Rio Hondo, Texas
Rio Hondo is a small city in Cameron County, about 24 miles north of Brownsville in the flat coastal delta country of the Rio Grande Valley. It stands along the Arroyo Colorado in a landscape of irrigated farmland and citrus and vegetable acreage that has long characterized the lower valley. The waterway and surrounding wetlands give the area access to fishing and to the Laguna Madre country toward the coast.
Place essentials
Official Census snapshot- Census place type
- City
- July 2025 population
- 2,332
- Change from 2020 base
- +14.5%
- Land area
- 1.7 sq. mi.
- County footprint
- Cameron County
Place type, county footprint, and land area use the Census Bureau's January 1, 2025 geography. Population uses Vintage 2025 estimates through July 1, 2025; change compares that estimate with the April 1, 2020 estimates base. Geography file | Population file
Property here runs through the appraisal district and tax office for Cameron County. The homestead exemption, appraisal cap, protests, and any MUD, PID, or special districts all sit at the parcel level.
Official routes
Use the office for the parcel address; a mailing city is not always the governing city.
County context
What to know around Rio Hondo
County lines carry much of the property, land, water, and outdoors context around Rio Hondo.
County History
Cameron County Is Named for a Soldier of the Mier Expedition
Cameron County was created in 1848 and named for Captain Ewen Cameron, a Scottish soldier killed in Mexico during the ill-fated Mier Expedition.
Property Tax Basics
Two Offices Handle Your Property Tax in Cameron County
The Cameron Appraisal District sets your home's value; the Cameron County Tax Office sends the bill and collects the money.
City History
Brownsville Grew Up Around a U.S. Army Fort on the Rio Grande
Brownsville was founded in 1848 by merchant Charles Stillman near Fort Brown, the U.S. Army post built opposite Matamoros, Mexico.
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