Rancho Toluca

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

From the record

One of 23 National Register listings published here for Hidalgo County · listed in 1983 · category: Building.

Sources: the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

Address. FM 1015, Progreso, 78579
When was it listed? July 1983
Category. building
Census division. Southeast Hidalgo
Architectural style. Gothic Revival
National Register reference number. 83004513 - the number the National Park Service assigned this property when it was listed, and the key its nomination file is catalogued under at the National Archives.

Fires near this property

87 since 1995

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 87 fires within 5 miles of Rancho Toluca between 1995 and 2019, burning about 876 acres in total. None started naturally. 23 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	47
Arson/incendiarism	23
Missing data/not specified/undetermined	16
Smoking	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
27 September 2005	Debris and open burning	2.0 acres	Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge	OTHL CANAL
22 September 2011	Debris and open burning	under an acre	Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge	LA COMA 2
12 September 2011	Debris and open burning	13 acres	Texas A & M Forest Service	11-675
9 August 2015	Arson/incendiarism	under an acre	Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge	1015
31 August 2011	Debris and open burning	under an acre	Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge	LA COMA
29 August 2006	Smoking	2.0 acres	Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge	SMOKEY JOE'S
24 August 2005	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	1.0 acres	Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge	RUBEN
24 August 2002	Debris and open burning	1.0 acres	South Texas Refuge Complex	WHITEWING

