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Photograph of Willacy County Courthouse
Photograph by Larry D. Moore, CC BY 4.0. Via Wikimedia Commons.

Willacy County Courthouse

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2017.

From the record

“The Willacy County Courthouse is a historic three-story building in Raymondville, Texas, and the former courthouse of Willacy County, Texas. It was designed in the Classical Revival architectural style, and it was the county courthouse until February 2015.”

Wikipedia article Willacy County Courthouse, CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of 2 National Register listings published here for Willacy County · listed in 2017 · category: Building.

Sources: the Wikipedia article · the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

  • What is counted as historic. The nomination lists 2 buildingss as contributing to the listing.
  • Address. 547 W. Hidalgo Ave., Raymondville, 78580
  • When was it listed? January 2017
  • Category. building
  • Census division. Raymondville
  • Architectural style. Neoclassical architecture
  • Architect. Henry T. Phelps
  • National Register reference number. 100000507 - assigned by the National Park Service when the property was listed.

Fires near this property

62 since 2002

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 62 fires within 5 miles of Willacy County Courthouse between 2002 and 2020, burning about 1,814 acres in total. None 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
Missing data/not specified/undetermined39
Debris and open burning14
Arson/incendiarism4
Power generation/transmission/distribution2
Equipment and vehicle use2
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
13 September 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined25 acresTexas A & M Forest ServiceBRUSH/GRASS MIXTURE FIRE
1 September 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined30 acresTexas A & M Forest ServiceBRUSH GRASS MIXTURE
7 August 2011Debris and open burning1.0 acresTexas A & M Forest ServiceGRASS FIRE
5 August 2011Debris and open burning10 acresTexas A & M Forest ServiceGRASS FIRE
29 August 2009Debris and open burning10 acresTexas A & M Forest ServiceGRASS FIRE
25 August 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined12 acresTexas A & M Forest ServiceGRASS FIRE
10 August 2011Equipment and vehicle use10 acresTexas A & M Forest ServiceNATURAL VEGITATION
6 July 2011Debris and open burning1.0 acresTexas A & M Forest ServiceTRASH FIRE

