On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Sonterra is more historic than 6% of U.S. towns, #512 of 642 in Texas. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Sonterra’s overall grade.
Few Texas towns list much on the Register (a typical Texas town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Sonterra’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (34% of Texas towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±0.7 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: our sources. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Sonterra’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Sonterra. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1893Georgetown sheet · 1:125,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Sonterra.
The story so far
Sonterra, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Sonterra yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Sonterra is a planned community and census-designated place (CDP) in Williamson County, Texas, United States. The population was 7,679 at the 2020 census. It was first listed as a CDP before the 2020 census. It is in the northern part of the county, bordered to the north by the city of Jarrell. Interstate 35 forms part of the western border of the community, with access from Exit 275 (Sonterra Boulevard). I-35 leads north 27 miles (43 km) to Temple and south 40 miles (64 km) to Austin, the state capital.
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
By decade
No old photos in the archives yet
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
Sonterra is more historic than 6% of U.S. towns, #512 of 642 in Texas. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
How old are the homes in Sonterra?
0.0% of Sonterra’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 1.6% for a Texas town; the median home was built in 2015.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
