 1999 | Flash Flood | Sonora | - | Highway 189 southwest of Sonora closed due to high water. |
| June 2018 | Hail | Sonora | - | no account filed |
| April 2016 | Hail | Sonora | - | no account filed |
| April 2016 | Hail | Sonora | - | no account filed |
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 Sonora | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q982510 | 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 1368606. 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.