Every fire recorded in Willacy County

Storms near this property

44 since 1999

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Raymondville, the town this property stands in, in 44 storm reports between 1999 and 2024: 14 thunderstorm wind, 11 hail, 7 flash flood, 5 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
May 2009Thunderstorm WindRaymondville$50,000A microburst from a cluster of thunderstorms moving through Raymondville toward Lyford rolled a new but unsecured mobile home just west of Raymondville. Nearby, several fences were blown down, and the door to an industrial building was blown in. Farther south, at about the same time, an amateur radio operator reported |estimated wind gusts of 50 mph or higher occurred just north of Lyford.
August 2005Tornado (F0)Raymondville$50,000no account filed
April 2023Thunderstorm WindRaymondville$40,000Pictures from the Raymondville area of Willacy County showed damage from a line from south of HWY 186 and S 1st Street to a quarter mile north of the Raymondville Country Club along S 7th Street. Some of the pictures included a part of a wood roof peeled back from a porch on W Gem Street and some gate and metal roof damage to a garage along S 7th Street. There was also a video shared from the Holiday Inn Express near the intersection of US-77/I-69E and HWY 186 looking to the southwest showing a large gust front blowing through Raymondville in the areas mentioned above. A closer inspection of the video shows some debris lofted into the air and was used a guide for the estimated 70 mph wind gusts. The time is based on the video and radar.
August 2019Thunderstorm WindRaymondville$25,000One roof was blown off a residence in Raymondville, and there were several calls to dispatch of trees and power poles down between Raymondville and Lyford.
October 2015Heavy RainRaymondville$10,000An estimated 2 to 4 inches of rain fell across Raymondville leading to nuisance and urban flooding that would later reach into a few businesses in town.
June 2011Heavy RainRaymondville$10,000Slow moving thunderstorms, containing more than an hour of torrential rains, dumped between 3 and 6 inches in central Willacy County during the early and mid afternoon of June 22nd. In Raymondville, up to a foot of standing water was observed by storm spotters and the county Emergency Manager; several roads were temporarily closed due to the urban/poor drainage flooding. No water reached structures. Observed rainfall ranged from just under 3 inches on the west side of Raymondville to 6.10 inches 6 miles east of Raymondville (San Perlita). Other minor flooding was reported in Sebastian (just north of the Cameron/Willacy County line), with backyards turning to low water lakes and streets with more than a foot of water in them.||The flooding in Sebastian intensified on the 23rd, reaching into properties as poor drainage structure in town (pipe structure) could not handle the heavy rains and flooding reached into the ground floor of a number of structures in town.
May 2011HailRaymondville$5,000A friend of an NWS employee reported Golfball size hail in Raymondville, some which caused dents and dings to several vehicles parked outside, as the first of two hailstorms scooted through Willacy County during the mid afternoon of May 15th, 2011.
June 2011LightningRaymondville$5,000Frequent cloud to ground lightning, particularly on the 22nd, caught a 400 barrel oil container on fire in Willacy County, and effects of another strike injured a woman attempting to enter her vehicle, all occurring around 3 PM CDT. The container fire was put out by the torrential rains; the woman was admitted to Valley Baptist Medical Center for observation.
May 2010Thunderstorm WindRaymondville$3,000Trees and large limbs were blown down on various streets in Raymondville. Time and duration are estimated by radar, based on core of estimated winds between 50 and 52 knots a few thousand feet above the surface.
May 2015Thunderstorm WindRaymondville$2,000Willacy County EM reported a telephone pole blown down at 100 East Sunset Avenue in Raymondville and at the intersection of FM 1762 and Business 77 in Raymondville. Peak winds were estimated to be 45 mph.
May 1999Thunderstorm WindRaymondville$2,000Trees down.
November 2013Flash FloodRaymondville$1,000Slow moving thunderstorms dropped over three inches of rain over the Raymondville area in the matter of a few hours, with a nearby COOP site reporting 3.2 inches. This rainfall caused water to rise rapidly in downton Raymondville. The Willacy County emergency manager reported several inches of water entering the Raymondville City Hall building.
July 2008Heavy RainRaymondville$1,000A number of roads in typically poor drainage locations of Raymondville sustained minor flooding, when persistent bands of torrential rains moved through the western half of Willacy County during the morning and early afternoon of July 7th. In general, rainfall between 2 and 3 inches fell during this time period, near the end of a weeklong welcome drenching that that dropped between 5 and 7 inches, perhaps higher in a few spots, across the more populated areas of the Lower Rio Grande Valley, stretching north and northwest toward the King Ranch (Kenedy County) and northeast Hidalgo County.| |Street flooding seeped into the the Raymondville City Hall, soaking some carpeting and forcing crews to sandbag the doorways. Other streets were blocked by Law Enforcement to prevent vehicles from pushing floodwaters into stores in poor drainage areas of downtown. As of this writing, no significant damage was reported.||The rains ended by mid afternoon on the 7th, and minor street flooding subsided.
June 2017Thunderstorm WindRaymondville$500Large tree reported down via social media. Time estimated based on radar.
March 2024HailRaymondville-There were several videos and pictures sent to the local news media of nickel size hail.
April 2021HailRaymondville-Law enforcement reported dime-sized hail in the city of Raymondville as thunderstorms moved through the area. Time frame is estimated.
