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Wortham, Texas

Inside Wortham's city limits, shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 87% of mapped land, the highest of 4 cities in Freestone County. A shallow water table limits basements on 0%.

That clay share is above Freestone County's 37%. FEMA's flood data list no flood losses since 2016 in ZIP code 76693 overlapping the city. Of its 555 homes, 52% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1979.

Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources · in Freestone County

87%

expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes

0%

high water table: limits basements

0

flood losses since 2016 in 1 overlapping ZIP

52%

of homes built before 1980

Foundation repair in Wortham

Foundation repair in Wortham: shrink-swell clay limits slab homes on 87% of Wortham's mapped land, more than in 95% of Texas cities.

About 300 of Wortham's 555 homes are detached houses.

Who designs the repairThe ASCE Texas Section's repair guidelines say a Texas-licensed engineer should evaluate the foundation and design the repair (2022 guidelines)
PricesCost guide ranges compared

Soil under Wortham city limits

Expansive clay (limits slab homes)86.5%
High water table (limits basements)0.0%
Septic fields very limited86.5%
Clay swell (LEP, by area)8.8%
High-swell land (LEP 6%+)86.5%
Mapped soil1,273 acres
Soil seriesShare hereSeries nationally: expansive clay
Crockett77%94%
Wilson13%88%
Normangee8%72%
Mabank2%n/a
Ferrisunder 1%n/a
Edgeunder 1%n/a
Freestone CountyWortham
Wortham city limits inside Freestone County, shaded by the city's expansive clay share.under 10%10-25%25-40%40-60%60%+

How we count

What the numbers mean here

Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 8.8% by land area here, and 87% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 87% of the mapped land.

Clay shrinks as it dries: 100% of Freestone County is in drought on the latest map, and 87% of Wortham's mapped land has shrink-swell clay.

USDA rates 87% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.

Drought in Freestone County

100% of Freestone County is in drought (D1 or worse) on the October 13, 2026 map. County detail.

October 21, 2025Share of area in drought, weeklyOctober 13, 2026

Flood losses by ZIP code

FEMA flood records since 2016 in the ZIP codes that overlap Wortham. ZIP areas reach past city limits.

ZIPShare of city landFlood lossesPaid
76693100%0$0

Homes in Wortham

Housing units555
Median year built1979
Built before 198052%
Built 2000 or later24%
Owner-occupied47%
Median value, owner-occupied$129,000
Single-family detached62%

Nearby cities

PlaceDistanceExpansive clayHigh water table
Tehuacana 6 mi 27% 5%
Kirvin 8 mi 82% 2%
Mexia 8 mi 78% 4%
Richland 9 mi 79% 8%
Streetman 10 mi 82% 12%
Coolidge 12 mi 81% 0%
Angus 14 mi 88% under 1%
Navarro 15 mi 88% 0%

Sources: USDA SSURGO (August 5, 2026) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status