Sutherland Springs is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

located on the old Spanish land grant of Manuel Tarin in northern

Wilson County, Texas Wilson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 49,753. Its county seat is Floresville. The county is named after James Charles Wilson. Wilson County is part of the San Antonio–New Br ...

, United States. It is located on U.S. Highway 87 at the intersection of Farm Road 539.

History

Linne-oil-field2016-1(sutherland-springs)

Sutherland Springs was

plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Surveys to show the distance and bea ...

ted in 1854, and named after John Sutherland Jr., a pioneer citizen. A post office has been in operation at Sutherland Springs since 1851.

2017 shooting

On November 5, 2017, Devin Patrick Kelley shot 26 people dead and injured 22 at the community's First Baptist Church. The gunfire was heard by Stephen Willeford, a church neighbor and former NRA instructor, who grabbed his weapon and ran toward the scene barefoot. Willeford seriously wounded Kelley in a rapid exchange of gunfire, then corralled a nearby car and chased Kelley as he tried to flee the scene in his truck. After a high-speed chase, Kelley succumbed to a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. He was found dead in a roadside ditch. It was the deadliest

mass shooting There is a lack of consensus on how to define a mass shooting. Most terms define a minimum of three or four victims of gun violence (not including the shooter or in an inner city) in a short period of time, although an Australian study from 20 ...

in Texas history and the fifth deadliest mass shooting in the history of the United States.

Geography

Old Sutherland Springs occupies a portion of the south bank of Cibolo Creek, with New Sutherland Springs (which is mostly in ruins) on the north bank of the creek.

Bibliography

*''The Good Old Days: A History of LaVernia'' was published by members of the civic government class at LaVernia High School for the 1936-37 academic school year. * ''Wilson County Centennial 1860-1960'' was published by the Wilson County Library; it is the official centennial program handed out by the local community for the "100-year celebration" of the county's establishment.

References

External links

Sutherland Springs Museum

Handbook of Texas on Sutherland Springs
* {{authority control Unincorporated communities in Texas Unincorporated communities in Wilson County, Texas Greater San Antonio Populated places established in 1854 1854 establishments in Texas