April 2021HailRaymondville-The Willacy County Sheriff's Department reported hail up to the size of nickels in Raymondville as storms moved through the area. Time frame is estimated.
July 2018Tornado (EF0)Raymondville-The Emergency Management Coordinator from Willacy County, Texas, reported a small tornado briefly touched down between Raymondville and San Perlita. There was no structural damage, but patches of sugar cane were blown down based on photo evidence, and a short video confirmed the brief touch down.
May 2015Thunderstorm WindRaymondville-Willacy County Sheriffs Office reported estimated wind gusts of 60 mph at their location.
May 2015Heavy RainRaymondville-Willacy County EM reported that in Raymondville, Hidalgo Street from 4th Street to 10th Street had water across from curb to curb and that the city was closing the road.
May 2013Heavy RainRaymondville-Around 2.5 inches of rain fell in less than two hours just southwest of Raymondville, leaving ponded water in streets and fields and some nuisance urban flooding behind. The event, which occurred very early on a Saturday morning, had little impact with few people out.
December 2012Thunderstorm WindRaymondville-The public reported that a barn was destroyed 5 miles west of Raymondville. The barn also crushed a car. Winds were estimated at 70 to 80 mph.
December 2012Thunderstorm WindRaymondville-Raymondville Police Department reported that the Precinct 1 garage west of Raymondville on Highway 186 sustained heavy damage from straight line thunderstorm winds. The garage doors were blown down and a section of hurricane fencing near the garage was also blown down.
December 2012Thunderstorm WindRaymondville-Raymondville Police Department reported estimated 60 mph winds when the storm came through.
April 2012HailRaymondville-Willacy County emergency manager reported penny to golf ball size hail across Raymondville.
April 2012Tornado (EF0)Raymondville-Tornado reported near Wal-Mart in Raymondville. Tornado touched down briefly. No damage reported.
May 2012HailRaymondville-Public reported nickel size hail near Raymondville, about 2 miles east of Highway 77.
May 2012HailRaymondville-Nickel sized hail was reported at the intersection of 1st St. and Tampico Ave., also on the north side of town, at 434 PM CDT, by the public. Report was relayed to the NWS by a local weather broadcaster.
May 2012Thunderstorm WindRaymondville-Emergency manager reported winds from 50 to 60 mph in Raymondville.
June 2010Tornado (EF0)Raymondville-Texas Military Forces reported a small, brief touch down near Highway 77 north of Raymondville. No damage was reported as of this writing.
May 2009HailRaymondville-A Raymondville Volunteer Fire Department employee reported penny size hail fell in the city of Raymondville during a thunderstorm that moved through Willacy County. The Willacy County Emergency Manager also reported penny size hail had fallen in the city of Raymondville during this thunderstorm.
May 2007Flash FloodRaymondville-Texas DPS reported water covering U.S. Highway 77 in Raymondville.
May 2007Flash FloodRaymondville-Strong thunderstorms produced from 5-7 inches of rain over southwest and western Willacy County. The rains resulted in the closure of Farm to Market Road 1015 south of Highway 186.
August 2007Flash FloodRaymondville-Willacy county emergency manager reported 4 inches of floodwater on FM186 and 10th street in downtown Raymondville.
July 2007Flash FloodRaymondville-Four to five inches of rain flooded much of the city of Raymondville. Road 186 closed from 3rd to 10th Streets.
July 2007Flash FloodRaymondville-Flooding on Business Hwy 77 1/4 mile north of FM 490 and at the intersection of FM490 and 1834.
May 2002Thunderstorm WindRaymondville-Storm spotter estimated 70 mph wind gust lifted trampoline into the air against the house and fence blown over
September 2002Flash FloodRaymondville-Intense thunderstorms produced flash flooding of homes and city streets in Raymondville. Portions of Highway 186 near Raymondville were also closed due to floodwaters.
October 2002Thunderstorm WindRaymondville-Thunderstorm winds produced damage to several mobile home awnings and roofs in the Gulf View RV Park in Raymondville. A few small trees were uprooted while larger trees had limbs severed. A storm survey found evidence of winds to 75 mph.
October 2002FloodRaymondville-Street flooding due to strong thunderstorms was reported by the Raymondville Police Department.
September 2001Tornado (F0)Raymondville-A weak tornado was reported by the Willacy County Sheriff's Department at the intersection of FM 490 and FM 1425, or about four miles southwest of Raymondville.
April 2003HailRaymondville-no account filed
March 2000HailRaymondville-no account filed
March 2000HailRaymondville-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Willacy County

Map coverage status

No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.

Listed places nearby

1 within 8 miles

Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.

Photograph PropertyDistance Listed
Old Lyford High School5.0 miles1985

Sources for this property

National Archives recordThe nomination case file for reference 100000507 in Record Group 79.
Wikipedia articleCommunity-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA.
Willacy CountyAll 2 listed properties in this county.

Provenance

  • Listing record. National Park Service National Register of Historic Places, listed-properties dataset, current to 2026-05-22.
  • Map join. Address geocoded through the United States Census geocoder, then tested against the published boundary of every sheet in the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection.
  • How this page is made. Listing fields come from federal records; map-sheet coverage is a labelled coordinate-to-boundary calculation, not a source-field claim.
  • 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.