Donna, Texas
| Donna, Texas | |
|---|---|
| City | |
| Motto: "The Heart of the Valley" | |
 Location of Donna, Texas |
|
| Coordinates: 26°10′13″N 98°2′57″W / 26.17028°N 98.04917°WCoordinates: 26°10′13″N 98°2′57″W / 26.17028°N 98.04917°W | |
| Country |  United States of America |
| State |
 Texas
|
| County |
 Hidalgo
|
| Area | |
| • Total | 5.1 sq mi (13.1 km2) |
| • Land | 5.0 sq mi (13.1 km2) |
| • Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2) |
| Elevation | 92 ft (28 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 15,798 |
| • Density | 3,100/sq mi (1,200/km2) |
| Time zone | Central (CST) (UTC-6) |
| • Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP code | 78537 |
| Area code(s) | 956 |
| FIPS code | 48-20884 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1334485 |
| Website | donnatx.com |
Donna is a city in Hidalgo County, Texas, United States. The population was 15,798 at the 2010 census.
Donna is named for Donna Hooks, daughter of T. J. Hooks who, beginning in 1900, did significant land development work in the then frontier world of the Rio Grande Valley.
The region was originally part of the La Blanca Land Grant that was made to Lino Cabazos on May 18, 1834. The first Anglo-American Settler was John F. Webber who, in 1839, moved to escape persecution of his marriage to Sylvia Hector, a former slave.
In 1902, Thomas Jefferson Hooks formed the LaBlanca Agricultural Company, which purchased 23,000 acres (93 km2) (93 km²) in Hidalgo County. Part of this purchase was given to his daughter, Donna Hooks Fletcher, a divorcee. In 1904, The St. Louis, Brownsville, and Mexico Railway reached the area, and a town was formed that July. In 1907, the town was given a depot station that was named Donna in Hooks' honor.
Donna is off Interstate 2/U.S. Highway 83 and State Spur 374, fourteen miles (21 km) southeast of McAllen in southeastern Hidalgo County. It is in territory that was granted to Lino Cabazos as part of the La Blanca land grant on May 19, 1834, by the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. The Cabazos family inhabited the area for at least twenty years after taking possession of the land, and their descendants continued to live in the area into the twentieth century. The first known Anglo-American settler was John F. Webber, who, accompanied by his wife Sylvia (Hector), a former slave, settled in the area in 1839. The Webbers moved to the area in order to escape persecution for their interracial marriage.
Several families from northern states, including the Ruthven, Champion, and Hooks families, settled the area. Thomas Jefferson Hooks arrived in the Lower Rio Grande valley in 1900 and the following year moved his family to Run in southeastern Hidalgo County. In May 1902 he helped to form the La Blanca Agricultural Company, which purchased 23,000 acres (93 km2) fronting the river two miles (3 km) east and two miles (3 km) west of the site of present Donna and extending north eighteen miles (29 km). He gave part of his purchase to his twenty-one-year-old daughter, Donna Hooks Fletcher, a divorcée.
She settled in the area and established the Alameda (Grove) Ranch. Fletcher stocked the ranch with Jersey cattle purchased from the Lassater Ranch in Falfurrias and ran a successful butter business. The Hidalgo and San Miguel Extension (later called the Sam Fordyce Branch) of the St. Louis, Brownsville and Mexico Railway reached the site in July 1904, when the town was founded. In 1907 the town received a depot and was named Donna in honor of Donna Fletcher, who was postmistress when the Donna post office opened in 1908.
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