Every fire recorded in Hidalgo County

Storms near this property

12 since 2002

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Progreso, the town this property stands in, in 12 storm reports between 2002 and 2025: 4 flash flood, 3 thunderstorm wind, 3 flood, 1 heavy rain. The reports record 1 death. 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
August 2010	Flood	Progreso	1 killed	Flooding of the Lower Rio Grande Valley Flood Control Project floodway/levee system (spillway), which includes the Banker Floodway (from near Granjeno to just south of Pharr), the Main Floodway (from just south of Pharr to the split at the Arroyo Colorado just southwest of Mercedes, the Arroyo Colorado itself, and the North Floodway, (which extends from near Mercedes to near La Villa before curving east to northwest Cameron County), continued through a good portion of August, as water continued to be diverted through Anzalduas for several days beyond the time that water was receding upstream of the dam. Continuing water diversion helps reduce the potential for backwater flooding along the improved levee section (Penitas to Anzalduas) as well as unprotected shorelines west of Penitas. At the same time, the diversion maintained several feet of water in the floodways for days to come which receded more slowly. The floodway emptied out for the most part by August 15th, but local high water hazards continued through at least the 18th. \|\|These floodways, protected by a robust system of levees and gates, protected communities outside of the levees by containing up to 50%, or 4 to 8 to feet of fast flowing water, within them into the first third of August. Unfortunately, a number of residences, dozens of paved and unpaved roads with low water bridges, and some agriculture are located within the floodways; significant damage was noted in several locations. Pumping and plugging operations near Weslaco and La Villa successfully kept high water out of poor drainage locations where the potential for freshwater flooding due to heavy rains would have been exacerbated with periodic thunderstorms, which did not materialize in August. Closed roads included FM 493 and FM 1015, each moderately traveled; at least five homes were flooded along the Main Floodway south of Pharr along I Road; 15 to 20 homes were asked to voluntarily evacuate, and at least two other residences were flooded south of Weslaco near FM 88. Floodwaters also submerged portions of the Llano Grande golf course in Mercedes. \|\|Voluntary evacuations were finally lifted along I Road (Capote Farms subdivision) on August 18th at 6 PM CST, where the 15 to 20 homes mentioned above were located. Wet, muddy conditions continued in these areas until the last week of August; damage assessments began on roadways and bridges impacted in the floodway after the waters finally receded. In all, the floodways contained water for more than 6 weeks.\|\|High flowing water along the river covered a large portion of the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge (Santa Ana) south and southeast of Pharr, including a number of unpaved roads. Damage to the roads was unknown at this time; the flooding occurred downstream of the Anzalduas Diversion Dam; river gages downstream at San Benito and Brownsville remained in action stage. Floodwaters did not reach public or private structures, nor roadways, between the Refuge and the Main Floodway. The water finally receded back to muddy pockets sometime between August 27th and 28th.\|\|There was one reported fatality in early August; a man drowned after reportedly driving his vehicle accidentally into the fast flowing waters of the floodway late on August 1st or early on August 2nd. His body was found along the south side of the Main Floodway, near S. Jackson and W. Juan Balli Road just west of Pharr. \|\|Several crops may have been destroyed by the flood along the Main and North Floodways, but damage was unknown as of this writing in this area. Property and infrastructure damage may have exceeded [$10] million in these areas. Note: Dollar damage estimated for the flooding are provided in the July report.
October 2015	Flash Flood	Progreso	$50,000,000	After hours of rainfall the nuisance flooding became a flash flood. Several inches to at least a foot of water rose into homes in the Las Brisas subdivision on the east side of town, with three to five feet of water on neighborhood streets. At least three feet of water submerged vehicles along the frontage roads between the Westgate and Airport Road exits during the peak of the flash flooding. Additional high water closed portions of FM 1015 between Weslaco and Progresso (which also had flash flooding of unknown depth)and FM 493 near Donna. At least 26 separate boat rescues were made in flooded neighborhoods and more than 500 homes were impacted by some level of floodwater.
July 2010	Flood	Progreso	$6,450,000	Incredible rainfall estimated to be more than 50 inches in around 10 days' time between June 30th and July 9th across the front range and peaks of the Sierra Madre Oriental in Coahuila Province, Mexico, ultimately flowed through the entire Lower Rio Grande basin for much of the summer of 2010. \|\|Nearly a month of dam releases from Falcon International Reservoir at 60,000 cfs ultimately required water to be diverted at Anzalduas Dam (southwest of Granjeno) into Mexico and the U.S. Floodway system, which includes the Banker Floodway (from near Granjeno to just south of Pharr), the Main Floodway (from just south of Pharr to the split at the Arroyo Colorado just southwest of Mercedes, the Arroyo Colorado itself, and the North Floodway, which extends from near Mercedes to near La Villa before curving east to northwest Cameron County. \|\|These floodways, protected by a robust system of levees and gates, protected communities outside of the levees by containing up to 50%, or 4 to 8 to feet of fast flowing water, within them. Unfortunately, a number of residences, dozens of paved and unpaved roads with low water bridges, and some agriculture are located within the floodways; significant damage was noted in several locations. Pumping and plugging operations near Weslaco and La Villa successfully kept high water out of poor drainage locations where the potential for freshwater flooding due to heavy rains would have been exacerbated with periodic thunderstorms, which only came once (July 26th). Closed roads included FM 493 and FM 1015, each moderately traveled; at least five homes were flooded along the Main Floodway south of Pharr along I Road; 15 to 20 homes were asked to voluntarily evacuate, and at least two other residences were flooded south of Weslaco near FM 88. Floodwaters also submerged portions of the Llano Grande golf course in Mercedes. \|\|High flowing water along the river covered a large portion of the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge (Santa Ana) south and southeast of Pharr, including a number of unpaved roads. Damage to the roads was unknown at this time; the flooding occurred downstream of the Anzalduas Diversion Dam; river gages downstream at San Benito and Brownsville remained in action stage. Floodwaters did not reach public or private structures, nor roadways, between the Refuge and the Main Floodway.\|\|Nearly $5.2 million in lost dryland/irrigated crop yield was lost in and near the Floodway system in Hidalgo County. One of the grain losses was $50 thousand, including 170 acres of unharvested land in the Main Floodway south of Donna. Several other crops such as cotton, corn, and citrus were destroyed by the flood along the Main and North Floodways. For cotton, a little over $1 million was destroyed; for corn, a little over $500 thousand was destroyed, and for sorghum, more than $3.5 million was lost. The cost for re-leveling damaged cropland in and near the Hidalgo County portion of the floodway was $7.5 million. \|\|Other property and infrastructure damage likely exceeded $5 million in and near the Floodway.
April 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	Progreso	$150,000	An NWS Storm Survey found some metal roof damage to Dorothy Thompson Middle School in Progreso. Additional damage was found in and around the town of Progreso, including several large tree branches down and a large tree partially uprooted at the corner of Creager Road and S Mile 2 W on the southeast side of Progreso. There was also significant damage to the roof of a large metal warehouse just east of the intersection of Creager Road and S Mile 2 W.
May 2015	Thunderstorm Wind	Progreso	$2,000	Progresso Police Department reported a tree was blown down onto a vehicle at a residence on Watts Street in Progresso.
March 2025	Flash Flood	Progreso	-	Torrential rains that previously affected the McAllen/Edinburg metro area reached southeast Hidalgo County, from south of Weslaco to Edcouch and east to the Hidalgo/Cameron line, then south along the Mercedes/La Feria line and all the way to between Progreso and just west of Santa Maria. Similar to the situation in the Donna-Weslaco area, the IH-2 frontage road was littered with flooded vehicles, with rescued vehicles along the side of the elevated expressway. An estimated 3 or more feet of water was on the frontage roads.\|\|The rain in this area came in multiple rounds. A first round occurred between 430 and 6 PM, with additional rounds between 7 and 8 PM and again fro 930 to around 11 PM,and a final windy round around midnight March 28th CST (1 AM CDT). Water rescues were first reported in Mercedes at around 7 PM CST (8 PM CDT). As of this writing, damage was unknown but hundreds of structures likely had varying degrees, ranging from affected to major damage. \|\|High water would continue well into March 28th and beyond; the flood control system (floodway) had up to 20% capacity due to spillage and pumping of urban flood areas into it. \|\|Full damage statistics will be available later in 2025.
June 2021	Funnel Cloud	Progreso	-	Pictures and videos were received via social media of multiple funnel clouds observed between Progreso and Weslaco. Timing is estimated.
October 2021	Flood	Progreso	-	The Weslaco Chief of Police reported 2.19 of rain, with 1.5 falling in one hour. Several reports of street flooding were passed on with water starting to top curbs.
July 2010	Heavy Rain	Progreso	-	Heavy rains, estimated by radar between 2 and 4 inches and measured by both cooperative and CoCoRaHS rain gages (between 1.84 and 2.97 inches), including 2.41 inches in Mercedes, 2.24 inches in Edinburg, and 2.47 inches in Weslaco. The core of the heavy rain fell between 1 PM and 330 PM CST and included Progresso, Weslaco, Donna, and Alamo. Nuisance urban-type poor drainage flooding likely occurred in areas of heavy rain; there was no indication of any enhanced flooding along the main and north floodway between Progresso and Mercedes.
March 2003	Thunderstorm Wind	Progreso	-	Strong thunderstorms downed power lines in the town of Progreso. The damage was reported by the Texas Department of Public Safety.
March 2003	Flash Flood	Progreso	-	Heavy rainfall of 4 to 5 inches over the course of 3 hours produced flash flooding over Progreso and southern Mercedes.
October 2002	Flash Flood	Progreso	-	Flash flooding in Progreso resulted in several closed roads and water entering homes in town.

Every storm recorded in Hidalgo 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	Property	Distance	Listed
	Cortez Hotel	6.9 miles	2004

Sources for this property

National Archives record	The nomination case file for reference 83004513 in Record Group 79.
Hidalgo County	All 23 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.